To maximise grassland productivity & sustainability, it’s crucial for farmers to recognise the most productive grass species. By understanding the strengths of different grasses, you can choose the right grass mixture to improve yields, enhance soil health, and boost animal performance.
Ryegrasses are the most commonly used species in LG Sinclair McGill grass mixtures but are often complemented with other grassland species, such as Timothy, Cocksfoot and fescues. These offer additional benefits to suit specific situations.
In this article, we’ll look at some of the key species for productive grassland; their uses, benefits, longevity and where they can be best used.
Perennial Ryegrasses (Lolium perenne)
This is the cornerstone species of UK grass seed mixtures due to its persistency, adaptability, longevity and high yield characteristics.
There are many perennial ryegrass varieties, usually subdivided into 3 groups categorised by the date at which they reach maturity. Early varieties typically produce a seed head in England and Wales in Mid-May, Intermediate varieties towards the end of May, and Late varieties in early June. In Scotland heading dates will on average be 2 weeks later due to the different climatic conditions.
Early Perennials
These varieties grow well and bulk up in early spring, making them ideal for early grazing and for conservation cutting.
Intermediate (Mid-Season) Perennials
A denser, more prostrate growth habit than early perennials, these varieties have a longer production season with high persistency and yield potential in grazing and cutting systems.
Mid-season perennials can be used to increase ground cover and forage quality in short-term mixtures and to boost yields in long-term mixtures.
Late Perennials
These varieties are extremely persistent and used in long-term mixtures, particularly those designed for intensive grazing. They offer excellent forage quality as they remain leafy and palatable for longer than other types, with good mid and late season growth and a good yield potential.
Italian Ryegrasses (Lolium multiflorum)
Italian ryegrass is the highest yielding of the ryegrass species lasting 18 to 24 months so is typically a mainstay short term conservation mixture. An excellent species to provide bulk but lower in forage quality than perennial ryegrasses. Their fast germination and establishment make them ideal for sowing as a catch crop.
Italian ryegrasses need frequent grazing or cutting to maintain their quality. They grow vigorously and respond well to nitrogen fertiliser but produce relatively few tillers so the sward can be fairly open. Surplus growth in autumn is best removed to promote winter hardiness.
Hybrid Ryegrasses (Lolium hybridum)
These carefully bred hybrids offer the benefits of both Perennial and Italian species. They are more persistent than Italian Ryegrass, lasting for between two and four years, and have higher yields than Perennial Ryegrass.
They will typically offer better ground cover than Italian ryegrasses increasing their suitability to grazing and are used successfully in mixtures with red clovers to make high-protein sward mixtures.
Tetraploid Ryegrasses
There are tetraploid varieties of both Italian and perennial ryegrasses. Tetraploids have a similar plant size but tend to have broader leaves, a more erect growth habit and deeper root systems compared with diploids. Tetraploids offer several advantages over the diploids, including:
- Increased palatability
- Higher sugars (Water soluble carbohydrates)
- Increased winter hardiness
- Increased tolerance to drought conditions
Timothy (Phleum pratense)
Timothy brings many advantages to grass seed mixtures and is often included in grazing and cutting mixtures for use in the north and west of the UK, where conditions can be colder and wetter.
Timothy grows at lower temperatures than ryegrasses which makes for excellent early Spring growth. It is very persistent and winter hardy, coping with wetter conditions and poorer soils. It will also continue to maintain palatability in mid-summer when other grasses may be past their peak production.
Timothy is a good variety choice in swards for grazing sheep.
Cocksfoot (Dactylis glomerata)
Cocksfoot has an extensive root system and is used in mixtures grown on lighter or drought prone soils. It has rapid regrowth and good summer production when other species may be affected by lack of moisture.
However, Cocksfoot is lower in digestibility and sugars than ryegrasses and it can easily become ‘tussocky’ and unpalatable for livestock if managed incorrectly.
