Pasturebase Ireland –Grass Cultivar Evaluation

results 2013/14

Michael O’Donovan, Nicky Byrne, Liam Hanrahan & MichealO’Leary

Teagasc, Animal & Grassland Research and Innovation Centre,Moorepark, Fermoy, Co. Cork

michael.odonovan@teagasc.ie

• Pasture base - Usage and Farmperformance to date

• On farm cultivar evaluation study

• Set up

• Results to date

• New insights and measurements

• Discussion

Talk Outline

PastureBaseIreland

Currently 925 farms on system ( July 2015)

688 dairy farms

203 beef farms

34 sheep farms

All research farms

>90 Individual farmer groups (farms linked)

1200 Users

Twitter – feed out information daily from system – weekly growthrates, DM%, quality and post grazing residuals

PastureBase Ireland – System Usage

0.0

10.0

20.0

30.0

40.0

50.0

60.0

70.0

80.0

90.0

27

-Jan

27

-Feb

27

-Mar

27

-Ap

r

27

-May

27

-Jun

27

-Jul

27

-Au

g

27

-Sep

27

-Oct

27

-No

v

Kg

DM

/day

2015

2014

2013

12.3

15.9

17.1

16.7

14.4 14.1

13.4

13.1

13.0

15.1

14.9

15.1

17.513.7

16.4

11.1

12.1

14.3

12.1

14.2

11.6

16.9 16.3

13.0

15.410.8

13.713.7

13.918.1

13.3

12.1

13.2

12.0

12.1

11.2 13.1

15.7

14.617.0

16.8

15.2

18.8

14.1

11.2

11.2

14.9

12.4

12.1

10.511.2

10.4

12.7

10.611.1

10185

11350

11523

13396

2083

2522

2397

3122

0 4000 8000 12000 16000 20000

Year 2013

Year 2014

Top 20 Farms 2013

Top 20 Farms 2014

Grazing DM Silage DM

Pasture Base Ireland Farms DM Production

Association between grass utilised and nteprofit in 2014 (Hanrahan et al, 2015)

• High grass production at farm level – littlelocation effects

• Higher performers can grow>15t grass DM/ha

• Grass utilisation/ha has a major economicimpact

• Seasonality needs to improve

• Growing levels of participation – but differentusage levels

Summary

Grass Cultivar Performanceon farms 2013 & 2014

• To establish the phenotypic performance(Seasonal DM production, quality andground score) of recommended listedcultivars on commercial farms

• To establish baseline farm productiondata and eventually use within the PastureProfit index

Objective

• Measuring grass weekly

• >35 Measurements annually

• Measurement history – Measuring Pre PBI

• Interest in Varieties

• Reseeding regularly

• Expect Feedback – negative feedback as goodas positive

Criteria for Selecting Farms

• Varieties need to be Recommended Listed/or near listing close to be recommended

• The most recent recommended areestablished on farm

• Begun in 2011 and accelerated since

• No differentiation between tetraploid anddiploid

Grass Cultivar Criteria on Farms

• Pasture base for;

• Seasonality & total dry matterProduction

• Ground Score – Nov/Dec – farm visit

• Grass Quality – Late May (2015) - Farmvisits (40% of farms)

• Mineral analysis - mid June

• All data stored and cleaned in PBI

Data Capture

Cork -27

Limerick 9

Tipperary- 8

Galway 6

Kerry 5

Westmeath 4, Kilkenny 3

Kildare, Waterford, Wexford, Donegal 2

Laois, Longford, Cavan 1

Where are the Farms

Older Varieties

Tyrella - all farms (69)

Twymax (36)

Kintyre (29)

Abergain (24)

Drumbo (22)

Aberchoice (22)

Majestic (20)

Astonenergy (17)

Dunluce (13)

Glenveagh (16)

New Varieties 2015

AstonLord (1)

Aberwolf (5)

Clanrye (3)

Cultivars on Farms

-1.5

-1

-0.5

0

0.5

1

Tyrella

Twym

ax

Majestic

Kintyre

Glenveagh

Dunluce

Drum

bo

Astonenergy

Abergain

Aberchoice

Cultivar ***

Total DM Cultivar Production on Farms(2013 &14 – Tyrella 12.6 t DM/ha Control)

-1.2

-1

-0.8

-0.6

-0.4

-0.2

0

0.2

Tyrella

Tw

ym

ax

Maje

stic

Kin

tyre

Gle

nveagh

Dunlu

ce

Dru

mbo

Asto

nen

erg

y

Aberg

ain

Aberc

hoice

Number of Grazings achieved percultivar (Control – Tyrella 7.1 per year)

-0.6

-0.5

-0.4

-0.3

-0.2

-0.1

0

0.1

0.2

0.3

Tyrella

Twym

ax

Majestic

Kintyre

Glenveagh

Dunluce

Drum

bo

Astonenergy

Abergain

Aberchoice

Mean Cultivar ground score – (2013 &14– Tyrella - 4.1)

-2.5

-2

-1.5

-1

-0.5

0 May

EJune

Late

June

July

Mean Grass DMD (June 84.6) of 33Farms of Cultivar group

• Significant effect of cultivar on DM yield, range inDM Production between Varieties (13.4 – 11.4tDM/ha)

• Require more data, large variation across data set

• Relationship between on farm data and plot datawas every additional DMY (t DM/ha) in plotevaluations represented 0.64 DM/ha on farm (oneyears data)

• Ground score is less on farms – higher pressure(Grazing, traffic, machinery, poaching)

• Grass digestibility data set emerging – large farm tofarm variation

Summary to date

• Establish a new control cultivar on farms –linked to previous

• Recruit more farms across the country andenterprises

• Requirements

• More new varieties coming through

• Seed of new varieties earlier – 1 ton minimum

Research Focus -1 - On farm

• Develop relationship between Simulated grazing andGrazing of cultivars – in relation to all parameters

• Develop - ‘grazing utilisation difference’ – between’cultivars

• Establish parameters differentiating varieties

• Establish new Predictor grazing traits

• Plans

• Sown down RL to Simulated grazing and Grazing inSpring 2016

• Repeat every second year for a three year period

Research Focus – 2 – In House

Questions

Variation in Spring growth is 0.18% to 0.04% - 2.4t DM/ha to 0.6t DM/ha