Capital Stock

Capital Stock - South Island

Capital stock feeding is the maintenance of breeding stock between weaning and the following lambing or calving. To improve conception rates during mating, strategic periods of improved nutritional planning are required. These are regularly supported by general pastures but are often supported by high-quality supplementary options through autumn. These supplementary forages are often focussed on ewes, as breeding cows regularly get used as a management tool and spend less time on improved pastures.

GENERAL PASTURES

General pastures on capital stock farms are defined by some key requirements.

The general pasture must:

Have quality in late summer and autumn during mating
Tolerate a winter grazing round and accumulate winter growth for hitting target lambing covers
Be resilient and enable the farm to hold its capital stock numbers through a range of environmental conditions

Perennial ryegrass

Perennial ryegrass with either AR1 or AR37 such as Legion*AR37 or AR1, Reason AR37 or AR1 and Samson create ideal general pastures
Where conditions are drier and fertility is lower, Savvy cocksfoot is an ideal grass to mix with perennial ryegrass

Cocksfoot and lucerne

Savvy cocksfoot and Titan 5 lucerne pastures have a good fit for free draining hot summer and cold winter environments. The flexibility of year-round grazing from Savvy is complemented by the spring and summer performance of Titan 5 lucerne

Herbs and legumes

Legumes such as Relish red clover, Attribute and Emblem white clover and herbs such as Choice chicory, AgriTonic plantain and Ecotain^® environmental in higher rainfall climates, add sustainability and performance to grass-based mixes

Fescues

Hummer MaxP^® and Haven MaxP^® tall fescue have a lot of resilience in more fertile conditions including free draining soils, grass grub environments and winter wet/summer dry claybased
environments
Oakdon meadow fescue with MaxR^® endophyte is often mixed in 50:50 with Hummer or Haven tall fescue to maintain all the advantages of a tall fescue pasture but greatly improves grazing management

WINTERING OPTIONS

When wintering in colder environments it is important to consider crops that strategically help build whole farm pasture cover for lambing in early spring.

The winter crop must:

Create reliable yield
Be able to be well utilised in often difficult winter conditions
Be able to maintain or put on body condition through winter

Brassica

Later sown SovGold kale can provide useful winter feed crops, however early sown crops can be almost unusable to sheep due to increased stem height
January and early February sown Spitfire and Mainstar forage rapes make excellent ewe feed through winter
Triumph and Massie swedes are a common feed for capital stock in environments that have cooler summers and cold winters
Turnips such as New York are ideally suited to early sown turnip and grass mixes

Italian ryegrass or cereals

From late February Manta Italian ryegrass is a flexible winter feed option. If sown in later autumn then Milton and Coronet oats are suitable

AUTUMN BODY CONDITIONING

Autumn body condition for mating ewes and hinds is a major event in a capital stock calendar. The following forage options can help achieve desired body conditions.

Newer pastures

High legume and herb content in newer pastures are excellent companion species for an autumn mating
Mohaka AR37 or AR1 hybrid ryegrass has a role in short regenerative rotations that may last 2-4 years and are ideally mixed with Relish red clover, Brace white clover and Ecotain environmental plantain

Regrowth rapes

Mainstar and Spitfire provide excellent animal performance potential before mating

Lucerne

Fresh, healthy lucerne such as Titan 5 is a very useful forage in a dry autumn environment but these stands must be healthy as leaf spot on old leaves can be detrimental during mating

* Legion has been bred, selected and successfully tested as a perennial and will function as a perennial ryegrass. Due to a small number of tip awns Legion is a certified Lolium boucheanum.