Overwintering cattle on kale
OVERWINTERING CATTLE on kale is an option where housing or silage are scarce. Farmer experience is positive with kale and research has found that body weight gains on kale can be higher than those on grass silage.
Kale is normally fed in situ in combination with round baled silage, moving the electric fence daily during the feeding period. Kale is normally fed from November to February and it isideal for weanlings, suckler cows and store cattle.
Kale grows best on free draining land with some shelter, which gives the best crop and also the best utilisation. A soil PH of 6.2 is ideal so the lime status should be checked out.
Kale is ideally sown in early/mid June so it fits in well after first cut silage. The silage should be sprayed with glyphosphate seven days before cutting and the bales stacked along the headlands in rows with a good space between them as this makes it easier for feeding out during the winter.
After the silage is cut cultivation can take place immediately. Slurry, at 4,000 gals/acre, should be applied and harrowed in. Surface cultivation, using a disk harrow and a power harrow works very well. Plant kale at a seeding rate of 5 - 6 Kg/ha. (5- 6 lbs/acre) - and the seeds can be broadcast. This seeding rate promotes more leaf, more plants and thinner stems which are easier for animals to graze. Suitable varieties of kale include: Maris Kestrel, Red Start, Caledonian, Grampian, Keeper, Alize.
In terms of fertiliser, 4,000 gals of cattle slurry pre cultivation should normally supply enough Phosphate, Potash and Boron. At sowing time 70 kg. nitrogen/ha. (56 units nitrogen/acre) should be applied. 18-612 should be applied if no slurry is available
Disease and pests are normally not a problem but pigeons can do some damage.
Kale should yield 8 - 10 tons DM/Ha with early sowing giving the best yield.
Weanlings fed 70% kale and 30% silage will consume about 5 kgs D.M. kale per day. For a 100day winter period (mid November to late February) they will each eat about 500 kgs. D.M. kale. This means an average crop that is well utilised ( 90%) will carry six heifers per acre for 100 days over the winter. The six heifers would also need about eight silage bales for the 100 days. An acre of kale would feed six suckler cows for 100 days, with 12 round bales. A dry, uncultivated section, where cattle can lie down is also recommended. Cattle should go to grass as soon as possible afterwards.
Heavy winter frosts can severely damage kale crops. The field is normally reseeded into grassland the following spring.