All three varieties, that have been developed exclusively for Limagrain, offer high nutritional and disease resistant benefits to livestock producers and are on the BSPB Recommended List for England and Wales.
Sinclair McGill’s Colossal Silage and Pasture Renovation mixtures will include new variety Udine. This tetraploid Italian ryegrass has the highest dry matter yield among those on trial in the year of sowing and is 13% higher than the control tetraploid.
“One of Udine’s key benefits is its disease resistance package,” says Limagrain’s grass seed manager Ian Misselbrook. “It scores in the top third among tetraploid Italian ryegrasses for all the main diseases. Which brings added benefits to Colossal Silage and Pasture Renovation – two high yielding short term mixtures predominantly used for cutting.”
Sinclair McGill mixtures Castlehill and Early Start will now include the new grass variety Pensel. This intermediate tetraploid perennial ryegrass is highly nutritious with a good sugar content and it is highly digestible. Conservation yields are especially high in its first year.
“Pensel stays leafy for longer than many other intermediate perennial ryegrasses so it is ideal in a mixture used for summer grazing when other varieties are under-performing,” adds Mr Misselbrook.
“It’s an ideal variety to include in Castlehill, which is a highly successful long term dual purpose ley mixture, and in Early Start that is designed for early spring production of quality grass.
“And very importantly, Pensel adds disease resistance benefits to these mixtures with the highest scores for Crown Rust resistance among intermediate tetraploids and excellent scores for Drechslera and mildew resistance.”
Castlehill mixture will also benefit from the addition of a second new grass variety, Timing. This diploid late perennial ryegrass is a high yielding variety for both grazing and conservation.
Timing has a great seasonal distribution of grass so it can be grazed from early summer until late autumn. It has a dense ground cover, making it more resistant to poaching than many other ryegrasses.
“Castlehill is Sinclair McGill’s most popular grass seed mixture and the addition of these two new varieties will add to its rock solid performances in yield, nutritional qualities, flexibility and longevity.
“The focus is firmly on improving livestock production from grass cost-effectively so it is important that we incorporate these latest advances in varieties into our high-performing mixtures.”
The Sinclair McGill Grass and Forage Crops Handbook 2015/16 is now published with comprehensive details on mixture selection, pest, disease and weed control and the latest developments in the nutritional benefits of selected grass seed mixtures.
Hard copies are available from Emily Short, Limagrain on 01472 370117 or Emily.short@limagrain.co.uk or by downloading an electronic copy from the link below.