The Department of Agriculture, Food and Marine has recently published its Grass and White Clover Recommended List Varieties for Ireland 2017.

Details of the recommended varieties, which are evaluated by the Department, were made public earlier this week.

Before being included on the recommended list, the varieties were evaluated under six-cut and eight-to-10 cut systems for two years at a number of trial sites throughout the country.

Perennial Ryegrass varieties included on the recommended list for the first time include: Aberclyde, Aberwold, Fintona and Meiduno.

The new inclusions have Pasture Profit Index (PPI) values of €206, €171, €178 and €163 respectively.

The PPI, developed by Teagasc, is designed as a guide to assist in variety selection when planning to reseed. It indicates the relative profitability difference of grass varieties when compared to base values.

The value given to each grass is based on a number of traits including: seasonal Dry Matter yield; quality; and persistency.

More on the new varieties

Aberclyde

Aberclyde, bred by IBERS in Wales, is an intermediate tetraploid variety. The variety has a PPI value of €206 and has a heading date of May 26.

According to the Department, Aberclyde has very good spring and autumn growth, the Dry Matter Digestibility of the variety is moderate and first-cut silage yields are good.

Ground cover is moderate and variety is persistent.

Aberwolf

Another variety bred by IBERS, Aberwolf is an intermediate diploid perennial ryegrass variety with good Dry Matter Digestibility.

Aberwolf has very good spring growth, the Department says, along with good summer and autumn growth.

The Welsh-bred grass variety has a PPI value of €171, a May 31 heading date and is a moderate silage variety.

Ground cover is excellent and variety is persistent.

Fintona

Fintona, an intermediate tetraploid variety, makes its appearance on the recommended list for the first time in 2017.

Bred by AFBI, Fintona boosts very good spring and autumn growth and has a moderate Dry Matter Digestibility. The variety has a PPI index value of €178 and a May 22 heading date.

Silage yield, especially first cut, is good. Ground cover is moderate and variety is persistent.

Meiduno

A variety from DLF, Meiduno also features on the recommended list for the first time in 2017. The late tetraploid variety is valued at €163 under the PPI and has a heading date of June 6.

According to the Department, the variety has very good seasonal growth, moderate silage yield and moderate ground cover.

To see the full recommended list Visit the Department’s website