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Great Gains
LATIN NAME
Lolium multiflorum
SEASON
Annual
WHEN TO PLANT
Spring - 6 weeks before first frost
MOISTURE REQUIREMENTS
Moderate
CROP HEIGHT
12 - 36 inches
COLD TOLERANCE
Excellent
HEAT TOLERANCE
Moderate - high
SHADE TOLERANCE
Fair - moderate
DAYS TO MATURITY
80 - 100 days
PLANT CHARACTERISTICS
Palatable, quick establishment, high yield
LATIN NAME
Setaria italica
SEASON
Annual
HEIGHT
24 - 60 inches
WHEN TO PLANT
Late Spring to early Summer
MOISTURE REQUIREMENTS
Low
COLD TOLERANCE
Low
HEAT TOLERANCE
High
SHADE TOLERANCE
Low
DAYS TO MATURITY
60 - 85
IDEAL FOR
Hay, forage, birdseed
LATIN NAME
Panicum miliaceum
SEASON
Annual
HEIGHT
36 - 72 inches
WHEN TO PLANT
Late spring to early summer
MOISTURE REQUIREMENTS
Low
COLD TOLERANCE
Low
HEAT TOLERANCE
High
SHADE TOLERANCE
Low
DAYS TO MATURITY
60 - 90 days
IDEAL FOR
Birds, livestock, wildlife, cover crop
LATIN NAME
Echinochloa esculenta
SEASON
Annual
HEIGHT
36 - 60 inches
WHEN TO PLANT
Late Spring to early Fall
MOISTURE REQUIREMENTS
High
COLD TOLERANCE
Poor
HEAT TOLERANCE
Excellent
SHADE TOLERANCE
Poor
DAYS TO MATURITY
50 - 60 days
IDEAL FOR
Grain, waterfowl, food plots
LATIN NAME
Pennisetum glaucum
SEASON
Annual
HEIGHT
36 - 60 inches
ENVIRONMENT
Full sun
WHEN TO PLANT
Late spring to mid summer
USDA ZONES
Primarily 8 - 11
MOISTURE REQUIREMENTS
Moderate
COLD TOLERANCE
Poor
HEAT TOLERANCE
Excellent
SHADE TOLERANCE
Poor
DAYS TO MATURITY
75 - 120 days
IDEAL FOR
Poultry feed, forage, wildlife, cover crop
About...
Great Gains - Sheep & Goats - This high sugar grass mixture is great for the homeowner who has a few animals to tend to or the large scale farmer. This pasture grass allows you to work with nature to improve the health and yield of your livestock, pastures and farming operations. Great Gains is especially formulated for sheep and goats and has widespread applications.
MORE PASTURE GRASSES OPTIONS
Great Gains - Sheep & Goats - This high sugar grass mixture is great for the homeowner who has a few animals to tend to or the large scale farmer. This pasture grass allows you to work with nature to improve the health and yield of your livestock, pastures and farming operations. Great Gains is especially formulated for sheep and goats and has widespread applications.
This proven pasture grass formula is the preferred choice of progressive farmers throughout the Northwest, Midwest, Northeastern and Mid Atlantic regions, including sustainable and organic farmers. Start making "Great Gains" with your sheep and goats by adding this pasture grass seed to your plans.
Pasture Seed Mixture Includes:
- Aber Green Perennial Ryegrass
- AberEve Intermediate Ryegrass
- Aber Magic Perennial Ryegrass
- Orchardgrass
- Fixation Balansa Clover
- White Clover
Pasture Improvement
- High Sugar Grasses are extremely drought and cold tolerant.
- A Great Gains pasture will regenerate each year even after difficult weather conditions.
- The increased sugar levels occur naturally, and do not require extra fertilizer.
- The naturally quick growth rate of HSGs crowd out weeds and reduce the need for herbicides even on heavily grazed areas.
- SucraSEED mixes rapid re-growth is extraordinary, delivering tremendous yields, this allows farms to take hay crops after a full season of grazing.
Health and Nutrition
- Sheep, Goats and other ruminant animal's preference for Great Gains results in an up to 38% increase in dry matter intake.
- High Sugar Grasses improve digestibility and protein conversion.
- Great Gains boosts energy levels in all ruminat animals.
- Grazing sheep and goats on High Sugar Grass reduces the need for supplements.
