Reseeding to increase productivity

The purpose of reseeding is to grow more grass at the shoulders of the year. This was the main message from Goldcrop and Dairygold experts at a joint farm walk held in north Cork last week.

“Keeping cattle out for longer on the cheapest feed available is the best way to keep down costs. Extending the grazing season by choosing the correct grass seed to suit your farm needs will improve your overall profitability,” according to Liam Stack from Dairygold.

The Dairygold No.1 high-clover mixture contains varieties such as Astonenergy, Astonking, Meduino, and Oakpark, which was bred by Teagasc. Both Astonking and Oakpark are new varieties on the recommended list for 2019.

Pat Cashman from Goldcrop, which supplies grass seeds to Dairygold, said farmers should pick a seed mix that suits their needs.

“The PPI ranks varieties on their economic value under a range of traits. If the field being reseeded is used for intensive grazing, varieties with good growth and digestibility should be chosen and if it is to be used for silage then varieties that score well for silage should be chosen,” Pat said.

He also highlighted the need of having the correct conditions for germination when reseeding. He said having the soil indices correct is essential to give the new seeds the best start and to hit the ground running.

“There is a huge opportunity to reseed in the coming weeks due to the high growth rates being experienced after the recent rainfall and with residual heat in the soil. If seeds are sown in the right conditions, the strike rate will be excellent this august,” Pat said.

He said that one of the most important things about reseeding is to ensure good seed-to-soil contact. He said that many farmers are now rolling twice, before and after sowing, particularly where minimum tillage is practised as this creates a better bond between the seed and soil.

“We often see that the first seedlings to emerge are the ones in the wheel tracks of the tractor. This shows that the rest of the field has not been rolled well enough. There are also fewer pest problems, particularly leatherjackets, when the field has been properly rolled,” Pat said.

The post-emergence spray Envy was used to kill the weeds in the new reseeds and the field has since been grazed twice by cattle

The farm walk was held on the farm of Sean Reidy, a dairy farmer from Kildorrery, Co Cork. Sean reseeded some silage fields on part of the farm 10 weeks ago. The field was sprayed using the recommended rates of Roundup XL. The field was ploughed and 14kg/acre of Dairygold No. 2 grass seed/acre (silage mix) was sown with a one-pass machine.

The post-emergence spray Envy was used to kill the weeds in the new reseeds and the field has since been grazed twice by cattle. The field was topped once to kill an outbreak of fat hen weeds in some parts of the field. Sean wanted to graze the field a number of times for the new seeds to tiller before closing it up for silage. He hopes to get a late cut of silage off this field.

Chris Maughan from Whelehan Crop Protection spoke about the importance of post-emergence spraying.

“The easiest time to eradicate perennial weeds, such as the dock, is within six months of reseeding before a root stock establishes,” Chris said.

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