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We cut 57 rolls of hay off just 7 acres. I'm really pleased with the Mach 1. It has re-grown again, nice and leafy after being cut, I've fertilised it and I'm hoping to get another cut. Next year I'll plant three times as much Mach 1.
Herb based systems - Choice chicory & Tonic plantain
Grazing herbs are unique species of pasture which offer many benefits for grazing systems. Chicory and plantain's stand out features include their high feed quality and low risk of animal health issues. Thirty kilometres west of Forbes, NSW, Dustin Kemp, manages a farm where Choice chicory and Tonic plantain have been successfully used as part of the farming system. The farm has an average annual rainfall of 500mm which is supplemented with flood irrigation. Herbs have been incorporated into the system to provide high quality feed for lambs and to help fill the green feed gap throughout the year.
SPS News
12 March 2019
Fast establishing autumn forages
Pastures across the country have recently been hit by long hot dry spells. Now is the time to make decisions about whether to grow feed for the winter or buy it in. These decisions will not only affect the autumn and winter at hand, the seed you plant this autumn will also affect the quality and amount of feed grown in the spring. There are many options including forage oats, annual ryegrass, Italian ryegrass and forage rape and this article aims to help guide you into the right forage for your farming system.
SPS News
Fescue
12 March 2019
12 tips for sowing & managing tall fescue
Tall fescues are making a resurgence in popularity as newly released cultivars make their way into the market. These new varieties offer softer, more palatable leaves and higher winter activity or summer dormancy than traditional varieties. Before sowing it is important to check that you have got everything right to ensure a successful result. Check off our list for getting the most out of your tall fescue pasture.
This Choice chicory was planted near Exeter on 12 September 2018. The plot was cut to 10cm high on the 14th of January and by the 1st of February it had grown back to 30cm high, with little rainfall. Chicory can produce large quantities of drymatter in hot dry conditions.
Name: Greg - AusWest Seeds
Location: Exeter
#behindtheseeds
Grass
Italian
Ryegrass
7 March 2019
John Underwood
The growth from Thumpa has been phenomenal. It had still not gone to head by mid-November, and the cattle clearly found it highly palatable. Thumpa has one of the best germination rates I've seen, and that, along with its growth rate, palatability for stock, and yield for both grazing and silage makes it pretty impressive.
We've seen a number of benefits already. It's definitely improved our livestock nutrition. The stock always look healthy and they've gained good weight. It's also got great palatability, and the vigorous growth has been incredible. I couldn't get over how much it just kept growing, even through the colder months. We had a little bit of capeweed, and a few red legged earth mites, but they didn't seem to stop the ryegrass at all.
Successfully sowing a new pasture can be a challenge. Variety selection is an important aspect to consider, when neglected it can lead to poor establishment, and pastures that fail to reach expectation in terms of production, quality and longevity. Using a pre-blended pasture blend/mix, designed for your local area, can mitigate some of this risk.In Victoria, South Australia and Tasmania we offer the SPS Signature Range pasture blends. For the northern states of Queensland and New South Wales we offer the MAXImiser? range of Pasture Mixes.
In the cereal and broadacre market we are often inundated with new options each season as varieties are bred for improved disease resistance, and to better suit different geographical areas and lengths of season. With so much choice we have profiled our ?top 5 season picks? of these new release varieties.
This is Callum Schaefer's first go at growing forage sorghum. Despite struggling early due to the dry, it has taken the maximum form recent localised storms and will be ready to be cut in the next week or so.
Name: Aaron - AusWest Seeds
Location: Guyra
#behindtheseeds
Forage crops
8 February 2019
Fuelling Production at Guyra
BMR Fuel forage sorghum has taken full advantage of recent storm activity and looks to be producing the goods for Sam White if Bald Blair Angus, near Guyra. This is the second year Sam has grown BMR Fuel and he is already planning next years crop.
Name: Aaron - AusWest Seeds
Location: Guyra
#behindtheseeds
17 January 2019
Ian Tonking
The One50 was sown mid-September 2018 after 2 crops of Knight Italian ryegrass which was used to clean up weeds, kikuyu. This process started September 2016. I was able to graze the One50 within 8 weeks. The first hectare section carried 8 cows and calves for 10 days and is now ready to graze again (see photo). On the other 7 hectares, 18 cows and 20 calves, were put in on the 7th of December and there was still plenty of feed. I ploughed the paddock and spread the One50 with a super spreader before harrowing and tyre rolling and I had a good strike. The One50 has been quick to get going and I am very pleased with the production at this early stage.
Testimonial
15 January 2019
Top 5 points for pasture planning
Your property and production system is unique, therefore there are many factors that require consideration when deciding on what to plant as a pasture. We have outlined our top five points to get you started.
Pastures in low rainfall environments play an important role in providing feed for livestock and increasing soil nitrogen in cropping rotations. While cereal crops can be grazed during winter, pastures can reduce feed gaps during other times of the year. Lucerne, annual legumes and perennial grasses such as Hispanic cocksfoots and Mediterranean tall fescues are just some of the options that can be used to increase production in these environments.
This Titan 9 paddock was under-sown with Mitiaka oats in autumn 2016. The sowing rates were with 2.5 kg/ha Titan 9 , 2.5 kg/ha Urana sub clover and 40 kg Mitiaka. "I don't leave animals on all the time, I rotationally graze. The Titan 9 seems to get up and going faster than Auroa, better early vigour. If this paddock had a good rain on it now it will bloom again. It is amazing the growth Titan 9 gave in June and July and we hammered it, then took off the sheep." The average annual average rainfall is 460 mm.
SPS News
