Managing sub clover in spring

Posted prepared by the Dryland Pastures Research Team – R. Lucas, S. Olykan, D. Moot, C. Teixeira and A. Mills. Earlier this year, Prof. Derrick Moot discussed ‘Planning for sub clover dominant spring pastures in autumn’(1) so that farmers would have high quality feed for their lactating ewes. There’s a good reason for the focus … Read more

Ray Brougham Trophy Public Lecture – Legumes Regenerate Pastures

Professor Derrick Moot was awarded the Ray Brougham Trophy by the New Zealand Grassland Trust in Nov 2016. As part of this, award Derrick was required to make a series of public lectures. This video is a recording of the lecture which took place at Lincoln University, Canterbury on 6 Sep 2017. The duration of this … Read more

Sub4Spring: finally, it’s spring!

Posted prepared by: Dryland Pastures Research Team – C. Teixeira; R. Lucas, S. Olykan, A. Mills and Prof. Derrick Moot Spring is the most important period for most pastoral farms in New Zealand. It brings lambing, calving, milking, and rapid changes in plant growth rates. The increase in air and soil temperatures and day length, during … Read more

Cool sub clovers and the low winter temperatures

Prepared by: Carmen Teixeira (PhD candidate) and edited by the Dryland Pastures Research Team (Prof. Derrick Moot, Mr Dick Lucas, Dr Sonya Olykan and Dr Annamaria Mills) Winter has arrived and this time is associated with Matariki (the Māori New Year), and also marks the shift of the sun’s journey in the sky (see the … Read more

More about sub clovers in autumn: it is not hard to understand hard seeds

Posted on behalf of Carmen Teixeira (PhD candidate with the Dryland Pasture Research Team) The longevity of sub clover in the swards is largely controlled by seed hardness. Seed hardness is common in legumes such as sub clover. It is a strategy to prevent germination during unsuitable ecological conditions, mainly when the probability of seedling … Read more

Sub clover germinating in Marlborough this season

Here are some photos of sub clover taken by Doug Avery on ‘Bonavaree’ Farm in Marlborough. Legume–dominant pasture in spring 2016 The photo below shows Fraser Avery standing in high quality legume dominant pasture last spring (1 October 2016). This is ‘Antas’ sub clover which has been allowed to set seed in its first year and … Read more

Planning for sub clover dominant spring pastures in autumn

Want sub clover for your lactating ewes in spring? Plan for it now. For those of you wanting to sow sub clover this autumn, here is some advice to get you started. Why sub clover? Sub clover seed costs about $120-$150/ha plus drilling costs. The sub clover may provide 2-4 t DM/ha in a mixed pasture during spring … Read more

Sub clover dies late spring: to bury or not to bury? That’s the question!

Dryland Pastures Research Team (coordinated by Prof. D. Moot), Lincoln University Carmen Teixeira, Dick Lucas and Annamaria Mills. It is summer time New Zealand and the sub clover plants sown in last autumn have died. Few sub clover flowers are visible compared to November (see our previous post “What’s up with the Subs 4 Spring”). … Read more

What’s up with Subs 4 Spring?

An update of sub clover cultivars reproductive development – November 24, 2016.  Prepared by Carmen Teixeira, (PhD student Dryland Pastures Research Team) & Derrick Moot with the Dryland Pastures Research Team, Lincoln University It is late spring and the sub clovers plants have already flowered! This year, in Canterbury the late rains in mid-November have extended the … Read more

NZ Subterranean clover guide available now

The 1st Edition of the “Guide for subterranean clover identification and use in New Zealand” is now available to view and download – for free – on the Sub 4 Spring Research Project page of the Dryland Pastures website (just scroll to the publications at the bottom of the page).