Environmental
- Great Gains creates highly-sustainable pastures.
- Using HSGs reduces dependence on herbicides. It also reduces the need to supplement diets with high-energy intensive crops like corn and soybeans.
- Animals feeding on Geat Gains are shown to emit up to 24% less nitrogen in urine and feces.
- Great Gains is non-GMO.
Financial Rewards
- Sheep and goats experience increased stocking rates of up to 20%.
- Finishing costs are reduced.
- Extra forage yields can extend the grazing season and reduce winter feed costs.
- Costs of Production are lower due to savings on herbicides and the reduced need for minerals, additives or lower quality (lignified) forage.
Planting Information
- Planting rate: 25 lbs. / acre
- Product packaged in 25 lb. bags
- Soil PH: 5.5-8.5
- Cold tolerances: Zones 4 - 7 In climate zones lower than 4, Great Gains may not overwinter. Persistence can be greatly increased if plants are insulated by a snow cover.
- Heat tolerances: Zones 4 - 7 In climate zones higher than 7, portions of the mix may perform as an annual.
Planting Directions
SOWING TEMPERATURE
50F - 65F
SEEDING RATE
30 - 40 lbs per acre
AVERAGE GERMINATION TIME
5 - 14 days
PLANTING DEPTH
1/4 inch
SOWING METHOD
Broadcast or drill
ENVIRONMENT
Full sun
USDA ZONES
3 - 9
ESTABLISHMENT RATE
Rast
Tetraploid annual ryegrass that has larger leaves, a higher water content, and better palatability than many diploid varieties. This ryegrass will produce high quality feed for use as pasture, hay or silage. It was bred for vigor, disease resistance, and high performance. It is highly resistant to the major forage diseases including crown and leaf rust, leaf spot/scald, powdery mildew, and pythium blight.
Produces excellent succulant long-term grazing if sown alone or in combination with fall-sown small grains and annual clovers. It is a new generation ryegrass with exceptional plant vigor, forage yielding ability, stress tolerance, and disease resistance.
Protein content is in the 24 to 40% range depending on nitrogen levels applied and stage of growth at harvest.
Annual ryegrass can be used to quickly stabilize disturbed sites subject to erosion because seedling establishment and root growth are rapid. This makes this rye grass and excellent choice for quick erosion control, a cover crop, or for pasture uses.
Specifications
- New Seeding Rate: 30-40 lbs/acre/broadcast
- Grazing Use: Beef, Dairy, Sheep, Horse, Ratite
- Maturity: Late
- Hay: Excellent
- Silage/Green Chop: Excellent
- Controlled Grazing: Excellent
- Set Stocking: Excellent
- Crop Land Pasture: Good
- Drought Tolerance: Low
- Wet Soil Tolerance: Moderate
- pH Range: 5.0 - 8.0
- Fertility Requirements: Medium-High
Chilly Verde Forage Bermudagrass (Cynodon dactylon) is a warm-season, perennial, sod-forming grass is a tall forage bermudagrass with wide, soft leaves. It shows rapid establishment from seed and aggressive spreading from stolons and rhizomes. Chilly Verde has persisted through cold winters in North Carolina, where it was developed, and has excellent heat and drought tolerance. Chilly Verde is adapted to a wide range of soil types and soil pH from 4.5 - 8.0.
When grass is 6 to 8 inches tall you may begin grazing. The best time for cutting is one month after last cutting to get the highest protein levels. Lowest cutting or grazing height should be 3 to 4 inches. Under ideal conditions, Chilly Verde will usually germinate within several weeks. It is hardy forage that is adapted to a wide range of soils from sand to heavy clay. This variety is very drought tolerant but performs best in moist soils.
Seeding Rate: 15 - 20 lbs/acre.
