Top tips, tools and resources for building a feed wedge

With widespread rain experienced across southern Australia in the past week, many producers are now looking to build a feed wedge to help underpin production goals over the winter.

Here's a list of online resources to help you manage pasture production and grazing strategies:

1. A starting point: Read general advice from the NSW Local Land Services – Central Tablelands on what to do after an autumn break to build a feed wedge.
2. Looking at the whole farm: EverGraze, a program from the MLA-funded Future Farm Industries CRC, delivered regional packages for growing and utilising perennial pastures. Read about feed budgeting and tactical grazing management and find a complete list of tools and calculators to help establish stocking rates, pasture growth and feed budgeting.
3. For sheep producers:  Turn to module eight of MLA's Making More From Sheep program, Turning Pasture into Product, which provides all the steps you need to maintain groundcover while ensuring productive livestock.
4. And for beef producers: MLA's More Beef from Pastures program offers the Pasture Utilisation module to guide you through measuring and monitoring winter pasture growth.
5. Focusing on ewes: Lifetime Ewe has a useful tool on feed budgeting for ewe flocks grazing annual pastures following an autumn break.
6. Building the wedge: Producers can boost pasture production going into winter by strategically applying nitrogen fertiliser and gibberellic acid. Use the  EverGraze Nitrogen and Gibberellic Acid Calculator to make your own estimations of likely responses and the cost effectiveness to applying nitrogen and/or gibberellic acid.