Effects of Post-Grazing Sward Height and Early or Late Turnout Date to Pasture on the Performance of Dairy Cross-Bred Steers

Efficient grazing management is critical for optimising animal growth and carcass quality in dairy beef systems; however, the combined effects of turnout date to spring pasture and post-grazing sward height have not been well quantified. This study evaluated the effects of spring turnout date (early vs. late) and post-grazing sward height (3.5 vs. 5.5 cm) on steer performance, intake, and carcass attributes, over three production cycles in a dairy calf-to-beef system. A total of 188 dairy and dairy × beef steers (initial body weight approximately 250–285 kg) were used across three experiments, conducted in a pasture-based calf-to-beef system. Animals grazed for ~200 days followed by ~100 days of indoor finishing. Early turnout improved average daily gain during early- and mid-season (p < 0.05 to p < 0.001), but differences had disappeared by housing, with no effect on carcass traits (p > 0.05). Grazing swards to 5.5 cm increased average daily gain at pasture (p < 0.01) and housing weight in the three experiments (p < 0.01). Animals grazed to 3.5 cm at pasture subsequently had a higher indoor finishing average daily gain (p < 0.05). Grazing to a stubble height of 5.5 cm improved (p < 0.001) daily gain at pasture but reduced finishing daily gain (p < 0.001). Carcass weight per day of age and were unaffected by either factor (p > 0.05), and no significant turnout × post-grazing sward height interactions were detected for any measured variables (p > 0.05). These findings indicate that maintaining a higher post-grazing sward height provides improved animal performance, while early turnout offers short-term gains, supporting grazing strategies that prioritise sward height management for sustained performance.