Seeding Depth: 1/8" - 1/4"
The key features of Chilly Verde bermudagrass include:
- Wide pH adaptation
- Extreme drought tolerance
- Fast establishment from seed
- Winter hardiness
- Wide, soft leafs
- Deep roots
- 3 - 5 tons/acre of dry matter
- Several cuttings
- Included water absorbing coating
Establishment
Bermudagrass is an extremely drought-tolerant warm season perennial grass that is adapted to a wide range range of soil conditions. Soil temperatures should be at least 65F and warming when planting. Fertilizer should be applied based on results from a soil sample and Nitrogen should not be applied until 3 - 4 inches of growth. When planted at the right depth and temperature, bermudagrass emerges in 14 - 21 days. Weed control is also a key factor for success. Light grazing or mowing during establishment can help mitigate the growth of weeds.Seed Bed Preparation:
Proper seed bed preparation cannot be stressed enough when it comes to planting any bermudagrass. Seed bed firmness is especially important if no-till drills or broadcast seeders are used. Chilly Verde should be planted in full sun on well-drained soil. Proper drainage is essential for this variety to have successful establishment and development.
Planting bermudagrass in a firm seed bed helps in proper seed placement and reduces the chance of burying the seed too deeply with loose soil. It also provides good seed to soil contact allowing for better soil moisture movement to the seed. Bermudagrass planted in loose seed beds can often be identified by quicker seedling emergence in the wheel tracks of the planter, than in the rest of the field.
Planting Directions
SOWING TEMPERATURE
65F +
SEEDING RATE
20 - 30 lbs / acre
AVERAGE GERMINATION TIME
4 - 14 days
PLANTING DEPTH
1/2 - 3/4 inch
SOWING METHOD
Broadcast or Drill
ENVIRONMENT
Full sun
USDA ZONES
3 - 10
ESTABLISHMENT RATE
Fast
German Foxtail Millet (Setaria italica) - German Millet is a fast growing, warm-season annual grass and a foxtail type millet. German Millet is a fine-stemmed, leafy variety that is commonly planted as a single-cut hay millet and used for forage and birdseed. German Millet is quick maturing and works excellent in double cropping scenarios where time becomes limiting for the second crop. It can be ready to cut for hay in as little as 60 days from planting. It produces hay that will cure easily and be highly palatable for livestock. German Foxtail Millet is extremely drought tolerant and will grow rapidly during hot summer conditions reaching heights of 2 - 5 feet. It does well in light soils due to its high level of water efficiency.
Harvest can be delayed until millet is more mature, but palatability declines significantly with mature seedheads. Millets are less likely to have high levels of nitrates than other warm-season forages such as sorghum. Under drought conditions, nitrate levels may rise and caution should be used if haying or grazing.
- Forage/Hay: It is a single-cut crop that does not easily regrow after harvest. It should be cut for hay in the early head stage for best quality.
- Planting: Plant in late spring or early summer when soil temperatures are 60F or higher. Seeding rate is generally 20 - 30 lbs per acre, drilled 1/2 – 3/4 inch deep.
- Soil: Prefers well-drained soils with a pH of 5.5 – 7.0.
- Caution: Not recommended for horses as it can cause kidney and joint issues.
- Wildlife: Excellent for attracting birds, including quails and pheasants, and for food plots.
Planting Directions
SOWING TEMPERATURE
60F +
SEEDING RATE
20 - 25 lbs / acre
AVERAGE GERMINATION TIME
7 - 14 days
PLANTING DEPTH
1/2 - 3/4 inch
SOWING METHOD
Broadcast or drill
ENVIRONMENT
Full sun
USDA ZONES
2 - 9
ESTABLISHMENT RATE
Fast
White Proso Millet (Panicum miliaceum) - Proso millet is one of the most drought tolerant and cost effective warm season annual grasses that produces large amounts of grain. It is the shortest growing millet and works best in grazing mixes the northern US. Proso millet is an excellent seed producing making it is a great plant for game bird or other wildlife mixes. It performs well in mixes for wildlife cover and is popular for dove, quail, turkey and duck fields. It is also sued as feed for cattle or forage for deer and rabbits.
Proso millet is also a gluten-free, drought-tolerant ancient grain used for human food and birdseed. Known for its mild, nutty flavor and quick cooking time. It's rich in protein, fiber, and minerals, making it a nutritious alternative to rice or quinoa, suitable for dishes like porridge, pilafs, and salads, and it thrives in warm, dry climates where other crops struggle.
Another great use of proso millet is as a cover crop. It is a fast-growing ideal as a short-term summer cover crop (60 – 90 days) for soil protection, weed suppression, and erosion control. It thrives in dry conditions, requiring low moisture to grow 3 - 6 feet tall, and is an excellent option for breaking up crop rotations to improve soil health.