Westerwolds (Lolium westerwoldicum)
These are annual grasses with vigorous growth giving very high yields. Their short life span of a single year, but rapid growth potential, means that Westerwold varieties are predominantly sown straight as a catch crop rather than being used in mixtures. They are well suited to bulk up silage production and zero grazing but need regular defoliation to prevent a fast decline in forage quality.
Creeping Red Fescue (Festuca rubra)
Winter hardy and early growing, on acidic soils and in wet and cold conditions, if necessary, makes red fescue an option in specific situations. It is used sparingly in grass seed mixtures.
Meadow Fescue (Festuca pratensis)
Meadow fescue is a nutritious leafy species and traditionally grown with Timothy in grass/clover swards. It is often included in mixtures designed for extensive grazing due to its good performance in low fertility or low input situations.
Putting it all together
LG Sinclair McGill mixtures have been developed through a combination of farm experience, variety and mixture trials as well as animal feeding trials. The current range builds on a foundation of over 50 years of farm success, with the latest research and technology, to produce the very best mixtures available.
Our mixtures are designed using the principles of sward mechanics. This means exploiting knowledge gained from scientific studies, showing the way different varieties and species interact when sown together, to formulate the best mix for each intended purpose.
We include varieties exclusive to LG Sinclair McGill, along with carefully selected varieties from other breeders that have proven performance in the UK Recommended Grass and Clover Lists, and our own variety trials.
Good grass mixtures contribute hugely to lowering production costs, but as a sward ages, its yield and feed quality decreases significantly. This is caused largely by the ingress of lower yielding, lower quality weed grasses.
Now is a great time to take a good look at all your grass fields and if you can answer ‘yes’ to any of these questions then it would be worth considering the various options that are open to you.
Key Questions to Assess the Health of your grass
Q: Are your leys struggling to support the numbers of livestock they did in the past?
Q: Is the speed of re-growth after silage cuts slower than it was?
Q: Have your fields been attacked badly by pests and/or diseases in recent years?
Q: Do you see more and more patchy areas on some fields?
Q: Is the population of weeds and weed grass much higher than you thought?
Q: Have your fields been badly poached in recent years?
Q: Do you detect a reduction in the amount of silage being taken off each field every season?
Q: Has the level of broad-leaved weed infestation been rising?
Q: Could you make better use of the high feeding value of legumes like White Clover?
You have various options if you have answered ‘yes’ to any or all of these questions. It may be that in some cases you will be able to bring the ley back up to speed by close attention to the control of weeds and pests.
Alternatively, it may be necessary either to consider a complete re-seed or perhaps an overseeding operation.
Why is reseeding so important?
Reseeding gives the opportunity to replace older varieties and weed grasses with the newest genetics that offer a multitude of benefits.
The key point to remember is that it is important not to look at the cost of reseeding but instead consider the cost of not reseeding!
More information
Download the grass mixture selection guide here
Greater resilience in forage cropping comes from improving output per acre of quality forages with proven feed value.
Monitoring and managing soil health and pest and weed protocols is vital.
And there’s mileage in rethinking rotations and using the ‘best’ crops between grass crops to break the pest cycles and to improve soil health, and to avoid leaving the land fallow but instead increase output of forages per acre.
Forage brassica and fodder beet are good options. Fodder beet can be grazed or lifted to give a consistent high energy feed and can be sown from late March to late April. Sown in May, Skyfall bounce back brassica provides regrowth after grazing every three to six weeks from mid-July. Sown in June/July, stubble turnips are grazed in autumn and early winter.
Reseeding regularly adds resilience with significant increases in output per acre. This can be boosted even more with high performance grass seed mixtures based on proven UK trial data, and by selecting the right mixture for the job in hand. Trying to save a few £ on seed mixtures, which is a small proportion of the reseeding costs, is false economy.
Herbal leys and clovers are in vogue. Introducing these mixtures is incentivised with payment rates for CSAM3 herbal leys of £382/ha and £102/ha for CNUM2 Legumes on improved grassland.
