This deep-rooted nitrogen-fixing plant has leaves with an average crude protein content of 24% and a metabolisable energy value of 12, providing high quality grazing for lambs at Newton Farm, Brecon, because sheep mostly graze the leaves, not the lower quality fibrous stem.
During recent hot and dry summers, the farm has at times struggled for feed.
With a tap root of up to three metres, which can ‘mine’ for moisture and nutrients deep in the ground, lucerne is well suited to these conditions and could help fill that gap.
The Rodericks are also in the process of changing their sheep system, with plans to lamb greater number of sheep outdoors in April to reduce concentrate use and feed costs.
In May and June 2024, they established 6.9 hectares (ha) across two fields a short distance from the main holding.
This was done with funding from the Farming Connect ‘Try Out Fund’, an initiative that funds individuals and groups of farmers and growers in Wales to experiment with ideas and bring them to life.
Although lucerne is successfully utilised by sheep farmers in the east of England and New Zealand, it is less commonly grown as a grazing crop in Wales therefore the Rodericks want to trial how well it could perform in the Welsh climate.
Lucerne needs deep, free draining soils with a minimum pH of 6.0 at depth so, after soil testing, lime was applied at 5t/ha to raise levels ahead of planting.
It does not tolerate heavy soils, waterlogging or acidity.
No selective herbicides are currently available in the UK for use on lucerne therefore a herbicide was applied before establishment to kill docks.
To increase dry matter (DM) yield and provide whole crop silage before grazing, the fields were under sown with home-saved spring barley seed.
Independent grass and forage seed specialist Francis Dunne, who is overseeing the trial, also advised under sowing with a companion crop of Timothy and white clover.
“Lucerne is a very open crop and in high rainfall areas there is significant poaching risk which can lead to an ingress of weeds, particularly weed grasses and premature decline in yield.’’
As lucerne is slow to establish, choice of companion grass to prevent it being smothered is important; species such as Timothy, Meadow Fescue and Cocksfoot are recommended.
Lucerne was sown at the recommended full rate of 25kg/ha with 4 kg/ha of Timothy and 2 kg/ha of white clover.
He opted for two lucerne varieties – Luzelle which has been bred specifically for grazing, and Artemis, a very persistent and high yielding cutting variety.
Luzelle has a different plant architecture to other varieties, Francis explains.
“It has a lower potential yield than the highest yielding types but is much better suited to grazing management.’’
This is because the crown sits flatter to the ground and produces more shoots with less fibre and a higher protein content; it also has a very high level of winter dormancy.
With the companion grasses and a total seed rate of 31kg/ha, the Luzelle field cost £381.65/ha to establish and the Artemis £269.
Mr Dunne says that due to challenges with availability in 2024, the seed was unusually expensive.
In another year, he reckons budgeting a figure of £250/ha for the Luzelle mix, or £219/ha for straight lucerne, would be nearer to the mark.
The seed was pre-inoculated with rhizobium as lucerne needs this bacteria to be present for successful nodulation.
But Mr Dunne advised also applying a fresh inoculant to the mix on the day of drilling, which added £12/ha to the cost, because some growers had experienced total crop failures due to pre-inoculation failing.
Lucerne is slow to establish, taking 18 months to reach its full potential, and critical to this is management during the establishment phase.
The Rodericks cut the two fields as whole crop on 11 August, applying an additive at harvesting to optimise fermentation in the baled silage.
Fifty-three days after cutting, on 3 October, 400 ewe lambs averaging 37kg were introduced to the crop ahead of tupping.
The lucerne has been established alongside fields of permanent pasture to allow a run back for transitioning the lambs onto it.
The fields were split into one-hectare paddocks with each paddock grazed for an average of three to four days.
Mr Dunne describes lucerne as a crop of two halves, with high nutritional quality in the leaves but less so in the stem, therefore lambs mostly nibble the leaves while discarding the stem.
“It doesn’t matter if the stems are not eaten because they provide a green area to allow the plant to photosynthesise and grow,’’ he says.
Tudor Roderick, who farms with his parents, Richard and Helen, says the lucerne has performed well.
He believes that spreading risk with a range of feeds that respond to different weather conditions is important going forward.
“If we have a really hot and dry summer, as we did in 2022 and 2023, the lucerne will come into its own and for summers when those conditions aren’t as extreme the rest of the farm will perform well so it should allow continuity of feed availability.’’
Tudor is grateful for the opportunity provided by the Try Out Fund to trial lucerne in local conditions.
He says the trial has the potential to benefit other farms in the region as the results will be widely shared with the industry.
When the lucerne was ensiled, the conditions on that day had to be very good.
“It is critical to ensile it on the right day and that can be tricky in high rainfall areas like mid Wales,’’ says Mr Dunne.
It is a reason why trials like the one at Newton Farm are important, he adds.
“We need to see how this trial works out before other farms with similar conditions grow it.’’
Lucerne can have a longevity of five years.
“If you get it right it can maintain high levels of production but when farmers get it wrong, they tend to give up quite quickly,’’ says Mr Dunne.
FARM FACTS
344ha – half owned, half on-farm business tenancies
1,200 Romney-cross and Suffolk Mule ewes plus 400 retained ewe lambs
Lambs sold to Kepak and Pilgrim’s UK
100 Stabiliser cows and 20 in-calf heifers