- Application or Use: Cover Crop, Erosion Control, Cattle Forage, Livestock Grazing, Food Plot
- Germination Time: 5 - 7 days, under optimal conditions
- Growing Locations: Warm Season, Transition Zone, Cool Season
- Height: 3 - 6 feet
- Sunlight Requirements: 8+ hours, full sun for best results
- Advantages: Increased drought tolerance; high seed producer under hot, dry conditions.
- When to Plant: Recommend planting time is spring and summer when night time temperatures are consistently 65+ degrees.
- Maturity: 60 - 90 days
- Seeding Rate: 20 lbs per acre
Planting Directions
SOWING TEMPERATURE
65F +
SEEDING RATE
25 - 35 lbs / acre
AVERAGE GERMINATION TIME
3 - 5 days
PLANTING DEPTH
1/2 - 3/4 inch
SOWING METHOD
Broadcast or Drill
ENVIRONMENT
Full sun
USDA ZONES
3 - 9
ESTABLISHMENT RATE
Fast
A common practice is to plant Japanese millet in a low area or slough, then allowing it to flood after it gets large enough to stand above the water level; however, soil temperatures should be above 65F when planting this warm season annual. Although Japanese millet is most commonly used for waterfowl, it is also quite drought and heat tolerant and will produce grain with very little rainfall. Many wildlife species will utilize the grain as the millet matures and falls over, making the grain easily accessible.
Japanese millet can also be used for a cover crop, forage and grazing, and many types of wildlife besides birds.
- Upright, warm-season, summer annal grass that grows 3 to 5 ft tall
- Quick germination and emergence in 3-5 days under ideal growing conditions
- Tolerates wet soils prone to flooding or ponding better than other millets
- Excellent at scavenging nitrogen and preventing erosion
- Finer stems than pearl millet or sorghums, great for grazing
- Wait to plant until soil is 65 degrees Fahrenheit
Seeding Rate: 25 - 35 lbs per acre
Planting Directions
SOWING TEMPERATURE
65F +
SEEDING RATE
25 - 30 lbs / acre
AVERAGE GERMINATION TIME
5 - 10 days
PLANTING DEPTH
1/2 - 1 inch
SOWING METHOD
Broadcast or Drill
ESTABLISHMENT RATE
Fast
Pearl millet is considered as a staple food in Africa and India where it is used to make flour, bread, and porridge. The plant stems can be used for roof thatch and building construction. In countries other than Africa and India it is most widely grown as poultry feed. It is a very robust grass which tillers widely and grows in tufts. It is the preferred choice for forage when compared to similar warm season millets such as browntop, Japanese, and proso millet. Pearl millet production for grain is mainly used for poultry feed.
Pearl millet grass is commonly grown for forage, wildlife, or as a cover crop. It can reach heights of 3 to 5 feet tall under ideal conditions. This multi cut forage grass is preferred over other millets for hay, pasture and silage production because it is highly digestible, high in protein, and free of prussic acid. Pearl millet also makes excellent cover and feed for birds, deer, and other wildlife. Lastly, pearl millet is a great green manure crop for hot summer months. This crop requires warm growing conditions and should not be planted until soil temperatures reach 65 degrees Fahrenheit or above.
Seeding Rate: 25 - 30 lbs per acre
Forage quality of smooth bromegrass compares well with other cool-season grasses, being affected primarily by stage of maturity. Smooth bromegrass one of the most widely used cool-season grass in North America especially in the corn belt and great plains. It survives periods of drought and extremes in temperature. It is generally hardier than tall fescue or orchardgrass. It can be grown on a variety of soil types, but grows best on well-drained silt-loam or clay-loam soils. It is fairly tolerant of alkalinity and somewhat tolerant of salinity and acidity but will perform best at a soil pH between 6.0 and 7.0.
A moist, firm seedbed is required for smooth bromegrass. Most often planted in spring, smooth bromegrass may also be planted in late summer, when weather conditions usually are more favorable. Seed may be either drilled or broadcast. Drilling is preferred because it provides a more uniform depth of planting. Plant seed 1/4 - 1/2 inch deep. Generally, when seeding bromegrass alone, rates of 12 - 16 lb per acre are sufficient.
Image credit: Robert Videki, Doronicum Kft., Bugwood.org
