Dont forget kale or stubble turnips

5 June 1998




Dont forget kale or stubble turnips

ITS not too late to sow kale or stubble turnips to supply extra forage after first-cut grass silage, providing there is some moisture, Nigel Young of the Institute of Grassland and Environmental Research says.

At the institute, in North Wyke, Devon, kale is being sown in early June after first-cut silage. This should be ready to graze in eight weeks, providing feed during a drought and/or allowing grass to be saved for extending the grazing season this autumn, he explains.

Mr Young suggests spreading slurry onto the grassland as this will provide most of the kales nutrient requirements, and then ploughing to bury it and give a more reliable kale establishment.

Direct drilling kale into a grass sward makes the crop less prone to treading, but consider spraying grass with a low dose of paraquat to check its growth, he suggests.


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