It’s footy finals time, and while team selectors are deciding who to play and spectators are watching the skies deciding what to wear, it’s what happens over the next few months that will be crucial for the main game – farming.

In the latest Very Fast Break, Dale Grey summarises 12 climate models for Victoria and suggests which way they are pointing for spring.

Watch the latest edition of Very Fast Break at: youtu.be/l1K4VGOopyw.

Dr Jeff Cave, District Veterinary Officer

With the expected flush of growth predicted this spring, it’s a good time to remind farmers to keep alert for signs of bloat in your livestock.

Bloat occurs in cattle following rapid consumption of lush, fast growing, immature, legume-dominant pastures such as clover or lucerne. It is much less common on grass dominant pastures.

Bloat is caused by an increase in gas pressure within the rumen as feeds are fermented.

The gas builds up in the rumen as small bubbles or foam which cannot be belched out when the animal chews its cud.

Producers need to keep an eye out for the first signs of bloat which is a tight distended abdomen, mainly on the left side. If this is missed, then you might find bloated animals dead in the paddock.

Death occurs due to the pressure of the rumen on the lungs and major blood vessels, leading to lung and heart failure.

Death can occur quickly, sometimes within 30 minutes of grazing dangerous pastures, so the emphasis must be on prevention rather than treatment.

To prevent hungry cattle gorging themselves on risky pastures, feed your cattle on hay prior to access to these paddocks.

In addition, a range of medications are available to help prevent bloat.

These include bloat blocks, bloat licks, medicated water supply, drenching and pasture spraying. The suitability of each prevention method varies depending upon the circumstance.

Many bloat deaths could actually be due to pulpy kidney. Bloat slows down the passage of food through the gut allowing the pulpy kidney bacteria to multiply and kill the cow. All cows should have an annual vaccination of 5-in-1 for pulpy kidney and other clostridia.

For further advice please contact your local veterinarian or Agriculture Victoria veterinary or animal health officer.

Michele Jolliffe, Agriculture Victoria

Spring is always a critical time on farm, particularly when trying to capitalise on the spring surplus to make as much high-quality forage as possible.

During spring, pasture growth and leaf appearance rate increases. Rotation length will need to be shortened to help maintain grazing pressure and ensure that high quality pasture is available for the herd.

It’s critical to try and maintain a rotation based on leaf stage. Instead of focusing on using the 3 – 2 ½ leaf stage as an indicator for grazing perennial ryegrass, think about grazing at two-leaf stage or canopy closure – whichever occurs first.  This will ensure that pasture quality is maintained and shading at the base of the sward is minimised.

To assist with conserving as much high-quality forage as possible, consider using nitrogen fertiliser to increase dry matter yields. If you do this, you must remember to cut pasture within six weeks of application.

Research has shown that once cutting is delayed beyond eight weeks after application of nitrogen fertilisers, quality declines more rapidly than if no nitrogen was applied in the first place. This will result in large quantities of low-quality silage, which is unsuitable to feed dairy cows in the early stage of lactation.

Using rates of nitrogen of 50 kg N/ha, responses of 18 kg of dry matter per hectare for every kg N applied, six weeks after nitrogen application can be produced. Research shows that spring applied rates of about 50 kg N/ha are likely to produce the most efficient growth rates.

Trials have also shown that rates of between 40 and 60 kg N/ha are the most effective.  Using higher rates of nitrogen usually results in lower responses.  Therefore, when using nitrogen, it’s important to remember to target your best paddocks, the ones with good pasture species and soil fertility.

When planning forage conservation, be prepared to cut when the perennial ryegrass component of the sward is just reaching early ear emergence.

Some tips for managing your spring pasture:

• Maintain pasture quality by shortening your rotation and changing your grazing indicator from 3 – 2 ½ leaf stage to two-leaf or canopy closure, whichever occurs first
• Only lock up pasture for conservation that is surplus to requirements

Think about using nitrogen fertiliser at rates up to 50 kg N/ha, and ensure pasture is cut within six weeks of application.

