Increasing carrying capacity while decreasing feed gaps

With season variability and lower rainfall throughout south-west WA, pasture management is becoming crucial to increasing growth and reducing feed gaps throughout the regions.  

An MLA Donor Company (MDC) funded project ‘Maximising potential stocking rate through pasture management techniques’ started in July 2023 to help tackle these challenges. The five-year project – coordinated by AgPro Management – is aiding in identifying pasture and livestock management techniques and tools to increase potential stocking rates.  

The project has had a staggered roll-out approach, with 12 producer groups established throughout the Great Southern Wheatbelt, Great Southern High Rainfall and West Midlands/Geraldton areas.  

These groups are part of a two-year MLA Producer Demonstration Site (PDS) program, which focuses on showcasing different pasture and animal management tools and increasing potential stocking rates. MLA resources are readily used within the program, with the WA pasture paramedic tool playing a key role for many producers.  

The Gray family has taken part in the MDC program from their property, Tarin Rock, located 350km south-east of Perth.  

The Grays run a mixed sheepmeat and cropping enterprise which includes a self-replacing Merino and crossbred flock, wheat, barley, canola, lupins and oats. They have a total of 9000ha of arable farmland (including leased) with 6,500ha cropped, 700ha fodder and 1,800ha pasture. Of the 700ha of fodder 200ha has been seeded to Volga vetch and 500ha to Dalkeith subterranean clover and Kingbale oat mix. The 1,800ha of pasture consists of a mix of 50% Dalkeith sub-clover, 30% capeweed and 10% volunteer ryegrass/barley grass.  In the last five years, they have also put a focus on improving pasture production for hay and sileage. 

Tahryn, one of the three Gray siblings to take part in the program, says her role on-farm is predominantly focused on their sheep. They join 2,700 Merino ewes to Merino sires, 500 Merino ewes to terminal sires for their stud, and 300 ewes to terminal crossbreed sires annually. 

Shifting the focus 

According to Tahryn, the annual rainfall received on the property has been much lower over the past decade than what’s been previously recorded – encouraging the siblings to utilise their involvement in the program to focus on improving their pastures’ carrying capacity and ability to adapt to variable seasonal climates.  

By default, Tahryn says they have focused on increasing feed-on-offer availability year-round through both sileage and hay.  

“The aim has been to reduce the impact of poor seasons and increase the carrying capacity of our paddocks,” she said. 

In 2022, the Gray siblings made the call to change from their regular cycle of April lambing to June. 

“This was an opportunity to allow the ewes to lamb onto lusher pastures and limit the need of supplementary feeding,” Tahryn said.   

However, due to a late break in the season this year and an even lower-than-average rainfall, Tahryn is still supplementary feeding this winter while she waits for pastures to bulk up. 

“We’ve tried a variety of pasture mixes in the past, such as combinations of vetch, barley, clover and oats, to increase pasture quality and quantity, giving us early season growth and fodder crops,” she said.  

“In good pasture production years, this has been grazed several times before being cut for sileage, and then used for weaning paddocks. 

“These silage pits have been substantial, and prior to our decision to close these pits in 2022 to leave to them to grow, we were able to utilise them when needed in summer and autumn,” she said. 

Tahryn found cutting sileage to be beneficial in filling the feed gap, with quality fodder and reducing weed seeds throughout the property. 

For many grassfed sheep producers in WA, ryegrass and sub-clover are the ‘backbone’ of their annual pastures, and the Grays’ pastures have been no exception.

While the addition of cereals and legumes has been game-changing for the Grays, Tahryn said adding King Bale oats to Dalkeith sub-clover has been the best for filling the feed gap.  

“They are usually grazed once they are established in June/July, to give clover-dominant pastures a chance to grow,” she said. 

“By filling this early-winter feed gap using fodder crops, our carrying capacity has increased over the growing season. 

“After grazing the cereal, the sheep are then rotated through to allow all pastures to be spelled, maximising total growth, and therefore, biomass produced.” 

The Grays don’t use set stocking rates for their paddocks, but rather monitor carefully based on growth stages and ground cover to limit the risk of erosion and ensure paddocks aren’t overgrazed.  

“We don’t use any specific tools, but someone is always visually checking the paddocks when mustering/checking livestock, spraying or adding fertiliser to pasture paddocks or when driving by,” she said.  

“To make this work, communication between the family has been a key part of our system.” 

The year so far 

With this year’s annual rainfall sitting lower than ever, Tahryn said they have relied heavily on the lupin and barley stored to supplement feed.  

“At the beginning of June, we had used 75% of our lupin and barley mix and were getting ready to open the silage to ensure there was no roughage in the paddocks,” she said. 

Having been hand fed for six months now – which is a little longer than normal for WA – the ewes have also required calcium lick supplementing. 

“Recently, we made the call to start moving our mobs into the cereal fodder pastures ahead of lamb marking,” she said. 

“We’ve done this to give the clover-dominant paddocks a rest for 6–8 weeks, in hopes we will see some good regrowth that can be used for weaning.”  

Luckily for the Grays, rain finally fell as they closed off their paddocks to rest and pasture regrowth has started to occur. However, Tahryn said factors such as the current industry environment and lower annual rainfall means they aren’t looking to increase their stocking numbers just yet.  

“Before winter ends, we plan to conduct feed tests on our new pasture mix, as well as the sileage we have coming out of the pits,” Tahryn said. 

“It will be really interesting as we haven’t opened the pits for about three years, and the oats were smashed by the sheep, so we need to see if that matches with good feed value.”