HubWatch – 28 November 2025

Cultivation and cropping: We managed to get the kale and some grass paddocks sown this week. We're very close to getting the remaining grass paddocks and swedes sown in the coming days. Tractors have certainly been busy on the farm this week.

Grass growth: This week we grew between 49 and 60 kgDM per hectare across the farmlets, again exceeding demand. We baled 55 bales of baleage from the dairy platform, with another five paddocks shut for next week. Ground temperatures lifted to 15.8°C this week, compared with 14.7°C last week. Things are starting to get a little dry. Interestingly, up until October 2025 we had experienced more rainfall year to date than the previous season, but heading towards the end of November we've now had less rainfall year to date than last year. We're pleased to have plenty of silage to fill the gap through the drier period this season.

Milk production: The Futures continue to outperform the Standard herd. Futures are producing an average of 2.17 kgMS per day and the Standard herd 2.05 kgMS per day.

Mating: We have completed our first three weeks of mating with the Future herd submitting at 92%, which is significantly better than last year at 87%. The Standard herd three-week submission rate is 89%, just under the 90% target. The younger animals in this herd have been slower to submit. We've mobbed them separately and are priority feeding the lighter animals. It's mainly the three year olds in the Standard herd that are behind, although they were also slower to calve. There's been plenty of focus on feed and intervention this season. We hope to see a shift in the mean calving date for this year group next season.