An introduction to current research at Ashley Dene

Monthly rainfalls have been below average here at Lincoln since April. Pasture growth rates have slowed as water stress conditions have developed and all our dryland experiments at Ashley Dene have been de-stocked earlier than usual. On Monday we released Dick Lucas, our resident annual clover guru, at Ashley Dene to talk about soils, their … Read more

Set stocking lucerne in early spring – the stuff you need to know

Posted on behalf of Prof. Derrick Moot This grazing management is based on new research out of Lincoln University. It is recommended ONLY for farmers with a large proportion (>40%) of their properties in lucerne who require greater areas to lamb on in early spring and who already follow the optimum rotational grazing management system … Read more

Upcoming Dryland Pastures Seminar – Marlborough 28 August

Professor Derrick Moot will be in Blenheim on Thursday 28th August. Come and get first hand the latest information of Dryland Pasture Research from Lincoln University. Please pass on the invite to your neighbours/colleagues. Further details below. Coffee/tea on arrival and  supper to follow. Please RSVP by Sunday August 24th for catering purposes to Warwick Lissaman at: Email: … Read more

Tagasaste – a valuable shrub for sheep and beef farms

Posted on behalf of Dick Lucas We used to refer to Tagasaste (Chamycytisus palmenta) as ‘tree lucerne’ but in fact this woody legume has few similarities to lucerne (Medicago sativa; alfalfa). The Spanish name ‘tagasaste’ helps avoid making false assumptions about its management needs. For instance, in contrast to lucerne, tagasaste does not need lime … Read more

Early autumn rains give perfect conditions for Sub clover

Posted on behalf of Dick Lucas The recent early autumn, record rain in North Canterbury and other east coast areas will give perfect conditions for an early flush of sub clover seedlings in dryland pastures. In milder coastal areas and north hill faces, if sub clover/grass pastures have an average of 10 sub seedlings per … Read more

Resurrecting a mid-age flood damaged lucerne stand

Post prepared by Prof. Moot, summer scholar Rebekah Brosnahan and Anna Mills Many dryland regions of New Zealand experience heavy winter rainfall that can cause periodic waterlogging in paddocks. Lucerne is more sensitive than ryegrass under flooding and this is sometimes cited as a reason not to sow lucerne in a paddock. However, after a … Read more

Lupin grazing at Sawdon Station (January 2014)

The latest video blog from the mid-January harvest of the lupin grazing experiment at Sawdon Station. Dr Alistair Black and PhD student Travis Ryan-Salter from Lincoln University discuss grazing preference and dry matter yields, whilst comparing growth characteristics to last year’s results. Check out the video below (11 min).