THERE is so much happening at all times of the year on a mixed farm, which means Harry and Sally really have to pay attention.

Their focus has been sharpened by Ted who has been for a drive around the whole farm and pointed out that there is a looming capeweed problem.

Ted always reckoned that you should eat weeds, not spray them and he's now nagging Harry to get some mouths into half a dozen paddocks which need stock to eat the capeweed immediately.

Harry's problem is that if he moves either sheep or cattle to any of the paddocks which Ted has in mind, he will cause a problem on another part of the farm.

There is a nasty cycle which goes something like this.

Bare ground in the summer allows capeweed to get moving in the autumn.

The capeweed chokes out most of the competition if it is allowed to grow unchecked. As the capeweed grows long, the stock won't eat it so it continues to grow and shade out competition. During spring, the weed grows even more, dies off in summer and leaves bare ground for the cycle to start all over again.

Heavy grazing now may get it back in check but it is unlikely to work unless there is grazing pressure at the rate of 50 or so sheep per hectare.

The reality is that Harry is not able to provide that sort of pressure.

So with Ted on his back about not having kept on top of the weeds, and his notion they should be eaten instead of sprayed, Harry needs to find the most effective solution and he needs to act now.

Harry doesn't have much option other than to spray and aim for a kill of the capeweed. Spray grazing - using a low rate of a hormone spray - works if you can put sufficient grazing pressure on the paddock a week to 10 days after spraying.

As the capeweed has already got away, and Harry has insufficient stock for crash grazing, it is best to aim for a kill on those areas where the capeweed will choke out the better pasture.

The sprayed areas will still sweeten up and stock can be put in after the withholding period to help remove the bulk of the weed.

While it has been hard to keep cover on paddocks in recent years, maintenance of cover over summer is the key to preventing capeweed taking over.

If paddocks are consistently bare, it is worth considering sowing the paddock to a perennial pasture that is able to compete with the capeweed at the break.

In a few cases it may be possible to spray now and sow within a few weeks. But where large areas are involved, given the lack of stock , the price of stock and the short supply of grass seed, it may be better to sacrifice the worst paddocks now and do the job properly next year.

That will make Ted even grumpier.