Red Clover is grown mainly for conservation and divides into early and late varieties. Early varieties have high Spring growth, a large first cut and smaller subsequent cuts. Late varieties are two weeks later flowering, are slower in Spring, give their main yield at the first cut and are more persistent and suited to medium-term use.
Red clover will perform best on well drained, fertile soils with a pH of 6–6.5. The table below shows the average yields and persistency of a selection of varieties currently undergoing assessment at Crossnacreevy.
As the work is not as yet complete, no variety recommendations have been made and the results are for information only.
There may also be other varieties in commerce that have yet to be assessed in these local trials.
Variety
(alphabetical order) |
Harvest Year 1
DM Yield |
Harvest Year 1
Persistence |
Harvest Year 2
DM Yield |
Harvest Year 2
Persistence |
Harvest Year 3
DM Yield |
Harvest Year 3
Persistence |
|
Control Yields
|
18.0
|
(0-9 high)
|
16.2
|
(0-9 high)
|
14.6
|
(0-9 high)
|
|
Britta
|
92
|
5.5
|
97
|
4.5
|
90
|
3.8
|
|
Broadway
|
85
|
7.9
|
78
|
3.2
|
ut
|
ut
|
|
Grasslands Pawera
|
93
|
3.0
|
92
|
4.2
|
95
|
3.4
|
|
Grassland Sensation
|
111
|
4.4
|
118
|
4.6
|
ut
|
ut
|
|
Lemmon
|
115
|
6.1
|
111
|
5.1
|
ut
|
ut
|
|
Marco
|
103
|
3.8
|
107
|
4.1
|
105
|
3.6
|
|
Mercury
|
105
|
4.1
|
109
|
3.9
|
96
|
3.4
|
|
Merviot
|
112
|
5.1
|
117
|
4.5
|
109
|
3.6
|
|
Rotra
|
108
|
4.9
|
111
|
3.5
|
111
|
3.3
|
|
Sara
|
96
|
4.2
|
95
|
3.8
|
93
|
3.0
|
ut = variety continuing ‘Under Test’ to complete the third harvest year in 2008
These yields were achieved without nitrogen fertilizer, but required up to 100-150 kg/ha of phosphate (P2O5) and 250-300 kg/ha potash (K2O) (depending on soil indices). In comparison, the top yielding (Italian-type) hybrid ryegrass varieties can produce up to 20, 18 and 17 t/ha DM in the first, second and third harvest years, respectively, but require over 400 kg/ha of nitrogen per annum.
Similarly, recommended perennial ryegrass varieties, given 350 kg/ha nitrogen, produce total silage yields of around 17 t/ha DM in their first harvest year, falling to around 15 t/ha DM by the third year. Furthermore, in experimental studies at Crossnacreevy, red clover/Italian ryegrass mixtures yielded 75% of the yield of pure Italian ryegrass swards receiving over 300 kg/ha nitrogen.
