Spreading habit
Rohan's spreading habit helps it fill bare areas in a pasture that may otherwise be occupied by weeds (see photo below). This means Rohan SPR competes against weed ingression.
This habit also helps pasture recover from adverse climatic events, particularly extended dry periods, because Rohan spreads to fill space where ryegrass tillers may have died.
Rohan SPR is not indestructible. Like all ryegrasses it will perform best under reasonable management and soil fertility. But its spreading habit improves persistence.
Sheep and beef system fit
The key with any pasture is matching a cultivar to a particular situation. So where does Rohan SPR fit? Looking at different pasture types across properties, based on persistence:
Easy to manage
Under semi-intensive to semi-extensive farm systems it's not easy to maintain pasture quality in late spring. A continual comment from farmers with Rohan SPR is that it 'always looks good', it stays greener and leafier and is usually preferentially grazed. In on-farm trials, it has shown a 0.7 higher ME than some other cultivars in November and December.
Very low stagger risk
Rohan SPR with NEA2 endophyte provides very low staggers risk pasture for sheep and staggers free pasture for cattle. In the 18 years we have sold NEA2, no ryegrass staggers have been seen in sheep or cattle on commercial farms.
High yield in dry conditions
Under ideal conditions Rohan SPR does not have the same yield potential as cultivars like Maxsyn, growing about 10% less. But under tough, dry conditions Rohan will probably persist better and yield more over the life of a pasture.
Sowing Rohan SPR
Sub clover(s) are often added to this mix.