Feed Planning for Lamb Success

Top three key focuses for aligning your ewe and lamb needs with pasture growth for a productive spring season based on Beef + Lamb New Zealand’s ‘A Guide to feed planning for sheep farmers’.

1. Lambing as your pasture climbs Are you finding lambing in late August to early September is not meeting your pasture growth curve? Lambing too early leads to underfed ewes during early lactation and you will have overgrazed pastures. Aim for lambing pastures of 2–5cm. This can be done with quick rotations of 25–30 days with ewes or alternatively by set-stocking at appropriate densities.
2. High-energy pasture for the first six weeks Milk production peaks 2–3 weeks post-lambing, then declines from 2–3 litres a day to about half a litre 8–10 weeks after lambing. This is when ewes need high-energy pasture – 15–20 MJ ME/day – use the FeedSmart calculator on the B+LNZ website. As milk drops, you then have both ewes and lambs relying on pasture. Ensure you’re on a rising plane of quality feed to maintain that growth curve in your lambs from week 4–6.
3. Flexible weaning Weaning dates should be flexible, weaning lambs when pasture falls below 3cm or when they begin competing with ewes for feed. Draft early lambs before or at weaning, as they ‘harden up’ during the transition to a pasture-only diet. Move lambs to clean, legume-rich paddocks (3–5cm) not recently grazed. Ewes in good body condition score (CS 3) can graze shorter pastures (1–2cm). Thin ewes (CS ≤2.5) need high-quality feed to recover for next mating. 

Beef + Lamb New Zealand are also looking for sheep farmers who are passionate about improving lamb survivability to join new focus groups. These groups, made up of 8–12 farming businesses, will meet three to four times a year to discuss real on-farm challenges and opportunities. Limited spots are available locally – ​​Register your interest at beeflambnz.com/knowledge-hub/lamb-survival