Seize the day as opportunities abound

That’s the advice from a veteran Canterbury agronomist, who says solid farmgate returns create a rare opportunity to invest in proven pasture genetics for spring sowing.

“The beauty of cultivars like Array, Maxsyn and 4front perennial ryegrass is that they generate years of improved productivity," Graham Kerr from Barenbrug says. 

"The global commodity market will turn again; it always does. But now, while returns are strong for both dairy and red meat, it's time to build a buffer against lower prices in the future."

Grown, grazed, re-grown and grazed again, high-quality home-grown pasture keeps operating costs down and profits up.

"It's the heart of our industry's success, and it's remarkably cost-effective," Graham says. 

"The better your pasture, the more resilient your system is in the face of all the variables, including weather, product prices and geopolitical uncertainties."

In fact, he says, certified proprietary pasture seed is one of the lowest-risk, highest-return farm investments you can make. 

Top shelf perennial ryegrass cultivators are not only bred to provide measurable gains in yield, seasonal growth and feed quality, they're also stringently tested for quality and performance. 

Renewing with Array diploid ryegrass, for example, brings a unique mix of easy eating, very high total yield, and great cool season growth with persistency and the ability to extract more soil nitrogen.

Similarly 4front, the country's top selling tetraploid perennial, delivers unbeaten total yield for tetraploid; enhances animal performance and is highly palatable. 

Graham says these are just two examples of the opportunities that present themselves this spring.

If you're looking for highly productive shorter-term renewal options than perennial ryegrass, Forge tetraploid hybrid ryegrass offers a breakthrough in genetic gain, and is the New Zealand champion in three-to-five-year pasture. 

"This season is also an ideal time to think really carefully about the value of white clover, both in terms of which cultivator you pick for pasture renewal, but also how it is sown. Too often clover seed is sown too deep, jammed in the same row as ryegrass seed, and never fulfils its potential. "

Because clover seed is tiny, it must be sown at shallower depth than ryegrass, and, if you want it to thrive, needs its own space to establish well without being crowded out or shaded by ryegrass.

Graham says with urea fertiliser prices up to 50% higher than this time last year, and no sign of certainty returning to the market, farmer interest in white clover is skyrocketing. 

A Barenbrug trial comparing different sowing methods for perennial ryegrass and white clover showed that in the 12 months after sowing, broadcasting clover seed gave twice the cover yield than that produced by drilling it in the same row as the ryegrass. 

"The value of the extra clover grown over the year is equivalent to $50/ha of urea, plus another 2-3 times that in the extra lamb growth or milksolids production."

Seeds for Array, Maxsyn, 4front and Forge ryegrasses is available now, along with Apex, Kotuku and Ruru white clovers. Order yours today from your seed merchant.