Fertiliser deadline: The final date for applying fertiliser is Monday 14 September, with the prohibited application period commencing on Tuesday 15 September.

There are quite a number of queries regarding the merit of applying fertiliser before the deadline.

Decisions should take in to account existing grass supplies on farms, recent fertiliser applications and the swards being considered. At this stage of the year, the aim should be to have 20 days’ grazing ahead of stock. This is a measure of how long grass supplies would last were growth to cease immediately. The focus should be to increase this to 30 days by the end of the month.

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Where this figure is well off target, there will be no option but to apply fertiliser to try and boost growth rates.

The swards that should be targeted are those capable of delivering the best response to nitrogen.

It is also advisable to target applications at swards that have not received any fertiliser for a prolonged period of time or where significant offtakes have been removed in harvested forage. Targeting slurry applications to the latter areas is the best use of nutrients.

Application rates of 10 units to 15 units nitrogen will deliver a response on farms with a medium stocking rate that need to build grass, while targeted higher applications may be warranted on farms remaining under significant pressure. Again, any higher applications should be targeted to swards that will deliver the best response and reduce the risk of any nutrients not being taken up by the sward.

Blowfly strike: There has been an increase in farmers reporting cases of blowfly strike in the last week. Some of these reports are in sheep which were shorn early and have received no preventative treatment. Others are in lambs where product was applied but the duration of cover is coming to an end.

The highest risk are sheep with dirty tailends and dagging can help to reduce the risk. Where applying a top-up of product, ensure that you take withdrawal periods into account. It is also an ideal time of year to use plunge dipping as the preventative treatment for sheep that will remain on the farm for longer than the typical withdrawal period of 35 days.

SIS multibreed ram sale: Entries are now being accepted for Sheep Ireland’s multibreed hill ram sale which takes place on Friday 9 October, 2026 in Manorhamilton mart in Co Leitrim. The deadline for breeders to enter their rams is 12pm on Monday 5 October.

Breeders must be a member of a relevant breeding groups for the rams they wish to enter. There are three ways of entering rams – online through your Sheep Ireland account, by emailing ramsale@sheep.ie with all required details, or by calling 023 8820451.

Date for diary: The Galway Sheep Breeders Association has one of its largest entries of sheep for quite some time entered in its sale on Friday 11 September, with over 200 head on offer. The sale of breeding rams and ewe hoggets/ewe lambs starts at 6pm sharp with bidding ringside and via the MartEye online sales platform.