Best cover crop for sheep grazing

[farmgrant]

my rotation is 30% WW, 30% WOSR and then 30% SBarley.
What would be a good over-winter cover crop for me to establish behind the combine to graze sheep over before destruction* in front of Spring Barley?

* of cover crop, not sheep...

 

[Devon James]

We used pedders number 1 last year and grazed with sheep. That was before maize.

 

[Wooly]

Stubble turnips.

 

[JNG]

Had some sheep in a mix lately, they wandered the field and ate all the vetch first. So something like a vetch forage rye mix would give a lot of grazing and not upset you rotation. Will also depend how you establish your barley afterwards, if too much eye it may make establishing barley difficult???

Personally I'm considering quitting rape to grow grazed brassicas but that's a different story.

 

[SilliamWhale]

Had some sheep in a mix lately, they wandered the field and ate all the vetch first. So something like a vetch forage rye mix would give a lot of grazing and not upset you rotation. Will also depend how you establish your barley afterwards, if too much eye it may make establishing barley difficult???

Personally I'm considering quitting rape to grow grazed brassicas but that's a different story.

The only thing is will you be getting as good a break crop for the cereals?

I've considered the same but it will increase barley cropping area at the expense of wheat ie WW/WB+Turnips/SB/Beans unless you go WW/Cover til May and Swedes/SBarley/WW etc. etc.

But that said if oilseed rape doesn't pay enough its a drain on the farm

 

[ratchet spanner]

my rotation is 30% WW, 30% WOSR and then 30% SBarley.
What would be a good over-winter cover crop for me to establish behind the combine to graze sheep over before destruction* in front of Spring Barley?

* of cover crop, not sheep...

we use farm saved w oats plus 2 kg hybrid grass seed ,graze of in feb and strip till beans in march . works well, and cheap to grow

 

[SilliamWhale]

we use farm saved w oats plus 2 kg hybrid grass seed ,graze of in feb and strip till beans in march . works well, and cheap to grow

I like the sound of that

 

[Will7]

we use farm saved w oats plus 2 kg hybrid grass seed ,graze of in feb and strip till beans in march . works well, and cheap to grow

What rate of oats are you sowing with your hybrid grass? Do you drill it or broadcast?

Thanks

 

[britt]

Turnips are best for grazing, but worst for club root.
I've dropped WOSR on fields by home to grow turnips, but 1 in 4 will be as close as I dare grow them.
Forage rye with fodder radish is my choice where turnips are ruled out, but seed is dear, fodder radish will suffer from club root if it's there, but doesn't propagate it.