Making better use of water is a goal as they work through a list of planned dairy upgrades to improve the overall efficiency of their 200 cow enterprise at Leongatha North.
The property spring fed dam has proved to be reliable, but water savings in the dairy are being achieved through opportunities for recycling.
They are confidently looking forward to a second good summer after the wettest winter in the district since 1996.
Most months have had above average rainfall and at times it has been extremely challenging to manage wet paddocks on the fully stocked property.
While pasture growth has been slowed by a cool spring, the soil moisture reserves hold promise once the weather warms up.
But Alex said they based their planning on being able to cope with dry seasons which had been more the norm over the last few years.
After working on the farm for the last 10 years, Alex has now taken over management of the property from his parents Russell and Joan.
Plans to upgrade their effluent management system are progressing with their effluent pond cleaned and enlarged.
Extensions have also been made to the cow yard and laneways re-located, improving cow flow and comfort and better drainage into the effluent pond.
So far Alex and Brenda have installed hydrants in the cow yard, which Alex hopes will reduce the amount of time it takes for yard washing.
The hydrant washers will also be using effluent from the effluent system to wash the yard.
This will save 5000 litres of fresh water each day – that’s 1.8 megalitres over the course of a year. The water saved will help to reduce the farm’s dependence on the spring-fed dam supplying the property.
The property is set up to capture as much rainfall from shed roofs as possible.
The dairy shed has a roof area of almost 500 sq m and has well maintained guttering collecting water into a plastic tank.
It can capture 443,156 litres per year (annual rainfall of 952mm – this assumes 95 per cent of the rainfall enters the tank). This allows them to use clean, soft rain water for plant and vat washing. River water used in the dairy may require filtration to remove sediments which can build up in the hot water service. River water can also contain organic matter that can bind up chemicals and detergents.
Bore water may be high in mineral salts such as iron oxide and may be hard. Detergents do not perform well in water that contains high levels of minerals or salts which are common in bore water.
Consequently, higher concentrations of detergent may be required or specially formulated detergents may be needed.
Poor quality bore water can also corrode metal work in the dairy. This underscores the importance of regularly monitoring and testing bore water.
The plate cooler in the Spencer’s dairy shed recycles rainwater and the hot water rinse from the plant wash is recycled and used for the first flush the follow milking, achieving further water savings. This saves around 300 litres per day, or 109,500 litres per year.
The rainwater doesn’t build up mineral salts or cause corrosion issues in the milking system and makes optimal use of detergent.
Alex said they were happy to maintain production from their good quality Friesian herd with the property well stocked carrying 200 milking cows plus dry cows and springers.
They supply to Murray Goulburn on a seasonal basis, which suits their property management. With seasonal variation in calvings, their downtime can vary from as little as two to three weeks to more than a month.
With milk prices likely to be about the same as last season, Alex said the big benefit of dairying was regular cash flow which enabled them to budget on progressively improving their enterprise.
Rye and clover pastures make up the bulk of their feed production with some bale feeding of grain according to seasonal conditions.
They have a program of making silage in plastic wrap bales from surplus pasture and have already begun to make some silage this season.
The conserved feed is sometimes needed before Christmas in dry seasons, but with their current good soil moisture reserves, Alex is hoping it will be well into the New Year before the pastures need supplementing.
They also will make some hay later in the season. It is usually at least the end of November before conditions are suitable for hay making.
Planting some more trees on the property is also on the agenda for Alex and Brenda.
Shelter belts can enhance herd comfort year round with protection during cold, wet spells in the winter and shade during hot summer days.
This can have the added benefit of reducing the stock drinking water consumption. A lactating dairy cow can drink as much as 200 litres per day in the peak of summer. The volume of water consumed will depend upon many factors including the condition of the animal, its diet and level of activity, quality of the water and environmental conditions such as humidity and temperature.
