Slow growth has been the theme so far this year with many reseeding plans on the main grazing block have either been placed on hold or delayed.

However, its important once growth allows that we get back on track with replacing old swards to optimise production off the grazing platform. For many, mid-summer/early autumn reseed is the preferred option to reseed grazing ground due to reduced demand and the increased availability of grazing ground after second cut silage.

The target of 10% reseeded annually on the platform can be difficult to achieve when availability/growth is poor for a portion of the year, however, it is worth considering that in any year where the 10% target is not achieved, there is rarely the opportunity in the subsequent year to take out 15%-plus of the grazing block over one season.

Remember, an unproductive sward could be losing you 3t of Dry Matter/ha/year – with input prices where they are currently, swards with low percentages of perennial ryegrass not producing sufficient levels of grass in the shoulders of the year and have a poor response to N can’t be let linger into ‘the following year’.

Timing is critical – The earlier we plan on completing our reseed, the more flexibility we have regarding grazing and weed control. The target turnaround should be 50-60 days with a reseed. Post-emergence spraying is always your best chance to control weeds, typically applied approximately five to six weeks after sowing; and delaying reseeds into late autumn always increases risk of not getting post-emergence completed.

Creating a firm seedbed is all too often overlooked. You often see new plants emerging quickest where the tractor tyre marks are, or in the headlands due to the increased contact. This is a typically the first sign that the field has been inadequately rolled where moisture is adequate. Ensure the seed bed is firm – not fluffy – roll prior to sowing if necessary to firm up.

For more information, contact your local Agritech Sales Advisor or visit www.agritech.ie

Grass seed assembly is the backbone of Agritech and we have long recognised that the key criteria in the assembly of grass mixtures is to include high quality grass varieties of complementary characteristics. Our 2020 Tipperary Grass Seed Range has revealed that two high quality late varieties, AberPlentiful and AberBite, are included in our grass mixtures once again.

AberPlentiful is the highest ranked variety for Total Yield on the 2020 Recommended List and Pasture Profit Index (PPI). It’s a late tetraploid with very good growth characteristics, especially spring growth, where it is also number one in the Late category. AberBite is also a highly sought after variety which features on the Recommend List and PPI. It features a unique combination of excellent grass quality characteristics and high silage yield potential.

According to Agritech’s, Seamus O Slatarra, “The latest Recommended List and PPI once again highlights our commitment to including high quality grass varieties in the assembly of our grass mixtures.

“Our Tipperary Grass Seed Range has a mix for every situation and has built an excellent reputation with farmers throughout the country for delivering optimal germination, establishment and increased yield in new grass leys. All of the Tipperary Grass Seed mixtures are treated with the unique GroQuik Seed Stimulant to further enhance germination rates and crop lifetime production.”

For further advice on spring reseeding or to choose a suitable grass mixture from the Tipperary Grass Seed Range, contact your local Agritech Distributor/Sales Rep or click here.

2020 Tipperary Grass Mixtures Brochure, available to View or Download Now

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1. Sowing arable silage or whole-crop silage and under sowing the grass seed
2. Sowing a nurse crop of cereal (reduced rate) along with the grass
3. Sowing fodder rape or Typhon along with the grass
4. Sowing Westerwold grass with perennial ryegrass, to achieve early yields in the first season

While all the above options will give extra yield in the year sown, there are many associated pitfalls which will need to be considered:

1. Whole-crop will be cut first, therefore you cannot early graze to promote tillering.
2. Heavy whole-crop can smother young grass and block out light required to grow properly. This will result in very disappointing crops of grass.
3. Post-emergence weed control is not possible on reseeds without killing all brassicas (kale, rape, Typhon and turnips). The same will apply to whole-crop containing peas in the mix. Heavy crops may help to discourage annual weeds, however docks are very resilient.
4. If Westerwold is being added to the mix, while it is not persistent, it has the capacity to reseed itself from dropped seeds and heading will be earlier than with perennial ryegrass. If these seeds mature and drop off, a new crop of Westerwold can grow, which can be worse than weeds. To avoid this, seed heads must be cut or topped before they mature.

Before making any decisions, it is important to weigh up the pitfalls based on your own situation and see if you can manage them. Always bear in mind that you are sowing a crop of grass for 6 to 8 years, therefore do not take too much risk.

