AberGain
AberGain is a high sugar ryegrass, meaning it has been bred to contain a higher level of water-soluble carbohydrates, or sugars, than traditional perennial ryegrass.
This creates a better balance of energy and protein in the rumen, allowing the microbes responsible for the breakdown of forage to operate more efficiently, so more protein is converted to milk and meat, and less is excreted into the environment.
Tetraploid perennial ryegrasses provide higher utilisation and increased production per hectare compared with diploid perennial ryegrass, due to increased palatability and greater animal preference. AberGain provides all these benefits, and combined with its densely tillered nature, offers farmers real potential to lift animal production.
Further NZ data is currently being gathered for AberGain and it is expected to enter the Dairy NZ Forage Value Index in 2020. After two years of trialling in Canterbury, the total dry matter yield of AberGain is not significantly different to that of a conventional NZ tetraploid perennial ryegrass. Recommended list trials in various locations across the U.K. have shown AberGain to have a ME value under grazing of 12.6 MJ (Digestibility-value of 78.6), compared with the late heading tetraploid average of 12.4 MJ ME (Digestibility-value of 77.9). Quality of grass is just as important as total yield, with a digestibility gain of 1% worthy of 3% of yield. A higher digestibility increases voluntary intake and allows animals to absorb more energy from the feed. Maximising the high-quality grazed grass in an animal’s diet will increase milk production and reduce feeding costs.
Key features:
- First tetraploid high sugar grass released in New Zealand.
- Densely tillered for improved recovery from severe grazing events and pugging.
- Highest ME yield of all perennial ryegrasses on the British Recommended List and highest-ranking variety on the Irish Pasture Profit Index.
| Perennial Ryegrass | |
| Ploidy | Tetraploid |
| Sowing Rate | 25 – 30 kg/ha |
| Heading date | +24 days (very late) |
| Endophyte | Nil and AR1 |