But a word of warning. Too many growers are choosing least cost mixture options with ‘unknown’ species varieties. While these mixtures might comply with the rules, they don’t give the production benefits that can be achieved from specifically designed mixtures with a track record. For example, varietal choice of plantains and chicory can make a big difference to production.
Download the grass mixture selection guide here
A longer growing season, better quality grass and improved pest control support overall forage production, and they are all advantages of following regenerative agriculture principles.
“One key pillar of regenerative agriculture is greater plant diversity,” says Limagrain’s forage crop manager John Spence. “And it’s an area where grassland farmers can reap the benefits by growing mixtures with more species that widen the growing period and help to combat more variable climate conditions.
“For example, clovers continue to grow in mid-summer when ryegrass varieties slow up. This increases the growing season. Clover also offers nitrogen-fixing benefits.”
Likewise, deeper rooted plants included in multi-species mixtures, such as chicory and plantain, will be more productive in drought conditions whilst also improving soil structure and health.
Improve ground cover
Keeping soil covered is another regenerative pillar – and one to focus on for improved grassland productivity. “Mixtures with improved ground cover, dense swards and few bare patches are less prone to poaching in winter on wet land,” he adds. “Including clovers and herbs alongside highly productive ryegrass varieties ensures mixtures are more robust in dry summers with good ground cover, as well as increased forage output and quality.
He encourages grassland farmers to avoid leaving swards fallow between reseeds. “We recommend that farmers avoid following grass with grass immediately, particularly if there’s a pest problem, and a six-month break is good. Instead, a winter forage crop such a stubble turnips and forage rape will maintain ground cover, help to break the pest cycle, and provide extra much-needed forage for livestock.”
One of the main regenerative agriculture pillars is avoiding soil disturbance. “For grassland farmers this means direct drilling of new leys, minimum soil cultivation, and avoiding ploughing where possible. Overseeding is a good way of increasing productivity without cultivation”.
“Mixtures with tetraploid ryegrasses are good here as they complete well with existing grasses.”
Grassland farmers are already following many of the regenerative farming principles, but there’s more to be gained – specialist mixtures, forage break crops and improved practices will both support soil health and add to grassland productivity.
Financial support?
And there’s the added support from new SFI rules that could offer cash payments for making certain improvements, such as “NUM2: Legumes on improved grassland,” which offers £102/ha for introducing legumes such as white clover into existing temporary grass swards.
“It’s a win-win for many grassland farmers – more output from grassland and increased support for regenerative principles will support their businesses’ longer-term sustainability.”
Find out more about our grass mixtures here
Back your grasslandGrassland improvement is always a wise investment and despite some hikes in input prices there’s still no question on the payback from a reseed or repair.
Early summer is a key time in the grassland calendar. It’s when ‘big’ decisions are made – like timing of silage cuts to achieve the best quality or to maximise yield to fill the clamp.
“But it’s also time to assess sward and grass quality and make some decisions,” says Limagrain UK’s forage crops product manager John Spence. 
So once first cut is completed, a visual assessment of the swards, together with yield and initial quality details, will give a good indication of whether silage targets have been met.
Fertiliser ‘fix’
If yields are down and the silage clamps are low after first cut then sward growth should be maximised in the short term.
“It might be a hard pill to swallow this year, but even with high input prices, the additional grass yield gained from fertilizer applications is worthwhile and more cost-effective than making up the shortfall in dietary energy with bought-in feed,” says Mr Spence.
Whilst reducing fertiliser applications might seem like an attractive idea, a 25% cut in nitrogen from an annual rate of 250kg/ha to around 185kg/ha is likely to reduce grass yields by around 2t/ha equivalent to a reduction in energy of around 22,000MJ/ha. This might save around £80/ha in fertiliser costs but the loss in energy from grass will cost around £600 to replace from energy in bought-in concentrates.
“And remember, concentrate feed prices are still high, so most farmers will see maximising milk from high quality forage as even more important this year.”
Oversowing the sward with a grass seed mixture – or clover – is another short to medium term grass improvement option, and soon after first cut is a good time to do this on any swards needing some ‘repair’.