For more information about managing during drought and dry seasonal conditions go to agriculture.vic.gov.au/dryseasons.

August was another huge month for beef exports, with 106,000 tonnes of beef ‘hitting the docks’. This figure is back from the previous month but still the second highest monthly total since August last year (07,000 tonnes).

China remained the top destination, edging out Japan for the second consecutive month, with an August total of 26,000 tonnes. Despite hitting safeguard last month and an extra six per cent tariff applied to Australian beef, China is expected to continue importing elevated volumes of meat as they look to stockpile product ahead of Chinese New Year celebrations in late January.

Over the year-to-August, 2019 beef exports are tracking 41,000 tonnes(or six per cent) ahead of last year. This is unsurprising given the level of domestic stock liquidation and price support from international demand. 

The forecast for the next three months remains dry, so slaughter and exports will most likely remain elevated.

As outlined in the graph below, a fair proportion of the extra supply has been soaked up by additional demand from China, but notable increases were also recorded to the US, Saudi Arabia and Vietnam. 

Lamb exports are slowing, with August reaching 17,600 tonnes, back five per cent on July and down three per cent on August last year. However, due to a strong start to the year, year-to-August volume is still ahead of 2018 by 3,600 tonnes.

China, again, is leading the charge for lamb and year-to-August figures are up by 7,300 tonnes, representing a 20 per cent increase on last year. Although this doesn’t match the scale of the growth seen in the beef category, it dwarfs growth to the second largest lamb market, the US, which has increased four per cent (or 1,300 tonnes).

While these two markets were neck in neck this time last year, China has seized the top spot by a country mile twelve months later.

Mutton export volumes for August reached 12,900 tonnes, down 18 per cent on year ago levels. This is a decent bounce back after a slow July, when sheep slaughter fell to an annual low of 480,000 head, causing exports to fall to only 7,300 tonnes.

For year–to–August volume, 2019 is tracking two per cent ahead of 2018. However, over the last twelve months the national flock has been diminished after consistent high levels of slaughter due to drought.

As a result, mutton exports will likely sit behind year ago levels for the rest of the year. With international demand holding strong, this should lend price support over the coming months.

The 78th Soils Community of Practice newsletter is out now.

In this edition, hear from Dr Helen Hayden, a Research Scientist working with Agriculture Victoria in the Soil Biology team based at AgriBio in Melbourne.

Helen’s research involves extracting and characterising DNA, RNA, metabolites and proteins from soil in the context of soil type, crop, management systems and climate change.

Subscribe to the Soils Community of Practice newsletter at: agriculture.vic.gov.au/soil.

With the spring selling season underway, commercial beef and sheepmeat producers looking to buy high-performing sires to improve productivity in their herd or flock can access timely tips and tools through Meat & Livestock Australia’s (MLA) online genetics hub.

A suite of animated tutorials, ‘How do I shop for a high-performing bull?’ and ‘How do I shop for a high-performing ram?’, have been developed to help producers put breeding values into practice.

A webinar recording is also available, demonstrating how producers can find bulls that meet their breeding objective on the BREEDPLAN databases.

The videos have been produced for temperate cattle, tropical cattle, Merino and prime lamb producers, and continue the roll out of MLA’s genetic resources designed to inform producers about the role of genetics in helping to improve on-farm productivity and profitability.

MLA General Manager – Producer Consultation and Adoption, Michael Crowley, said visual and structural assessments of potential sires remain vitally important, and using genetic selection tools including Estimated Breeding Values (EBVs) and Australian Sheep Breeding Values (ASBVs) is just as critical.

“Shopping for a high-performing sire involves factoring in what you can and can’t see. Hard to measure traits such as fertility and eating quality require tools such as breeding values to help make progress in improving profitability,” he said.

“This means creating a shortlist of high performing sires that meet your targeted breeding outcomes using objective selection, then on sale day, choosing sires from that shortlist that meet your physical assessments and budget.

