What you need to know if you’re considering reseeding this autumn

Increasing the proportion of the farm reseeded increases total and seasonal dry matter production. Reseeding, coupled with good grassland management, can lead to an increased herbage utilisation and have a positive effect on profitability.

Optimising grassland on farm is one of the most economical means to produce milk and beef. In order to achieve high-quality grass, it is important to put a full reseeding programme in place annually that considers all the elements of reseeding.

The ultimate aim is to reseed 10% of the grazing platform annually, resulting in a completely renewed grazing platform every 10 years. Current figures from the Teagasc National Farm Survey highlight that every extra tonne of grass utilised is worth an additional €173 to the farm.

The first step involved in reseeding is the spraying off

Reseeding should be given strong consideration when any of the following features become evident in a sward.

These include:

High content of weed grasses (e.g. scotch, bent grass);
Low perennial ryegrass content;
High content of broadleaved weeds (e.g. chickweed, docks, thistles and buttercups);
Reduced milk yield or liveweight gain;
Poor re-growth capacity following grazing or cutting;
Bare patched throughout the sward;
Reduced silage dry matter digestibility (DMD) values.

In grazing swards, the arguments for reseeding lie in the areas of an extended grazing season / shoulder growth, improved re-growths and continued improvement in yield and quality achieved by using new recommended ryegrass varieties.

The most important aspect is choosing the correct grass seed variety.

Choosing the correct seed mixture

No single grass variety has all the desired agronomic traits and a grass seed mix can address this.

When it comes to selecting the correct seed mixture, the Pasture Profit Index (PPI) is essential to reference specific characteristics and value within the pasture.

Diploid: Tetraploid proportion;
For grazing: 50% diploid; 50% tetraploid (reduce tetraploid % on difficult soils);
For silage: 60% diploid; 40% tetraploid (narrow range in heading dates are advised);
Sowing rates: 14kg/ac;
Clover inclusions should also be considered (now a requirement for derogation farms considering reseeding).

Quality grass and forage is at the core of profitable and sustainable livestock farming. The need to maximise grassland utilisation and improve on-farm efficiencies will be vital to the profitability of dairy and beef enterprises.

You can download the Grass and Forage Seed Brochure 2020 here

View the full testimonial video on reseeding below.