Improve the salad bowl for your stock
Local farmers are now introducing multi species pasture with species suited to their patch, such as a simple mix of oats, forage brassica, annual vetch, and field peas. Pasture blend establishment
Cradle Coast Authority's agriculture team are working with pasture producers to explore the benefits of fixing low pH to improve pasture quality and add diversity to their fodder. Multi-species pasture cropping is not a new concept: a farmer sows different plant species together, which produces improved quality forage for stock, and also provides a range of different root systems that benefit the soil. The mixture should include nitrogenfixing legume species, flowering plants, and species that will add to organic matter on the soil surface, and in the soil as root mass. This diverse plant mixture produces a variety of plant root exudates which feed soil microorganisms, enhancing soil health and soil carbon.
Observations included: Enhanced quality stock forage with improved fattening value and superior stock health benefits (more than a single species of oats for example). The stock did not develop scours on the mix of species (can be the case on single species). The multi-species paddocks grew better and produced more forage than say oats on its own in a dry season. The soil structure and water infiltration were improved. Less weeds (due to the shading effect and quick canopy closure of the fastergrowing brassica species). More beneficial insects observed in the pasture crop.
Multiple species pasture crops can be used as a soil biology primer, and can also help with disease and weed control. Research has shown that including flowering plants in a crop mix can increase beneficial insect diversity which controls insect attack on crops and attracts birds. This will improve the ecology of the whole farm and move the farm closer to functioning as an ecosystem. Multi species pasture blend
p. 10
