Pasture.io - Riser meter (2024)

What is a riser plate meter for?

A rising plate meter, also called an RPM, is a tool used to measure the amount of pasture in a pasture. This measurement can tell you how much pasture you have available and how fast your pasture is growing. The fact is that farmers will make the best grazing decisions when they measure their pastures, and their animals will be happier for it.

To use a speedometer, walk through a pasture and take the meter readings, avoiding bumps commonly found around gates, water troughs, paved areas and near fence lines. The idea is that the walk best represents the fold you are measuring. In general, the farmer going to multiple pastures at the same time will plan his route to connect all the pastures to reduce backflow and save time.

How does a riser plate meter work?

When you take a grass measurement, push down the speed in the grass field. The speed then measures the compacted height of the pasture as the plate rises in half-inch increments. The compressed grass height is then converted to kilograms of dry matter per hectare (KgDM/ha).

It is important to use the most appropriate formula for your farm's situation, taking into account issues such as grazing species and whether or not you irrigate. To further reduce variability and maintain consistency from one paddock measurement to the next, approximately 30 to 40 measurements are required in a paddock.

How Accurate Are Rising Plate Meters?

Let's make one thing clear. It's not the accuracy that counts, it's the consistency of measuring your grass cover from week to week, and then comparing this to what your animals leave behind in their remains after grazing. Consistency, however, is where the C-Dax trailing pasture meter is leaps and bounds ahead of the speed. But as you ask, there are many sources of error when using a plate gauge, but fortunately none that can't be easily corrected:

The operating technique is great with plate gauges, the idea is to plop straight down and lift as you go, and not let the plate roll. Rolling the plate meter will overestimate coverage. If one person measures from week to week and knows the correct technique, you have come a long way.

RPMs and their equations were originally designed for ryegrass and white clover pastures and not for non-ryegrass species such as co*cksfoot, tall fescue, and kikuyu. Keep this in mind when measuring non-ryegrass species. In saying this, the ratio of ryegrass to legumes can influence the bias in dry matter estimates. And more with seasonal variation in the dry matter percentage. Ahh, too much to worry about, after all it's all about consistency in the measurement and monitoring against grazing residues.

Rain or heavy dew can put stress on the plate, which will cause an underestimation. Who even wants to measure when it's raining?

The speed starts to lose accuracy above 3500kgDM/ha when the pasture starts to lean over, but these paddocks are supposed to be for silage so don't worry too much.

What are the advantages of using an ascending plate meter?

Plate meters have been tried and tested for many years, and there is strong evidence to support their use to improve grazing management practices. They are one of many tools that can be used today, with each tool having its own advantages and disadvantages.

The big advantage and perhaps the biggest disadvantage of using an RPM is that you regularly go through your entire garden. This gives you the following:

Close connection to each paddock and how each paddock performs - before you know it you are a pasture sweeper.

Regular exercise on top of your daily fitness regime on the farm – who said farmers are lazy?

Time to think about your green pasture and ways to turn it into green notes: where there's grass, there's milk and where there's milk, there's money.

You are a conscientious farmer, aren't you? As you walk around, you can take notes on tasks that need to be done, or better yet, do the work, such as repairing a water bowl, while you walk.

How do different plants influence the meter readings of rising plates?

Pastures have different levels of dry matter content (DM%) depending on the composition of the pasture. Additionally, the way pastures grow can change the bias in plate gauge estimates.

• Tetraplider versus diplider

• Tetraploids grow upright and contain slightly less dry matter% than diploids. Diploids also have greater tiller density than tetraploids.
• Assessment: tetraploids will slightly overestimate KgDM/ha and diploids will slightly underestimate KgDM/ha

• Perennials vs. Italians

• True Italians, annuals and hybrids will grow more upright than perennials.
• Assessment: perennials will be slightly below the estimate and Italians will slightly overestimate the KgDM/ha
• Pastures that are reproductive and contain many seed heads will push the plate RPM up, meaning the RPM will overestimate the amount of grass in the paddock. Other plants such as dock, and herbs such as plantain and chicory (especially at seedheads) will also be a source of error in overestimating the amount of grazing.
• Again, these mistakes can be overcome by knowing your farm and understanding the relationship your pasture has to the grazing data and that of your grazing animals. We've taken the individual characteristics of each paddock down to the nutritional level into Pasture.io, with all the thinking done for you, so you can lighten the load on precious brain matter.

What are the disadvantages of using an ascending plate meter?

Okay, time to face it. While RPMs are a great way to get on the road and have been a reliable tool forever, there are now better ways to do the same job. These cons may be okay for some and a nightmare for others, read on if you dare:

Paddock measurements must be recorded manually, fortunately you can enter the amount directly into Pasture.io.

Errors when measuring grazing are never far away, because of everything. When people are involved, there are mistakes.

It's slow and time-consuming, the feeling of "oh no, it's that time again" creeps up very quickly. It is best to hire your most trusted employee to do this work and someone who is fit.

Ultimately, the question is: what is your best food source for feeding your animals? If the answer is pasture, then the benefits of using an RPM far outweigh the disadvantages of using one or no RPM at all.

Do I need to measure my pasture?

If you're at the end of this page asking this question, I can see why: this isn't the most exciting farm job to look forward to. But with a capital B, measuring your pasture is one of the most important tasks you can perform.

You measure everything else on the farm, you measure how much milk leaves the farm, you measure how much fertilizer you add, you measure how much you spend on labor, you measure everything and pasture is no exception.

Whether you use a tool like the riser plate gauge or another device, any tool will work as long as it is not in your eye. Let's face it: your eye, unique as it is, is not the instrument to eliminate every bias and every error, and it will not maintain consistency in objectives from season to season. So to answer your question: yes, you need to measure your pasture! And finally, save your pennies and buy a bicycle or trailed pasture meter, much better, faster and more consistent - but that's for another time.

What are your experiences?

We'd love to hear feedback, or if you have any great tips we can share in the post above, please feel free to contact us or leave a comment below.