Don’t worry, Britt Ekland is not thumbing a life with ABBA! But if you’re still considering drilling forage stubble you have missed the window for Beets, but you still have time to plant some excellent Swedes in time for some excellent high-energy forage and/or winter feed.
The low production costs combined with high dry matter yields and forage quality, make this an excellent, cost-effective crop. All this, in addition to the high bulb yield and impressive leaf retention.
What benefits are there to growing Swedes now?
- An excellent crop for high energy winter feed
- Low-cost production
- Palatable finishing for Lambs
- Good high dry matter yields
- Inexpensive and effective
Swede crops can grow well on a wide range of soils, these include:
- Sandy loams
- Silts
- Peat or clay loams
It’s best to steer clear of soils with pans and aim for a pH value around 6.5
Which Variety Should I Choose?
Triumph
In UK Field Trials, this new generation Swede consistently performed well. A new generation high yielding swede ideal for out-wintering sheep. Yellow fleshed mid maturity variety with a dry matter of 21%, good dry rot and mildew tolerance. Triumph retains good levels of foliage throughout the Winter.
Airlie
This dual-purpose variety is a low to medium dry matter Swede with a high fresh yield and good resistance to disease. It’s suitable for fodder and culinary use with purple skin and creamy white flesh. Airlie is an early to intermediate use variety.
Gowrie
This Scottish bred variety can be utilised before or after Christmas and produces high dry matter yields and has good resistance to both clubroot and powdery mildew.
Kenmore
Kenmore has good winter hardiness, resulting in a wide utilisation window. It has a bronze skin with white flesh. This early-maturing Swede produces medium dry matter, best suited as stock feed not culinary use.
Lomond
Lomond produces high fresh and dry matter yields. This makes it a perfect variety ideal for finishing lambs after Christmas. This Lomond variety is resistant to both powdery mildew and clubroot. Trials have shown it suffers less from rots and splits in its root.
Sowing Information
| Sowing dates: | April – June |
|---|---|
| Sowing Rate: | |
| Precision Drill: | 350-850gm/ha 150-350gm/ acre) Grade H seed |
| Direct Drill: | 5kg/ha (2kg/acre) Natural seed |
| Broadcast: | 5kg/ha (2kg/acre) Natural seed |
Yield and Feed Quality
| Average DM Yield | 7-10 Tonnes/ha |
|---|---|
| Sowing Rate: | 70-80 tonnes/ha |
| Dry Matter | 9%-13% |
| Crude Protein | 10%-11% |
| ‘D’ Value | 82D (Digestibility) |
| Metabolisable Energy | 12.8-13.1 MJ/kg DM |
Need more information?
If you need more information about varieties and costs, call Jonathan Coombe today on Freephone 0800 174999
