Sainfoin

[Clever Dic]

Anyone for any experience of this, growing it for hay either by itself or with another grass.,?

 

[bobk]

Anyone for any experience of this, growing it for hay either by itself or with another grass.,?

Does it dry in the rain ?

 

[MJT]

Need to have some seriously nice drying weather, hot and windy preferably, if you need to ted it much then will kick all the goodness out of it and left with a load of stalks. Haylage not an option ? Kick it around straight after it's been mowed, leave to dry for a couple of days then row up and bale, would be lovely stuff.

 

[llamedos]

@gatepost @ajcc and @neilo have all mentioned it in the past iirc

 

[neilo]

Magical stuff if you read the Cotswold Grass Seeds info. Perhaps telling that there still aren't many growing it though?

I don't think it's very competitive until it gets going, so any grass grown with it would have to be some low production stuff. I understand it doesn't like wet feet either, hence why it used to be common on Cotswold stone brash that won't grow much else. You still won't find much of it there these days though.....

I have no experience of the crop though, other than looking into it years ago, and walking away scratching my head.

 

[johnflimston]

If you like hard work make it on tripods, not dependent on particularly good weather.

 

[Pan mixer]

I read and have read many old farming books and this was popular as was vetch.

I have a feeling that it is less popular now for the same reason that rare breeds are rare - it is for the enthusiast.

Haylage would be possible I suppose but it would need several layers of plastic as the stalks look like film piercers to me. Then would it be too fiery to feed unless in a TMR?

I have wondered about Stover at the same time (clover hay) and crossed it off the list of things to try too.

Festolium is my radical new plant this year.

 

[Kevtherev]

Doesn’t like wet
Prefers dry soils very little grown nowadays although popular in some herbal leys.

 

[Kevtherev]

Lucerne would be worth looking at @Clever Dic

 

[yellowbelly]

I only know one farm growing sainfoin round here, on some dry limestone brash.Uses it for hay - says it takes a bit of making
Also seed is pretty expensive - thick end of £100/ac

 

[Clever Dic]

I read and have read many old farming books and this was popular as was vetch.

I have a feeling that it is less popular now for the same reason that rare breeds are rare - it is for the enthusiast.

Haylage would be possible I suppose but it would need several layers of plastic as the stalks look like film piercers to me. Then would it be too fiery to feed unless in a TMR?

I have wondered about Stover at the same time (clover hay) and crossed it off the list of things to try too.

Festolium is my radical new plant this year.

Festolium is good stuff. We have been growing a couple of 100 acres for the last few years of "Perseus"
Seems to hang on better in a dry spell lasts better than a straight IRG and good fungal resistance. I like it.

 

[Great In Grass]

Festolium is good stuff. We have been growing a couple of 100 acres for the last few years of "Perseus"
Seems to hang on better in a dry spell lasts better than a straight IRG and good fungal resistance. I like it.

Apparently there will be a new leafy Tall Fescue/Advanced grass available next year, heads only once a year around 22nd/23rd May (I think) & that's it.

 

[Downton_shep]

They grow some at the Daylesford jcb farm. Richard seamed to like it but did say it doesnt yield much in the first year but then does really well.

 

[Agrispeed]

Lucerne would be worth looking at @Clever Dic

We've had success with Lucerne we put in this year (and the neighbour has some excellent crops) but any Sanfoin we've tried has been a failure, and we have some fairly brashy ground. I imagine it would grow well if you had the right soils though

 

[gatepost]

We had it in for a few years, good yields once established, gets away if not dealt with , had one patch get to 6ft, but needs a back fence if grazed and not grazed in winter as the wet gets in the crowns , so we sort of just let it die out , have some in the herb mix every reseed.

 

[Six Dogs]

Anyone with any experience of finishing lambs on it

 

[MJT]

Anyone with any experience of finishing lambs on it

Yes in the second season lambs will finish very well on it but don'tgraze it too hard or itl nacker the job ! Strip graze and backfence worked well for us.

 

[ollie989898]

Festolium is good stuff. We have been growing a couple of 100 acres for the last few years of "Perseus"
Seems to hang on better in a dry spell lasts better than a straight IRG and good fungal resistance. I like it.

Perseus is great stuff. Are you sowing it straight or including some diploid etc in there?

Lofa is similar, not quite as potent but not far off, seems to live longer. As you say they stick the dry better and regrowth from cutting is amazing. Don't cut them low however.

Lucerne and Sainfoin need half sensible land.

 

[Kiwi Pete]

I looked into getting Sainfoin over here and other than trials at Massey etc in the late 60s and again in the 70s there is no trace of it.
So, after a few UK farming visitors have also given me their opinions of it, it's off my wishlist again, it's too wet here for it, or lucerne for that matter.

 

[Clever Dic]

Perseus is great stuff. Are you sowing it straight or including some diploid etc in there?

Lofa is similar, not quite as potent but not far off, seems to live longer. As you say they stick the dry better and regrowth from cutting is amazing. Don't cut them low however.

Lucerne and Sainfoin need half sensible land.

I have been sowing it straight . Habit more than anything, probably would be advantageous blending with a similar heading date diploid. I will make a note.