25 March 2024
MoSt predicted grass growth in PastureBase Ireland
PastureBase Ireland is a grassland decision support tool available to all farmers in Ireland. Ciarán Hearn, Michael O’Donovan and Elodie Ruelle of the Teagasc Moorepark Grassland Department tells us on its latest developments.
Since it began in 2013, it has undergone multiple changes and is constantly evolving to meet the needs of grassland farmers. Recently, this development has seen the inclusion of advanced support tools which can, for example, aid farmers to plan fertiliser applications, map their farms, record herd milk production, upload soil tests and review farm performance through an array of reporting features.
Consistent grass measurement is the key input variable for the PastureBase system, as it is the building block for all PastureBase reports and outputs. More experienced PastureBase users also find that fertiliser recording, along with milk and soil test uploads, can add a lot of value to their individual PastureBase accounts.
While grass measurement is the cornerstone of efficient pasture based farming systems, weekly grass walks are temporally limited in the level of information they provide – i.e. they only tell you what has happened up to the point of measurement. Researchers at Teagasc Moorepark believe that the next step in making better grassland management decisions involves knowing what will happen regarding grass growth in the seven day period after a grass walk.
Figure 1: MoSt model predictions are displayed on the dashboard of PastureBase Ireland
In order to overcome this issue, the Moorepark St. Giles Grass Growth (MoSt GG) model has been developed. The MoSt can accurately predict the grass growth of individual farms using just three key pieces of information: (1) weather data; (2) fertiliser application; and (3) historical grass measurement. Predicted grass growth values are generally over 90% accurate and we have received very positive feedback from pilot grassland farms throughout the country who refer to them on a bi-weekly basis.
Individual farm grass growth predictions
In 2024, PastureBase Ireland is collaborating with the MoSt GG model to bring individual farm grass growth predictions directly to Irish grassland farmers. Currently, the MoSt GG model predictions for provinces and individual counties are available on the PastureBase landing page. These grass growth predictions are taken from a number of the pilot farms across the country, which record grass growth and fertiliser application data consistently each year.
A predicted grass growth value allows farmers to make better informed decisions around the next paddocks to graze to optimise grass quality and utilisation. They will also aid in decisions around cutting paddocks for silage and lead to more efficient application of fertiliser and slurry on farm.
In light of the positive feedback around these predictions, we are now taking the next step and rolling out grass growth predictions on an individual farm basis. Initially this service will only be offered to farmers who have a proven record of fertiliser application recording and grass measurement. For example, the current threshold for farmers to be offered predicted grass growth is > 35. As the system develops, this will be reduced and more farmers will be added on a case by case basis.
Farmers who are offered this service will be able to access it on both the PastureBase website and the mobile application.
Figure 2. Detailed breakdowns of daily grass growth predictions are available on PastureBase for farmers who opt in