The most important thing is to establish the grass properly. Always pay attention to the detail around achieving a good reseed:

1. Soil test and use results to develop a fertiliser program.
2. Apply required lime. Min-till requires lime in every situation and follow the soil test recommendations otherwise.
3. Apply 3 bags of 10-10-20 per acre or follow soil test recommendations.
4. Make sure post-emergence weed control is carried out 4-6 weeks after emergence. (Clover leaf needs to be unfolded). Use Legumex DB and add Triade if chickweed is a problem.
5. Watch out for slug and insect damage and treat accordingly.
6. If possible, graze lightly to promote tillering when grass is ready.

Tipperary Grass Seed in conjunction with good decisions will give excellent results. For any further advice on reseeding or to choose a suitable grass mixture from the Tipperary Grass Seed Range, click here or contact your local Agritech distributor. 

A high level of management is required to ensure that the reseeding process is carried out properly, as too often, the return on investment is restricted due to poor sward establishment. The two most important things to focus on are; the quality of the swards and the fertility of the soil.

Like any investment, grassland reseeding should be carefully planned to minimise the cost and maximise the return.

1. Identify the lowest performing areas, i.e. below farm average grass growth/ha or a noticeable drop in animal performance.
2. Identify the resources behind this drop in performance. For example, does the sward contain less than 40% perennial ryegrass?
3. Has the soil received adequate Phosphorus (P), Potassium (K) and Lime? Carry out a soil sample if required.

Soil Testing 

To achieve maximum results from your new reseed and to improve the productivity of the sward, soil fertility must be correct. Prior to reseeding, it is crucial to carry out soil tests for Phosphorus (P), Potassium (K) and pH, testing to a minimum of 10 cm soil depth.

Fertiliser Plan 

Your fertiliser plan is crucial, as this will address any soil fertility issues. Where soil fertility is below the recommended rate, it will require 2 to 3 bags of 10-10-20 to provide enough P to feed the sward, kick start early growth and allow the sward to reach its full potential. Early P is essential for root development, as it feeds the roots and the roots feed the leaf. Nitrogen (N) without P, only feeds the leaf and does not achieve the same response.

Grass Mixture Choice

According to Agritech’s Business Development Manager, Bil Ryan, once you identify your areas for reseeding, decide whether it will be used for grazing or silage, as this will influence your grass mixture type.

“Agritech’s Tipperary Grass Seed Range has a mix for every situation and has built an excellent reputation with farmers throughout the country for delivering optimal germination, establishment and increased yield in new grass leys,” states Bil.

Agritech’s flagship premium mixture, Tipperary Grass No. 4A is suitable for intensive paddock grazing, whereas Tipperary Grass No.2 can be used for a less intensive grazing system. Tipperary Grass No.5 is designed to produce up to five cuts of high quality forage as zero grazing or three cuts of silage and the traditional Tipperary Grass No.3 is ideal for two cuts of silage, plus shoulder grazing.

For further advice on reseeding or to choose a suitable grass mixture from the Tipperary Grass Seed Range, contact your local Agritech distributor. 

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One lesson learned from the difficult winter and spring was that farmers who followed plans and put out fertilizer, grew more grass than the ones who waited for the weather to improve before they acted.

On a positive note, there has been a lot of quality silage cut ahead of schedule, something we thought would be impossible three weeks ago.

Even though the moisture deficits are now evident in parts of the country, fertilizer programs should be followed to maximise grass production and keep costs down.

Make sure that you don’t lose focus on opportunities to reseed also. Fields that were impossible to work on for the last two years are now perfect for working on and it is an opportunity not to be missed to get better swards established in these fields with Tipperary Grass seed.

Continue to monitor field performance and identify the poor preforming fields, as they are the ones that will benefit most and give the biggest return on investment from reseeding.

For more information, contact your local Agritech distributor.

Increased stocking rates particularly on dairy farms has meant that herbage output is more critical now than ever before to ensure animals are fully fed and profitable. The current and ongoing inclement weather has meant that fodder reserves are now depleted on most farms throughout the country. Fodder shortages have occurred many times before however, the big difference this year is that it has happened following a very good grass growing year in most parts of the country.

The poor weather conditions since last autumn and poor cash flow in 2016 has meant that there is now a three year reseeding backlog on many farms. With increasing stock rates across the country, it is vital that farmers continue to focus on growing more grass to ensure that livestock are fully fed and that a continued supply of high quality forage will be available throughout the year. Farmers who measure paddocks have reported that in most cases, top performing swards on their farms outperform the poorest performing ones by up to 100%. New swards are the most economical way to improve animal performance and maximise a farms potential, however, according to Agritech’s Sales Director John Kenny, many farmers are under the impression that if they take out a field for reseeding that they will not recoup the lost production in the same year.

