FORAGE MAIZE SEED

Forage Maize Seed

Our interest in Forage Maize seed arises from the belief that forage quality is key to the performance of high yielding dairy cows.

Starting with the right variety of forage maize seed is a major factor which determines the nutrition of the forage maize when it is fed to the dairy cow. 

Finding that many dairy farmers were not growing the best forage maize seed varieties available, Richard Webster Nutrition teamed up with Oliver Seeds to supply a range of outstanding forage maize varieties, which we believe offer clear advantages for the dairy farmer. 

Why RWN Forage Maize Varieties are better? 

• The true value of a variety can be measured in terms of tonnes of digestible yield and tonnes of starch produced per hectare. As well as starch we select maize varieties  for TOTAL DIGESTIBLE YIELD  / ha. This represents the product of Dry Matter yield / ha and energy density of the whole maize plant, not just the starch content. 
  

• Total Dry Matter Yield / ha is by far the biggest factor in determining the cost / tonne of dry matter of growing forage maize. Yet much of the UK market has become focused on growing relatively lower yielding Maturity Class 10 and 11 maize varieties prone to early die back. 
  

• The importance of good maize variety selection cannot be over emphasized. A 20% increase in maize yield, as a result of sowing an improved variety is worth around £100 / acre before taking into account increased feed value. 
  

• Having selected the best variety, attention to detail is needed to realise the varieties potential. A whole range of factors are involved including: site selection, sub-soiling, seed bed preparation, sowing date, crop rotation, fertiliser and nutrient requirements. Every year we see large acreages of maize are sown well after the optimum sowing date as well as suffering from inadequate weed control and nutrient deficiencies especially with potash.
  

• Even on some very marginal sites RWN Forage Maize Varieties selected for high Dry Matter Yields along with Whole Plant Digestibility, Early Cob Ripeness and Starch Yield have consistently produced both Dry Matter and Energy Yields 20% - 30% higher per acre than the best Ultra-Early Maize Varieties available. This obviously results in a 20% - 30% reduction in the cost per tonne of dry matter of growing a crop forage maize.

• Even on some very marginal sites RWN Forage Maize Varieties selected for high Dry Matter Yields along with Whole Plant Digestibility, Early Cob Ripeness and Starch Yield, have consistently produced both Dry Matter and Energy Yields 20% - 30% higher per acre than the best Ultra-Early Maize Varieties available. 
  This obviously results in a 20% - 30% reduction in the cost per tonne of dry matter of growing a crop forage maize.

• Far too much emphasis in the UK has been placed on whole plant dry matter and starch percentage. Quality and feed value is influenced as much by fibre digestibility as it is by starch. The range of digestibility on approved maize varieties can account for 1600 litres of milk per ha, or £400 / ha income. Cob ripeness is far more important than percentage dry matter of the whole plant (Maturity Class), which is often influenced more by premature die back of leaves than it is by good cob ripeness. Official trials which sow maize relatively late and harvest all the varieties in one go consistently under value dry matter yield, starch percentage, energy value and earliness of high yielding modern stay green maize varieties.
  

• RWN Forage Maize varieties are selected for consistent high DM yield, and whole plant digestibility over a wide range of sites and conditions. RWN forage maize varieties are also selected for early cob ripeness with stay green characteristics giving a wide harvest window. This avoids the problem associated with many early maize varieties, of rapid die back producing excess dead material that is colonized by high populations of yeast and moulds, rapid dry down, over ripe grain, poor silage chop and poor consolidation resulting in poor fermentation and unstable heating silage.
  

• Over several years RWN Maize Varieties grown commercially on marginal and very marginal sites, have out performed every other maize variety that we have grown them against, at times by as much as 50%, giving us yields well over 25 tonnes / acre. Whilst yields have been much higher than the so call Ultra-Early varieties cob-ripeness on marginal sites have usually been as good or at most within about 7 - 10 days of the very earliest varieties.
  

