Ireland
May 18, 2017
Over 160 people attended the DAFM Knowledge Transfer approved reseeding event organised by ICSA and sponsored by Germinal on Friday May 12th in Tyrellspass, Co Westmeath.
Germinal’s Dr Mary McEvoy spoke about the importance of picking the right grass seed mixture for a farmers particular requirement, taking soil type and intended use into consideration.
Mary pointed out that buying cheaper seed may save you €5 per acre pack, or €0.50 per acre per year over the lifetime of the sward, but the difference between what different varieties can deliver is immense. “When selecting mixtures, we must ensure they only contain varieties which are on the Department Recommended List” Mary highlighted.
Speaking about the Teagasc Pasture Profit Index (PPI) Mary outlined how it clearly shows the strengths and weaknesses of each variety, and how it should be used when assessing mixtures to ensure farmers are getting the best varieties.
“All varieties that are on the DAFM Recommended List are also on the Teagasc Pasture Profit Index, giving us more information on the performance of individual varieties and the differences between them in economic terms. In quality terms alone the difference between the best and worst variety is €103 per ha/year”.
It was pointed out that generally mixtures contain about 40–45% tetraploid and Mary explained just how tetraploid and diploid varieties complement each other. “Tetraploid varieties are higher in quality and will result in higher intake and animal performance, but are more open. Diploid varieties bring density to the sward”. For heavier soils it was recommended to choose a higher rate of diploids.
Some other practical advice from Mary was to sow the grass seed at 14 kg/acre, use a post emergence spray for weed control and graze new reseeds early – once they withstand the pull test.
In terms of soil fertility it is critical to get the most out of your new reseed, so if the soil isn’t healthy, it won’t support high yields of high quality grass.
The event concluded with a live demonstration of the different methods of reseeding grassland.
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Species
