PGG Wrightson Seeds

Still deciding which pasture or forage crop seed to sow this spring? Tune in as Dr Charlotte Westwood and Southern South Island Sales Agronomist Brian Young share practical advice and real-world experience to help you choose the right options for your farm. Tune in here: https://lnkd.in/g5M_HgBd

When new products and technologies are released from PGG Wrightson Seeds, you can be assured they have undergone extensive testing from our breeding/development sites through to end-user testing within farm systems across New Zealand. Throughout the entire lifecycle of a product, we undertake ongoing performance testing until the next generation comes through. To undertake this testing, a skilled team of specialists is required, including plant breeders, forage agronomists, animal nutritionists, farm systems specialists and a regional extension team spread across the country. Explore the cultivars that successfully passed our trials across New Zealand: https://lnkd.in/g57qCXH7

Part Two Investing in Forage Innovation Backed by science, built for farmers. Forage Innovations Limited (FIL) is another joint venture between PGG Wrightson Seeds and Plant & Food Research, which focuses on the development of forage brassicas, including kales, swedes, turnips, and rapes. These provide essential feed when pasture fails to meet livestock demand due to shortages or quality issues. Leading technologies include the Cleancrop™ brassica system and the development of Pallaton Raphno® brassica. When purchasing a PGG Wrightson Seeds product, you can be confident that it has been bred and developed to meet the needs of New Zealand livestock farming systems.

Not all farm systems or circumstances are the same, but we know that sharing knowledge can make a difference. Prone to summer dryness? Hamish Marshall, PGG Wrightson Technical Field Representative, has recommended Pallaton Raphno® for several farm systems through his own drought experience in the upper South Island. Hamish cites its water use efficiency, reduced need for aphicides, and flexibility of grazing as saving many farmers from selling stock over the summer months. While forage rape is commonly used to manage summer dry conditions, many of Hamish’s clients noticed a clear advantage with Pallaton Raphno®. Bred from a unique cross between kale and radish, Pallaton Raphno® combines the best traits of both species particularly tolerance to dry conditions. Trials conducted at Ashley Dene in Canterbury observed a 38% increase in water-use efficiency with Raphno® compared to Goliath forage rape. Across the country, damage from brassica pests such as aphids can occur. However, Hamish’s clients observed that aphids aren't as prolific with Pallaton Raphno®, which is recognised for its tolerance to aphids. As a multiple-graze forage brassica, Raphno® adds flexibility to grazing systems, supporting both store stock finishing and replacement rearing. Hamish saw it used under both set stocking and rotational grazing, with rotational systems generally delivering better results by maximising crop growth and animal performance. Success relied on correct stocking rates and following best practice guidelines as part of Hamish’s recommendations. Click the link to read the full article in the Rural Diary:

Meet Brian Maw, Research Operations Manager and Clover Breeder at PGG Wrightson Seeds, based at our Ohaupo research facility in Waikato. Brian leads the region’s breeding and development programme to ensure every new cultivar thrives in New Zealand’s diverse farming systems. At Ohaupo, we test under: - Periodic moisture stress; and - Cattle grazing trials that simulate real-world farm challenges. Our standout performers at Ohaupo include: - Ryegrasses with AR37 endophyte (Midway and Accrue) for superior pest resilience; and - Red clover varieties like Amigain to boost summer feed protein. After the recent drought, the site has recovered strongly. This winter, Brian and his team measured persistence, drought tolerance and pest tolerance to refine our development programme and ensure real-world results back every PGG Wrightson Seeds cultivar.

Cleancrop™ brassicas are not just selected for their tolerance to the broad-spectrum herbicide Telar®. They have all been selected for their exceptional yield potential and agronomic performance, showcasing the latest brassica genetics available. Cleancrop™ Firefly Firefly kale, an intermediate-height kale with a high leaf-to-stem ratio. It is high-yielding and offers excellent utilisation thanks to softer stems. The result is a rare combination of quantity and quality. Cleancrop™ Sarge Sarge kale, shorter in stature, offers outstanding overall plant quality due to its large leaves and an excellent leaf-to-stem ratio. Its marrow stems support outstanding utilisation and animal performance. Suitable for all stock classes, especially sheep and young stock. Very late flowering extends the feeding window into late winter Cleancrop™ swedes, Aspiring and Hawkestone Aspiring and Hawkestone offer early- and late-maturing options. Both cultivars deliver improved disease tolerance and outstanding yield potential, especially when precision sown! Aspiring has a slightly softer bulb for improved stock acceptance, while Hawkestone will maximise yield. Cleancrop™ turnips Toto and Cleancrop™ Bulb Turnip Toto turnip is a traditional tankard-type turnip, think ‘Barkant’, offering improved tolerance to turnip mosaic virus (a significant yield robber), high yields and a short grazing maturity, 55-90 days. The later-maturing (80-110 days) Cleancrop™ Bulb turnip is a versatile all-rounder, globe-shaped turnip that can be used for summer or winter feed. The sowing rate will need to be adjusted for this, with 1kg/ha recommended for larger bulb expression in winter feed or 2 kg/ha to maximise leaf area and protein in summer. Cleancrop™ Leafy Turnip Perhaps the star of the Cleancrop™ breeding programme, Cleancrop™ leafy turnip delivers absolutely unheard-of genetic gains in dry matter production, achieving 25% more dry matter than the industry standard Pasja II. It’s fast to establish, supporting multi-grazing for all stock classes. Cleancrop™ Rape Completing the Cleancrop™ offering is Cleancrop™ Rape, a multi-purpose forage rape suitable for summer or early winter feed, exhibiting good regrowth potential and keeping well into winter. As rape kale cross, like Goliath, it is high yielding with excellent leaf percentage and crop utilisation.