“Over recent months, MLA has been communicating the benefits of improving selection of sires assisted by using breeding values through producer case studies, Pick the Performer ads and animated videos showing how to get started with using breeding values.

“MLA now has videos to share on how producers can put breeding values into practice in the lead up to bull and ram buying.”

To view the latest videos, click on the following links:

• How do I shop for a high-performing bull? - video for temperate cattle producers
• How do I shop for a high-performing ram? - video for prime lamb producers
• How do I shop for a high-performing ram? - video for Merino producers
• How do I shop for a high-performing bull?  - webinar recording, featuring a live demonstration of finding high-performing bulls on the BREEDPLAN databases.

Bogged tractors, waterlogged crops, nutrient management quandaries, herbicide residues … these are just a few of the questions we’re facing off the back of such a wet winter.

By sharing your experiences with the #WetCrops19, you can participate in a real time conversation about how to manage such a wet season. Southern Farming Systems will moderate the online conversations, sending out relevant information, fielding questions and collating the overall story of what is being experienced on the ground.

The aim is that by the end of this season, we will have a better idea of different strategies available and how they paid off.

There is a growing repository which will be disseminating through the Southern Farming Systems twitter account.

The State Government is inviting Victorians to provide feedback on proposed new regulations to prevent cruelty to animals in Victoria.

Minister for Agriculture Jaclyn Symes announced the opening of consultation on the proposed Prevention of Cruelty to Animal (POCTA) Regulations 2019.

The POCTA Regulations aim to protect the welfare of animals in Victoria by supporting the state’s primary animal welfare legislation to prevent, or minimise, harm through regulation of specific activities.

The proposed new regulations and associated Regulatory Impact Statement can be viewed on the Engage Victoria website.

The new regulations will replace the existing regulations, which expire on 15 December.

Consultation is open until Thursday, 26 September.

For more information, visit engage.vic.gov.au/prevention-cruelty-animals-draft-regulations-2019.

The Weeds and Rabbits Project is keen to encourage more young people to connect with their local community and natural environment through invasive pest and weed management.

Grants of up to $15,000 are available to support projects that will increase youth interest, engagement and skills in invasive species management in Victoria.

The grant program is open to community groups, education providers and local councils, with a focus on projects that connect with young people and develop their skills, and therefore deliver broader benefits for local communities.

It is important that diverse voices and interests are part of the conversation about how to address the challenge of invasive species.

The program aims to increase young people’s participation in community environmental projects and encourage new ideas and innovations in the invasive species challenge.

Funding can be used to support the engagement of young people in existing groups and initiatives, or to develop new youth-focused initiatives.

Applications for the grants program close Monday 30 September.

For more information visit the Weeds and Rabbits Project website.

The closing date for input on the duty paid by sheep and goat producers has been extended until 31 October.

Sheep and goat producers and industry are invited to have their say on the future amount of the state’s sheep and goat duty, which is under review.

This review comes on the back of the sheep and goat industry going through major reform, having transitioned from a mob-based identification process to an electronic identification system over the last few years.

There are six options provided for the ongoing sheep and goat duty amount.

For more information on the consultation and to submit your feedback at: engage.vic.gov.au/sheep-and-goat-duty-review.

During the two days of The Business EDGE you will acquire the knowledge and skills to…

• Determine if all the family needs and aspirations can be funded by the business
• Prepare and understand key financial information on your business
• Assess and manage agricultural business risk
• Understand and manage enterprise performance, including understanding what the key profit drivers are, how to influence them and what effect they have on overall business performance. And much more …
• Comprehensive course notes are provided, along with decision support spreadsheet tools to help you apply the material to your business. Follow up is available to all participants.

Agriculture Victoria will host the 3rd Australian Pulse Conference in Horsham this October.

Please join us on what will be an exciting journey into pulse research and development – linking cutting edge technological research to improved profitability for growers and providing healthy options for human consumption – taste and technology.

To register or view the program visit: https://apc2019.com.au https://apc2019.com.au.

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