A NEW forage barley variety is producing up to 25 per cent more early bulk than existing varieties in trials this year.
Moby, which will be available for limited commercial release in 2010, is an early-vigour, awnless variety which has been bred with about 30pc lower lignin content for greater digestibility.
Seed Distributors own the proprietary rights to the variety and newly appointed plant breeding coordinator research and varietal development Tom Giles says he is excited by the forage barley's potential for intensified livestock operations.
He says it aims to fill the autumn-winter feed gap with large amounts of vegetative growth.
"Because of its early vigour it also fits well into mixed farming enterprises and competes well against weeds, and because it is a forage product it can be grazed and cut for hay further enhancing weed control," he said.
Moby is also the first white seeded forage barley of its type making it a more versatile crop for the broadacre market, compared with other black-seeded varieties which may cause crop contamination issues.
Mr Giles said Moby was suited to areas of 350 millimetres rainfall and above, and would tolerate multiple grazings from as soon as the plant was anchored until growth stage 31 (the emergence of the first node).
The recommended sowing rate was 60-80kg/ha and he expected the crop would provide excellent early grazing and then significant amounts of silage or hay.
He said there was also the potential to use Moby in a crop mix with other vigorous pasture species such as Cavalier medic, SARDI Persian Clover, Enduro balansa clover or even forage rapes like Bouncer Hybrid Brassica.
"We are looking for companion species that will allow for graziers to be back in the paddock from six to eight weeks and provide additional sources of protein to complement the high energy produced by Moby," he said.
Moby is part of 50 different evaluation trials across Australia and is showing excellent resistance to common leaf diseases.
Roseworthy Rural Supplies Chris Buttler is been impressed by the performance of Moby in a seed production paddock, and said it would be one of the only paddocks in his area not to require disease control this year.
With significant plans to expand future research into forage varieties Mr Giles said Seed Distributors' breeding program, which had previously seen the release of Outback late-maturing oats, Yukuri triticale and Wrangler awnless forage winter wheat was committed to producing superior-yielding forage varieties with maximum nutritive value.
"When selecting new forage varieties it is also important to maintain the balance between forage ability and seed production so that seed could be supplied to growers at a good price," he said.
* More cropping coverage in the Harvest 2009 feature in Stock Journal, September 17 issue.
Email a friend