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Family run farm -  Denis Snr & Denis Jnr full time farming.

Good mix of experience and education (Denis Jnr has level 8 degree in Ag from UCD).

Continued desire to improve farm.

Soil testing.

Mostly dry ground.

Good level of grazing infrastructure already in place (roadways, paddock system, water supply).

Farm walks attended by all farm staff.

Help of a very dependable farm adviser available.

Farm machinery - much of the equipment needed for reseeding, fertilizer spreading, and silage conservation is available on the farm.

Reliable contractors available where required.

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Fitting tasks like grass measuring into an already busy workload will be difficult.

Sourcing of skilled, reliable labour is a challenge.

Returns from Dairy to Beef enterprise have been declining in recent years with Brexit threatening the enterprises viability.

Animal Health - Herd has been locked up in the past. Controlling lameness is a continuous challenge.

Land availability in the area is a challenge to expansion.

Highly stocked.

Parts of the farm are stony with light soils.

Multiple stock groups.

Fragmentation - getting slurry to outblocks.

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Could join a grass based discussion group.

Kildalton college is nearby - demonstrates sustainable dairy farming.

Could hire Grasstec to map farm.

Start grass measuring.

Utilise measurement tools available on market.

Join PBI or Agrinet.

Implement structured reseeding plan

Lease more land.

Land improvement.

Zero grazing in the shoulders of the year.

Low emission slurry spreading - young farmer grant aid.

Underpass to increase grazing platform.

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Extreme weather events are becoming evermore frequent - farm was affected by the drought last summer.

Price of inputs - Fertiliser, diesel, concentrates.

Brexit - with the outcome unpredictable, brexit may halt any plans for investment required to complete the five year plan.

Potential Glyphosate ban - Roundup is an important feature of the farms reseeding strategy.

Price for produce - milk price volatility, poor beef prices.

EU policy & regulations - GHG regulations, continuation of Nitrates derogation?

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Soil test the farm.

Develop paddock level nutrient plan.

Upgrade water supply.

Begin applying slurry with trailing shoe rather than splash plate.

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The objective of my five year grassland management plan will be to focus on maximising milk and MS/ha output on the milking platform as efficiently as possible.

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Grass utilisation will continue to be an
excellent indicator of farm profitability
(Shalloo et al., 2009)

For every extra 1t DM/ha utilised, net profit increases by €105/ha (Egan, 2017)

The farms that are monitoring farm cover regularly are more likely to feed their cows better at grass, achieve more grazing's per paddock, improve grass production and increase farm profit irrespective of milk price. (O’Donovan., et al 2017)

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Continue grass measuring.

Continue using DST..

Implement reseeding plan.

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Start measuring every week.

Enter data into pasture base.

Implement spring rotation & Autumn planners.

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Dairy & Beef enterprises on this case study farm

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Dairy & Beef enterprises on this case study farm

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200 cow, fully spring calving herd along with replacements, some followers and  stock bulls.

Dairy to beef calves are either sold at weaning or at 18 month's old in the mart.

80 ha grazing platform with 3 other blocks totaling 42 ha that is used for silage production, heifer rearing and for the Dairy to Beef enterprise.

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Continue measuring.

Analyse data from the previous 2 years of measuring.

Assess stocking rate

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Continue to measure & budget

Soil test and assess progress.

Improve infrastructure on the farm - tweak the paddock system and sizes, Resurface roadways,

Carry out cleaning of open drains & suirs any as well as any drainage work required.

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Continue grass measuring and use data collected to review:
Stocking rate, number of animals, animal performance, supplementation level, herbage grown & utilisation.

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Ashtown, Kilmacthomas, Co.Waterford

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We can design and install water systems in any enviroment, from Sports fields to full dairy farm systems

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Zero Grazer has 15 perfect machines for all your
grassland management needs

Reduce High Feed Costs Reduce expensive feed costs and move to an increased grass diet.

Increase Protein and Butterfat Quality Grass = Quality milk

Avoid Land Damage Take the pressure off grazing ground in wet conditions.

Increased Grass Growth Increase your grass growth and utilisation

Make Use Of All Your Land No need for the logistical nightmare of walking cows long distances.

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access to our Brochure

Hear What a Few of Our Previous Customers Had to Say

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The engineering skill throughout my machine just show the high level Zero Grazer are at. If its high speed, high out put and performance your looking for, Zero Grazer are the company you need to deal with.

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Save Money on Feed and Fertiliser Costs

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Large Range of Machines

We have many different sizes. 15 in total with many options.

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Reduce High Feed Costs Reduce expensive feed costs and move to an increased grass diet. Increase Protein and Butterfat Quality Grass = Quality milk Avoid Land Damage Take the pressure off grazing ground in wet conditions. Increased Grass Growth Increase your grass growth and utilisation Make Use Of All Your Land No need for the logistical nightmare of walking cows long distances.

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PastureBase Ireland. PastureBaseIreland is a grassland management decision support tool and a mechanism to capture background data on farms.

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Grass10 - Teagasc | Agriculture and Food Development Authority

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Teagasc recognises that the collaboration of a number of organisations in the Irish agri-food industry is required to achieve the Grass10 objectives. Currently the Grass10 campaign is supported by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine; AIB; FBD Trust; Grassland Agro; and the Farmers Journal.