Cut your costs with clover

A large crowd of cost  conscious farmers gathered at the farm of Murtagh Walls, Hilltown, to view at first hand how reseeding grass and the use of clover can reduce and even eliminate the need for fertiliser.

With the escalating prices in fertiliser and feed, the focus for beef and sheep farmers is to get as much liveweight gain as possible from grass. Grass still remains the cheapest feed available to drystock farmers. For instance, at concentrate prices of £200/ton, good productive grazing swards are 7.5 times cheaper to feed per unit of energy than meal.

The main benefits of reseeding were highlighted. These included introducing new grass varieties that are better suited to grazing or cutting, improved grass growth throughout the season, higher grass yields, improved animal performance due to increased digestibility and higher energy content as well as improved silage quality.

Reseeding offers an opportunity to introduce clover into the sward. Clover can increase livestock performance by up to10 percent in cattle and up to 25 percent in sheep. It is also higher in trace elements such as Selenium and Magnesium and is higher in protein than ryegrass. Beef and Sheep advisors from CAFRE outlined how a well managed clover sward could produce up to 200KG N/ ha. This is the equivalent of almost 6 bags/acre of nitro chalk, which at current prices would be a saving of around £85/acre (£210/hectare)

A range of reseeding methods were discussed. These varied from conventional ploughing to “stitching in” swards. All of these have merits depending on the farm situation. The main requirements for establishing a reseed, especially for clover, is a firm seed bed ensuring there is good soil-seed contact. Soil testing is crucial, and a pH of 6.5 with a P and K index of 2+ is recommended. Acidic soils increase the chance of a failed reseed.

Management post-reseeding is vital. Sowing no nitrogen will allow clover to establish by avoiding competition from grass and weeds. If weeds are problematic, use a clover - safe spray such as Alistell or Squire. Grazing with light cattle or lambs will encourage tillering of the clover plants. In cases where it is difficult to get swards grazed down to two inches (5mm) regular topping of the sward will give best results. Swards should be well grazed off in autumn and nitrogen should be sown in early spring to help maintain a high clover content. All nitrogen sown should be used by mid - April.

Introduction of clover into swards combined with good grassland management is vitally important to improve the profitability of beef and sheep farms. For more information on reseeding, contact your local DARD development advisor.

6 August, 7.30 pm Eric Lindsay, Ballee Rd, Strabane, Co Tyrone

7 August, 7.30 pm Wm Patton, 105 Kirk Rd, Stranocum, Co Antrim

7 August, 7.30 pm John Gray, Moy Rd, Dungannon, Co Tyrone

8 August, 2.30 pm Aubrey Bothwell, Maguiresbridge, Co Fermanagh

11 August, 7.30 pm Richard Thompson, Curragh Rd, Aghadowey, Co Derry