• Open sown these big yielding RWN Maize Varieties have generally out yielded maize sown under plastic on marginal sites, by a considerable margin without the £120 / acre cost of the plastic although the plastic sown maize has been around 2 weeks earlier on cob maturity.

RWN Forage Maize Seed

Over several years we have been trialling a range of new forage maize varieties with potential to reliably produce huge yields with very early cob ripeness together, high whole plant digestibility and good starch levels.

Kadenz, Twixxi, Surehand, Adenzo, ES Regain, Castro, NK Jasmic

We place great importance on selecting varieties which will grow locally rather than relying on official trial data only. 

By trialling across a large number of commercial farms locally we aim to continuously upgrade our varieties to provide farmers with outstanding results designed to both reduce the cost of growing forage maize and to improve the nutritional characteristics of the maize silage in the pit.

Not only is Kadenz an exceptional yielder, Kadenz is early and with a very high starch rating and a much higher relative digestibility than most other maize varieties. 

Kadenz has performed particularly well on some very difficult, heavy, marginal sites outperforming all other varieties.

Twixxi is expected to be a good contender to beat Kadenz, our current flagship variety, with dry matter yields around 20 tonnes DM / ha and Maturity Class 8. On trials Twixxi also out yields its reliable and early sister variety Ixxes. We anticipate cob maturity, DM yields, starch content and digestibility to be ahead or at least as good as Kadenz on both marginal and favourable sites.

Surehand - is a brand a new addition to the 2010 NIAB Descriptive List as first choice for both favourable and less favourable sites. Very high dry matter yields. Huge ME and starch yields, with excellent early vigour and standing power. We expect it to do well locally being higher yielding and better quality than its excellent sister variety Surprise. Surehand can be expected to rival or exceed the fantastic performance that we have seen with Kandenz.

Adenzo  has a very higher starch yield with an ME of 11.8 on NIAB data. Dries down faster than Castro or Kadenz. 

Whilst not as big as Kadenz, Adenzo with its exceptional early vigour, has performed particularly well on some very marginal sites in difficult years.

Widely grown in northern Europe. Suitable for less favourable marginal site but does need time to mature. A good and very reliable variety especially for an early sowing. 

NK Jasmic  is new and in its second year commercially but looks to be very big. With dry matter yield of over 20t DM per ha, with an energy output of 220,000 MJ per ha it is the highest yielder on NIAB 1st choice listings for favourable sites. A massive yielder but does need a semi reasonable site.

ES Regain  Whilst not quite as big a yielder as our other varieties ES Regain is very reliable and very early. Maturity class 9. Highest starch yield in its class on the NIAB list. Exceptional energy yields (211,000 MJ/ha favourable and 196,000 MJ/ha less favourable). ES Regain has one of the earliest cob ripeness scores but much higher yielding than most ultra-earlies. Particularly useful for an early sowing to harvest early and feed ahead of the main maize crop or for use to bring forward the maturity of a late field in line with the main maize harvest.

Castro was  the highest energy yielding variety on Oliver Seeds official trials in both 2007 and 2008. Very stay green and with good drought resistance. Castro does however require bright, sunny conditions for optimum performance.

These New RWN Forage Maize Varieties - Kadenz, Twixxi, Surehand, Adenzo, 
ES Regain, Castro and NK Jasmic  all satisfy our selection criteria for reliability, early vigour, enormous yields, early cob ripeness, high starch yields, exceptional digestibility and energy yield per acre with good standing power without premature die back. 

With the cost of land, fertiliser and other inputs increasing the cost of growing forage maize can only be controlled by growing higher yielding varieties and growing them well. We are confident that our best new forage maize varieties will prove far more profitable for farmers to grow than other varieties currently available.

Forage Maize Crop Preservation

Full nutritional support package free of charge to customers along with the most extensive range of high quality feed inputs available

Working together for a more profitable future

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