Pasture varieties and their potential in SA

Summer-planted pastures can boost a farmer’s profits by keeping animal production high. Renowned grazing specialist Prof Chris Dannhauser says there is a variety of these crops to choose from and, as Susan Marais found out, many can also be used in winter in the form of hay, foggage and silage.

- Prof Chris Dannhauser

FAST FACTS

Australian scientists recently developed two types of grass indigenous to South Africa, namely small buffalo grass and bushveld signal grass, into planted pastures.

On average, Molopo, a blue buffalo grass cultivar, produces more feed, but tests show that sheep gain more weight on the Gayndah variety.

The lifespan of Rhodes grass is shortened when overgrazed.

Veld remains the cheapest source of grazing roughage, but to get the most out of it, you need to do your homework. Put simply, you can lower productivity and rangeland area if you don’t pick the right type of pasture.

Veld and grazing consultant Prof Chris Dannhauser says that many improvements to popular cultivars can help farmers produce higher yields with improved quality.

SMUTS FINGER AND WEEPING LOVEGRASS

“Smuts finger grass [Digitaria eriantha] is very popular in medium- to high-rainfall areas and is adapted to a wide range of soil types,” says Dannhauser. “It grows in most parts of North West, the Free State, Gauteng, Mpumalanga, KwaZulu-Natal [KZN] and Limpopo, in areas with more than 500mm rain per year.

“It can be planted from October to December or in February and can be used for green grazing, hay and foggage [also called standing hay] production. Foggage is [also the practice of] grazing a summer growing crop in winter, in the dry stage.”

The potential hay production of Smuts finger grass is 3t/ha to 12t/ha, with a carrying capacity of 0,5 to 2 LSU/ha.