After the record rainfall of last summer, land will be even more deficient in the trace elements important for stock health, fertility and production than ever before. Leaching losses mean that grass growth in the spring will lack the necessary levels of copper; selenium; cobalt; zinc; iodine and sodium to support the level of animal performance farmers have come to expect. Action is required to redress the balance. A single application of Grasstrac (20 kg/acre) to grazing ground just before 'turnout' will provide extra micronutrients over and above that supplied from the soil reserves.

Feeding additional nutrients through the grass is a very natural method and if it is commonplace to supplement winter-feed with trace elements, either contained within compound feed or mixed in the feeder wagon, then it must be good practice to supplement grass from spring to autumn.

Grasstrac is in granular form, of similar size to standard NPK fertiliser, and can be spread alone or mixed with fertiliser. The granules break down readily and the nutrients washed down into the top few inches of soil from where they are absorbed into the grass roots. Once in the plant, they move into the leaves to increase the natural level of essential micronutrients. As stock graze treated grass, their trace element intake is continually boosted. All grazing stock benefit from improvements in health, fertility and production. The daily cost is less than 4 pence a head over the complete grazing season for cattle and about a penny for weaned lambs.

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