Kenny says ‘Having spoken to many farmers recently, the response is that they cannot afford to reseed as they want to keep fields in production in order to bank more fodder. However, this is not true, as where the field is reseeded before mid-summer, the extra yield of the reseeded sward will offset the production lost when the field was idle’. There is a need to do as much reseeding as possible, not just for economic reasons but also in order to maximise the amount of grass grown to sustain stocking rates for the future.

It is essential that farmers concentrate on returning sward to production as quickly as possible. The target is 60 days between the grazing pre reseeding to having animals back in the reseeded field again. This is a very realistic target and when achieved it means that there is less than five weeks down time for the sward. The benefits of reseeding will outweigh the time lost in production as new pastures have proven to be higher yielding, have higher digestibility and intakes far exceed that of older pastures.

For any further advice on spring reseeding or to choose a suitable grass mixture from the Tipperary Grass Seed Range contact your local Agritech distributor.

The recent release of the Recommended List and the Pasture Profit Index (PPI) of grass varieties for 2018 shows a change in the order of merit of the top late varieties. AberPlentiful now holds the pole position on the list having increased its total value by €36 to €203 in 2018. AberPlentiful is a late tetraploid with very good growth characteristics, especially spring growth where it is also the highest in its category. AberBite is listed on the Recommended List for the first time this year. It will be a highly sought after variety as it features excellent grass quality characteristics and it is the No 1 Late Variety for silage.

Both AberPlentiful and AberBite are available from Agritech’s Tipperary Grass Seed Range this year. Commenting on the news, Agritech’s Sales Director, John Kenny stated “Tipperary grass mixtures have built an excellent reputation with farmers throughout the country for delivering quality, yield, persistence and especially animal performance. This latest ratification further enhances the reputation of our range of grass mixtures”.

With a two-year reseeding backlog on most farms, farmers will now be taking every opportunity to carry out reseeding this spring. Agritech’s advice is to choose a mix of grass seed that will improve animal performance, increase forage yield, be easily managed and have good persistency.

For any further advice on spring reseeding or to choose a suitable grass mixture from the Tipperary Range, contact your local Agritech distributor.

Horses are extremely tight grazers of grass and the mixture composition should take account of this.  Sward density, hard wearing, and an even production of grass throughout the growing season with the option for a hay or haylage crop are key criteria in choosing a suitable mixture.

The benefits of reseeding are long documented, however Teagasc figures show that only 2-3% of all agricultural pastures are reseeded annually. This means that many pastures are over run with weed species leading to unproductive paddocks.

Reseeding of paddocks should be carried out where there has been excessive damage from poaching, the makeup of the current species is dominated by weed grasses or the quality of the forage produced from these paddocks is poor due to excessive grazing or constant cutting.

A typical paddock mixture should contain diploid varieties of perennial ryegrass with low sugar content together with creeping red fescue, timothy and smooth stalked meadow grass which will give a verstile mixture of nutrient rich grass species and capable of binding the sward for greater repair of the ground from hoof damage.

If choosing mixtures solely for the production of haylage, a mixture of perennial ryegrass together with hybrid ryegrass will give a high yielding mixture for multiple cuts in the year.

A further step in exploiting the potential of grass has been achieved through the application of biological seed stimulants.  All mixtures in the Tipperary range of grass mixtures from Agritech are GroQuik® dressed to improve seedling establishment by accelerating germination and root development. GroQuik® was originally proven at London University to improve the establishment of the grass crop by 20%. According to Agritech’s Technical Director, Seamus O’Slatarra, “It is through extensive in-house research and trials, GroQuik® has been further enhanced with the addition of numerous additional bio stimulants to the dressing. The end result today is that the benefits of the Gro-Quik® dressing are now persisting for years rather than months post establishment”.

This article was published in The Irish Field (Saturday April 30th 2016)

Agritech recommend our Tipperary Grass – Horse Grazing mixture.

Formulated to cater for diverse needs providing nutritious, persistent and palatable pastures.

• Suitable for hay, haylage or as a grazing mixture.

• Minimal poaching damage due to inclusion of perennial ryegrass, strong creeping red fescue, timothy and smooth stalked meadow grass.

• GroQuik® seed stimulant dressed for improved germination and establishment with benefits seen long beyond sowing and establishment.

For more information and to buy Horse Grazing mixture, contact your local distributor.

Read more about our Tipperary Grass range.