Deirdre gives an overview of the benefits and challenges of white clover in intensive grass-based systems of milk production.

She explains the ability of white clover to fix Nitrogen - in a systems study, Nitrogen was reduced by 100 kg Nitrogen/ha with no reduction in grass production in grass + white clover swards compared with grass only swards.

Furthermore, improved animal performance is evident with an increase of 33 kg MS per cow observed in grass + white clover swards compared with grass only swards. This is driven by clover being a higher quality feed and cows achieving higher intake.

When considering the challenges of white clover inclusion, Deirdre explains the primary concerns for dairy farms include bloat and low spring growth. Deirdre lists strategies to reduce the risk of bloat including vigilant grassland management and use of bloat oil.

Spring growth is a greater challenge with white clover growing from 8®C compared with grass growing from 5 ®C. To overcome this, a budget of 1 high quality bale per cow for the 1st grazing rotation.

For more information:
https://www.teagasc.ie/media/website/publications/2018/Managing-grass-clover-swards-in-an-intensive-grass-based-system.pdf