Soil Management Challenges for Livestock Farmers

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Soil Management Challenges for Livestock Farmers

• John Morgan
• Maize Grower Association

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Background and Plan of Action

• Senior farm management consultant ADAS and
  Genus
• Maize Growers Association
• Currently work as an independent consultant with
  SW dairy farmers
• Provide Cross Compliance and Catchment Sensitive
  Farming advise
• Experience of working with livestock farmers

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Maize Growers Association

• Non for profit association
• 16 yr history
• Run by farmers for farmers
• Members grow in region of 1/5 of countries maize
• Mission to be foremost providers of information
  on maize and wholecrop to its members

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Plan of Action

• Physical soil management challenges
• Improve understanding of the UK Dairy farmer and
  the world in which he works
• The dairy farm
• Dairy farming economics
• Dairy farmer profile
• Options for the future

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The UK Dairy Herd

• DEFRA Census

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Changes within the dairy sector

• Average herd size
• 2006 95
• 1950 17
• Average cow size
• Holstein 650-700kg
• Friesian 500 550 kg
• Cow yield
• 2006 6815 lts
• 1950 2830 lts

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Intensification and Concentration
Farmyard very different

• Same 24 hour day!

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Big Farm/Machine Mentality

• Small Bales?Big Bale ? Clamp Silage ?Maize
• MF 135 Baler ? 16t Self propelled forage
  harvesters
• Large capital outlay and running costs ?
  specialist contractors

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The Popularity of Maize Silage
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What goes up must come down and what goes in must
come out!
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In Summary

• Dairy Farming has undergone a transformation
• Cow numbers in decline but herd size in the
  increase!
• Fewer workers with larger machines
• Average herd size increased by 30 in the last 10
  years
• This change in profile poses many soil management
  challenges

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Economics of Livestock Farming

• Why has there been the drive for intensification
  and mechanisation?
• Initially government driven post war to secure
  food self sufficiency
• Recently this has been replaced by the need to
  survive and the drive to reduce costs of
  production

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UK Dairy Farmers Net Farm Income
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A Dairy Farmers Lot!

• Dairy farmers work an average 70 hrs / week
• Average of 4days holiday per year
• Most dairy farmers incomes have only exceeded the
  national minimum wage twice in 7 years
• Effective rate of pay is 2.90/hr

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Commodity Price Rises May Help

• Last 10 15 years emphasis has been on survival
• Not surprising soil management issues are of low
  priority.
• Now with commodity price increases the pressure
  for survival is off and this could make the
  difference

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Butter World Wholesale Price
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The Profile of Mr Average the Dairy Farmer

• Likely to be a family business
• Passed down through the generations with all the
  baggage that this entails
• Long histories family expectations slow
  change
• Long term thinker
• True environmentalist

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Agricultural Training in the UK
Training manager is Dad and or Granddad!
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Sources of Information and Training

• Commercial literature
• Commercially subsidised media
• Advice from commercial companies
• Lack of independent information

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Independent Advice

• Good advisors out there
• Patchy coverage
• Project led ? sporadic ? disjointed ? mixed
  messages
• Lack of consistency
• Lack of continuity

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Physical Soil Management Challenges

• Managing and Maintaining Good Soil Structure

• Maintaining soil organic matter
• Less of a problem for livestock farmers

• Nutrient overload/potential loss

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Soil Problems
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Physical Soil Management Challenges
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Maize Silage

• Maize silage is having an increasingly large role
  on UK dairy farms.
• 30,000ha in 1990
• 125,000ha in 2007
• Predicted to continue to rise

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Why Farmers Grow Maize?

• Costs of forage production
• The importance of intake
• Consistency
• Profitability

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Cost of Different Dairy Feeds
MDC Grass Plus
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Importance of Intake
MMB funded 3yr trial at CEDAR
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Consistency

• Maize
• Two/three varieties
• Drilled within week
• Harvested same day
• Consistently high intakes day after day all winter

• Grass Silage
• Lots of fields very different histories
• Three cuts different conditions
• In consistent with many ration changes throughout
  winter

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Soil Issues

• Soil Structure problems at Harvest
• Late harvest on wet soils incapable of taking
  heavy machinery
• Compaction poor water infiltration
• Surface water movement
• Soil Erosion
• Soil Wash

• Possible Solutions
• Early maturing varieties on at risk fields
• Drill early for early harvest
• Cultivate ASAP after harvest to remove compaction
• Avoid growing maize on very high risk fields
• Low ground pressure footwear!

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Interesting Data.
Under sown 53 Litres
Chisel Plough 1 Litre
Stubble 228 Litres
Cover crop 179 litres
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Nutrient Issues

• Nutrient overload
• Over application of organic manures
• Runoff
• Soil structure
• sacrifice maize fields during winter
• Runoff
• Soil structure
• Over application of inorganic fert

• Solutions
• Education as to nutrient content of organic
  manures
• Soil analysis to establish existing soil nutrient
  status
• MGA Nitrogen Predictor
• RB 209

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Agro Chemical Issues

• Negatives
• Atrazine and other pesticide loss to water

• Positives
• No Atrazine now
• Spring weed control low rainfall-low risk
• No pesticides
• No insecticides

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Grass Silage

• Increasing machinery size
• Time pressure of contractors
• Education of the problems linked with damaging
  soil structure

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Grazing

• Poaching
• Herd size
• Access to grazing
• Animal size

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Grazing
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More Effective Grazing

• Improved cattle track infrastructure
• Appropriate access to paddocks
• A different gateway for each grazing
• Smaller or big footed cows

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Spreading Organic Manure
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Conclusions

• Try to understand the farmer and the environment
  in which he has been and currently is farming
• He is - Overworked and underpaid ? Survival mode
  until very recently
• Gain his respect by appreciating his
  environmental record and long term commitment
• Lack of awareness is fundamental challenge
• Accept that change will take time
• Education by respected method or individuals will
  work keep things practical

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Conclusions

• Physical soil management challenges primarily
  associated with maintaining soil structure and
  limiting nutrient/pathogen loss
• Challenges arise as a result of
  intensification/concentration over many years
• There are opportunities to improve things and
  farmers once made aware will run with them.