With winter just around the corner for New Zealanders, our latest topic focuses on the effects of cold temperatures and frost on forage plants. We investigate how frosts damage our plants during the freeze-thaw cycles, “messing” with a plants wellbeing. Thankfully – and given time for plants to adjust to the cold - Mother Nature steps in and helps a plant develop some degree of resilience to cold and frosty weather. Despite this, frosts can damage pasture plants, causing a drop / fall in pasture mass (kgDM/ha) through the winter - as well as reducing the nutritive value of pasture during long cold winter months. Rug up warm and tune in for this, our latest podcast!!

If you’ve enjoyed this podcast, tune in to some of our earlier winter-themed podcasts:

4. Checklist for success – wintering sheep and cattle on winter crops and pastures

35. Rumen bloat (“frost bloat”) in cattle that eat frozen winter pastures and forage crops

51. Wild winter weather. Cattle outside, how can we help – Part One

52. Wild winter weather – Part Two. Farm-level practical concepts

This is the second in a two part series all to do with Autumn Ill thrift in grazing ruminants. Part one (Episode 61) explored some of the nutritionally-based reasons that may contribute to animals appearing ‘ill thrifty’ when pasture quality shifts from standing, poor quality summer pasture to very high quality, lush autumn green feed.

The potential for animal-health related challenges to contribute to autumn ill thrift issues is covered in this, our latest episode. First up, the role for internal parasites to cause autumn ill thrift issues is briefly discussed (but acknowledging the excellent resources for managing internal parasites can be found here with NZs very own Wormwise programme here https://beeflambnz.com/wormwise ). Other topics tackled in this podcast include the role for ‘facial eczema’ (sporidesmin toxicity), endophyte alkaloids found in ryegrasses that contain standard (but not novel) endophytes, growth of Fusarium spp. on autumn pasture thatch, and trace mineral deficiencies. Last but not least, we cover the potential for sub-clinical effects of high levels of nitrate in autumn pastures (and crops) to reduce feed intake and therefore animal productivity. This nitrate topic builds on a previous discussion of nitrate toxicity covered in one of our earlier Rumen Room podcasts, Episode 5.

As always, animal health topics discussed in this podcast are of a general nature only, and information provided is not intended to replace the advice of your own veterinarian and/or qualified nutritionist.

After a long, hot and often dry summer when pasture quality might be rather poor and in short demand, we’re always keen to see the onset of autumn rains. At last, we can expect improved amounts of pasture on hand and the silage wagon can be parked up for a while. Improved feed quality of autumn pasture is an added bonus, likely being much better than what stock have been grazing through the summer months. With the change of season from summer to autumn, pasture quality can shift dramatically from poor quality to very lush, leafy pasture. Why then, do sheep or cattle sometimes not do as well as they should, when they first meet this new, high quality autumn pasture? This is an issue often called (in a rather nondescript manner!) “Autumn Ill Thrift”. This first of a two part podcast series will explore some of the nutritional reasons why grazing animals might not do as well as they should on this changeable autumn pasture. Not enough feed? Low dry matter percentage, low NDF/high NDFd, or the sudden lift in crude protein? Or more likely, a combination of multiple nutritionally-based factors.

Keep an ear out for part two of this two part podcast (episode 62) where we’ll continue this discussion around autumn ill thrift, by covering some of the animal health issues that might contribute to animals doing poorly during autumn months.