“Have a walk around the sward a few days after cutting it,” adds Mr Spence. “Look for gaps and broadleaved weeds. But also look at the grasses. There’s no need to worry about identifying the individual grass weeds but look for the proportion of ryegrass in a sward.”
Ideally, 70% of the grass plants should be ryegrass. If there’s less, productivity begins to be significantly compromised. “Examine a metre square area and work out the ryegrass population,” he adds. “If there’s between 70% and 80% perennial ryegrass content then overseeding – rather than a full reseed – can renovate a ley and extend its productive life.”
Correct mixture choice for overseeding is important as the newly sown grasses need to compete with the existing sward. A high inclusion of Tetraploid grasses is recommended as they tend to be larger seeded and more competitive with the established plants.
“Overseeding is also a great way of introducing or increasing the clover content in the sward,” he adds. “Sowing clover in May and June, when soil temperatures have warmed up, means the clover should establish quickly and be able to better compete with surrounding grasses. A pelleted clover, with a mix of clover leaf sizes, gives best results.”
Grass ‘shelf-life’
Grass leys are at their most productive in their first year – so a sward sown in 2023, should be at its most productive in 2024. “Fall off is gradual but inevitable. By year five, a ley’s productivity could be just 60% of year two and the dry matter yield from a grass sward can decrease by about five tonnes/ha from year 1 to year 4.
Ideally, 20% of grassland should be reseeded each year. This keeps grassland on a five year rota and offers the opportunity to maximise sward productivity. 
Even with higher fertiliser and fuel prices, Mr Spence says that the cost of a reseed is easily justified and will pay for itself in improved output from the sward in little over a year.
“It costs between £550 a hectare and £850 a hectare to reseed, depending on whether it’s an overseed or a full reseed,” he says. “But the dry matter output and forage quality should be significantly improved. The new ley should produce more than 33,000MJ per hectare of energy, which is enough to produce 6300 litres of milk. At 40p a litre, this is more than £2500 in milk value. So there’s no issue over justifying the cost.”
He points out the value of choosing a high quality tried-and-tested grass seed mixture suited to the farm and the sward’s purpose makes economic sense.
“It costs the same to sow an average grass seed mixture and a high quality proven mixture. Between 25% and 30% of the reseed cost will be spent on seed, if you opt for a high quality mixture, or around 20% for a standard mixture” he says.
“So there’s a marginal difference in price but on farm trials with new varieties and mixtures show a big difference in yield and feed value which farmers can take advantage of.”
Reseed timing
Reseeding in spring tends to be less popular than in autumn, primarily because it means taking a field out of production during peak grass growing time, despite warmer conditions favouring good establishment and less chance of competition from weeds.
“Less availability of pesticides has altered reseeding decisions. We can’t rely on their use in reseeds, so instead we’re looking more to a rotation to break the bug cycle to help ensure a successful reseed.”
One option may be a quick growing brassica such as Skyfall, sown in May after first cut silage and giving several high protein rounds of grazing, starting as early as late July when the grass growth has slowed down. “We call this crop a bounce-back brassica as it can be grazed, closed up and after an eight-week regrowth, re-grazed ahead of an autumn reseed.”
For those looking for a second cut or grazing round prior to a reseed, a kale or brassica hybrid or stubble turnips sown in July or August will provide a grazing crop in autumn and winter ahead of a spring reseed.
“There are lots of options when it comes to maximising output from grassland, and cutting costs in this area is false economy. There are many other areas to look at before making cuts here.
“And bear in mind that reseeding, oversowing and fertiliser use go together. Younger, healthier grasses will make better use of fertiliser applications than older swards, which means that more fertiliser is turned into grass and feed value in a healthy fresh grass sward.”
Find out more
To see the full range of Sinclair McGill mixtures and find your nearest distributor, click here
To download the Sinclair McGill Grass and Forage Handbook, click here
To find out more about LG Skyfall Bounce Back Brassica, and download a free Growers’ Guide.
