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- Suited to silage production because of a more erect growth habit
- Potential nitrogen fixation for red clover up to 200kg N/ha
- Red clover silage has a high crude protein content of 16% to 20% and a ME content of 10 to 12MJ/kg DM
- Has a long taproot to draw nutrients and minerals from deep in soil
- Low levels of structural carbohydrate in the leaf result in higher intakes, better feed conversion and therefore improved animal performance
Key benefits of including clover
Clover offers remarkable environmental and sustainability benefits as well as a highly productive, nutrient and protein rich forage for livestock.
- Higher quality pasture under low fertiliser
- Improves digestibility
- Fix up to 200kg N/ha/year White clover offers a mid-season high protein sward
- Improves grass health and resilience against disease Increased intakes resulting in higher milk yields and daily liveweight gain
- Reduce bought in nitrogen and leave residual nitrogen for a subsequent crop
- Improved soil health
- Promotes pollinators and insects
Top tip
Red clover is high in phytoestrogen and all breeding sheep should be kept off for six weeks either side of tupping. Store lambs can be fattened very effectively on red clover silage aftermaths.
Always maintain a soil pH of at least 6.0 and P & K indices of 2 for optimal clover content and health.
