Can you have too much clover in a ley?

Sir loin

Member
Location
North Yorkshire
2022-05-01 11.35.57.jpg

This is year 2 of a five year cutting/grazing ley. The clover seems to have taken off this year, but can you have too much clover for first cut haylage?
 

hendrebc

Member
Livestock Farmer
View attachment 1033302
This is year 2 of a five year cutting/grazing ley. The clover seems to have taken off this year, but can you have too much clover for first cut haylage?
It's probably not as much as you think I'd guess at that it's 30% clover the leaves being big makes it look like there is more. Its a lot for cattle thar aren't used to it but in haylage it should be fine as they will be eating it every day and be well adapted. Sheep would be fine on it.
 
View attachment 1033302
This is year 2 of a five year cutting/grazing ley. The clover seems to have taken off this year, but can you have too much clover for first cut haylage?

Our new leys always look like that by 2nd year onwards. Doesn't really cause an issue at all apart from the odd blown cow. The biggest drawback is you'll grow less grass, but then again it'll be higher quality. A clover sward looks great then when it wilts in the row you realise there's hardly any there.
 

neilo

Member
Mixed Farmer
Location
Montgomeryshire
View attachment 1033302
This is year 2 of a five year cutting/grazing ley. The clover seems to have taken off this year, but can you have too much clover for first cut haylage?

I took a light cut (4 Fusion bales/ac) of silage from a similar ley last summer after grazing with sheep for a couple of months. It analysed at 12ME & 14%CP and allowed me to slash concentrates for my indoor lambers to near bugger all.👍
The field, being grazed by sheep again currently, looks just the same again.

I guess I should give credit to @Great In Grass , as it was reseeded with Barenbrug Long Season 4 or 5 years ago.👍
 

Cowabunga

Member
Location
Ceredigion,Wales
View attachment 1033302
This is year 2 of a five year cutting/grazing ley. The clover seems to have taken off this year, but can you have too much clover for first cut haylage?
Yes. Besides the dangers of fog fever and bloat, excessive clover makes poor silage and my cows certainly do not like grazing that much clover and will obstinately reject them. Besides which they smother the grass and reduce forage yields spectacularly. If cows do eat that crop they tend to shït through the eye of a needle and produce too much ammonia in it.
A more moderate amount of clover is generally a ‘good thing’ though but when they go nuclear it is difficult to manage them. This and the need to control dock weeds every few years is why I seldom reseed with clover these days.
 

DrDunc

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
Dunsyre
Rained here in the hills last Friday

Clover leaves finally appeared through winters mud

Joyful sheep had them disappearing by Sunday





Baled pure clover hay when over in Australia quarter century past

Had to be done in darkness, or the stuff shattered in the heat

Made animals fed skitter worse than a hangovers dodgy kebab
 

neilo

Member
Mixed Farmer
Location
Montgomeryshire
I take it you like the long season mix, what month does it start to kick into gear usually in your neck if the woods ?

Tbh I think that was the last time I put that particular mix in. It does kick in early and seems to carry on growing late in the season, but the grasses seem to peter out after 5 years or so IME. Fine if that's the intention, but tend to put longer term mixes in generally now.
Most short term ryegrass will grow at low temps, giving a 'long season'.
 

DrDunc

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
Dunsyre
Tbh I think that was the last time I put that particular mix in. It does kick in early and seems to carry on growing late in the season, but the grasses seem to peter out after 5 years or so IME. Fine if that's the intention, but tend to put longer term mixes in generally now.
Most short term ryegrass will grow at low temps, giving a 'long season'.
Barenbrug Highlander long term mix also gives early growth and autumn persistence, achieved by much creeping red fescue

Unfortunately the red fescue yields comparatively little to ryegrass in summer, and quickly chokes everything but small menna type clovers. I've still one field of the stuff left, but it wasn't my greatest experiment

Astonishing the reduction in cake needed for lambing ewes when they've good ryegrass and clover swards to graze.

One day I intend calculating how much bagged nitrogen saved by growing clover rich swards, but I'll need to learn enough biology to understand the process first!
 
You can definitely have too much clover in a sward if feeding to in-calf cows or grazing youngstock. Learnt that the hard way with short bone syndrome in calves and dead steers from bloat. But in silage to youngstock, should be good stuff if introduced slow enough
 

serf

Member
Location
warwickshire
You can definitely have too much clover in a sward if feeding to in-calf cows or grazing youngstock. Learnt that the hard way with short bone syndrome in calves and dead steers from bloat. But in silage to youngstock, should be good stuff if introduced slow enough
Never heard of SBS before 🧐
 

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