Feedex - Forage Sorghum
Description:
FeedEx is an early to mid season flowering hybrid sorghum that provides earlier grazing opportunities than later flowering varieties that is high yielding and quick recovery after grazing or cutting.
| Generic Type | Sorghum x Sudan grass |
| Early Vigour: | Very strong |
| Cold tolerance: | Excellent |
| Maturity: | Approximately 82 days to flower |
| Protein: | Optimum when grazed at 1 metre high |
| Leaf to stem ratio: | Very high due to finer stems |
| Digestibility: | Refer results below |
| Recovery after grazing: | Very strong |
| Disease: | Intermediate resistance to most races of rust Intermediate resistance to leaf blight |
| Prussic acid: | Similar to other Sorghum x Sudan grass crosses |
2009 Summer Forage Trial – Shepparton (sown 2/12/2009)
| Feedex Quality | ||||
| Variety | Crude Protein (N x 6.25) |
Metabolisable Energy | Digestibility | Neutral Detergent Fibre |
| FeedEx | 17.4% of DM | 9.5 MJ/kg DM | 64.5% of DM | 56.5% of DM |
| Super Dan 2 | 15.5% of DM | 9.9 MJ/kg DM | 67.0% of DM | 56.8% of DM |
| BMR | 15.7% of DM | 9.2 MJ/kg DM | 62.7% of DM | 58.5% of DM |
| Speedfeed 2 | 16.6% of DM | 9.3 MJ/kg DM | 63.4% of DM | 57.4% of DM |
| Sprint | 13.8% of DM | 9.3 MJ/kg DM | 63.6% of DM | 57.6% of DM |
| Bettagraze | 13.6% of DM | 9.5 MJ/kg DM | 64.4% of DM | 56.5% of DM |
| Trails conducted by Southern Farming Systems – Feed tests conducted by DPI Hamilton (Feedtest) Data supplied by Stephen Pasture Seeds Ballart |
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Management
Grazing intervals are dependant on temperatures and moisture availability and can vary from 4 to 5 weeks to the first grazing and between 2 to 4 weeks to the second and third grazings if the growing conditions allow.
For best results FeedEx should be sown into areas that have good sub soil moisture available through the growing season or where there is irrigation available.
Ensure that soil temperatures are a minimum of 16° Celsius to achieve good rapid establishment.
Apply a minimum of 150 kgs/ha of a compound type fertiliser and ensure that a nitrogen based fertiliser is applied after each grazing. Graze each time it reaches the .8 to 1m stage.
FeedEx is a lower cost product that can be sown to produce good late spring and summer forage in lieu of other supplementary feed options, or as an excellent cover or green manure crop.
Recommended sowing rates:
FeedEx should be sown at:
Dryland: 3 to 6 kgs/ha
Good Dryland: 6 to 10 kgs/ha
Irrigation: 15 to 25 kgs/ha