Are forage crops an option on your farm?

The winter barley harvest is fast approaching and provides an ideal time for cover crops to be planted which can also provide fodder for animals.

Some farmers may also be thinking of reseeding a paddock and might decide to plant a forage crop and sow grass in the spring.

Many farmers may have grazed some of their second-cut silage ground over the past few weeks and may be unsure of meeting winter feed requirements. This might be stopping them from reseeding in the coming weeks.

If you are short of feed it might be an idea to approach a tillage farmer to plant on their land and this could allow reseeding to go ahead.

Crops like forage rape or a kale-rape hybrid can grow quickly and provide a large amount of bulk in a short space of time and are often suited to light stock.

Forage rape

Forage rape can establish very quickly in the right conditions and provides high levels of energy and protein.

Kale/rape hybrid

Hybrid brassicas has good regrowth potential and is also a great source of energy and protein.

Leafy turnips

Leafy turnips can establish quickly and can also regrow.

Brassica mix

Under the Green Low-Carbon Agri-Environment Scheme (GLAS) farmers must plant a mix. The one most suited to grazing is fodder rape and leafy turnip. This must not be grazed until after 1 December if planted for GLAS.

Establishment

Early establishment is the key to producing a good, high-yielding crop. There is a saying with these crops that a day in July is worth a week in August and a month in September, so planting as early as possible is important. If the crop is going into tillage ground, planting after winter barley is a good option.

Choosing a site where straw is chopped will speed up this process as there will be no need to wait for straw to be taken away.

Forage crop seeds are generally small seeds and require good seed to soil contact. Only a small amount of tillage is needed. They can be planted at a depth of 1cm to 2cm.

A light run of a disc or tiller should be enough or you could choose to direct-drill if there is an appropriate drill nearby. Consolidation is important so roll where possible.

These crops should help to soak up the nutrients left behind from the previous crop and any nitrogen mineralising in the soil.

Fertiliser should only be applied in a fodder deficit situation and, according to the guidelines, in the nitrates directive.

Setting up the site

The first thing to remember is to choose a site with access to water and an electric fence connection.

After that, most forage crops require roughage to be fed alongside the crop. As these crops are used for out-wintering, it is often a good idea to place wrapped bales of silage throughout the crop once it is planted. This means machinery will not need to be driven into the field in wet conditions and it lightens the workload in the winter.

It is important to choose the driest site you have to avoid soil damage, poaching and leaching of nutrients and to try to extend the length of time the animals will be able to spend in the field.

Some of these crops have good regrowth potential like rape and the rape-kale hybrid. It may be a case that animals graze in October-November and return in February.

These crops should not be allowed to go to seed and should be grazed or destroyed before they go to seed to prevent weed problems in following crops.

Agreements

Agreements can be made between tillage and livestock farmers trading fodder.

It is good to write everything down on paper like how much will be paid for the crop, on what basis this will be paid and when the site will be vacated.

It is also important that the stock are not left on the field in unsuitable conditions. However, if you are making an agreement on paper it is important to remember that it is not legally binding so it is best to enter into forage agreements with people you know and trust.

Introduce the crop slowly

Animals should be introduced slowly to brassica crops, over a period of at least 10 days, only giving them access to the crop for a few hours per day at the start of grazing.

The brassica crop should not take up more than 70% of their diet. Fibre should be the focus on the other 30%.

When animals are grazing brassica crops they are most likely to become deficient in copper, cobalt, iodine and selenium and will need a bolus to provide these minerals.