Maize Varieties suitable for growing without plastic cover (Uncovered) Four Varieties to cover all situations: AMBITION, BEACON, GLORY and ACTIVATE.

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1 Maize Varieties Maize Varieties suitable for growing without plastic cover (Uncovered) Use a variety from the Irish Recommended List to guarantee yield and quality The Recommended List is the only independent variety comparison Growing in the Open (Uncovered) Four Varieties to cover all situations: AMBITION, BEACON, GLORY and ACTIVATE. Marginal Activate Glory Moderately Good Activate Glory Good Beacon Very Good Beacon AMBITION Growing in the open The best variety is AMBITION Recommended list Highest for dry matter yield, starch yield, energy yield and crop height The most consistent variety for high Yield and high Starch content over the last 4 years The best combination of yield and quality and will suit most growing sites Also suitable for use under plastic where early maturity is required 44,000 seeds per acre BEACON ACTIVATE Also Available: On the DAFM recommended list since 2012 High yielding variety with good starch % and ME and will suit all good sites Extremely reliable yield and quality performance in good and bad years 44,000 seeds per acre New on the 2015 Recommended List An Ultra-Early variety suitable for moderate sites or for early harvest on good sites Very high starch % and ME On a marginal site it will produce much higher quality silage than later maturing varieties with little yield difference 45,000 seeds per acre Glory: Limagrain variety. Very early maturity 5 days earlier than. Completed 2 year in the DAFM RL uncovered trial in 2013 & Yield is similar to Beacon. It had the best starch results in the trials over the 2 years. Suitable for marginal and moderate sites.

2 Maize Varieties suitable for growing with plastic cover (Covered) Use a variety from the Irish Recommended List to guarantee yield and quality The Recommended List is the only independent variety comparison Growing under plastic (Covered) Three Varieties to cover all situations: AWARD, TEKNI and AMBITION. Marginal Moderately Good Good Tekni Very Good Tekni Maize Varieties AWARD Growing under Plastic The best variety is AWARD Very high yield and produces more starch per hectare than any other variety The best combination of yield and quality and will suit most growing sites was the most popular variety in 2014 with more area sown than any other variety Tried & tested by farmers and the recommended list trial 40,000 seeds per acre TEKNI AMBITION Also Available: TEKNI is a tried and tested variety on the Irish RL since 2010 It produces very high yields, with good earliness and starch content. Performing very well in the difficult growing conditions of 2011 and Good early vigour and among the fastest varieties through the plastic. 40,000 seeds per acre This is an Ultra-Early variety under plastic - Suitable for moderate sites or for early harvest on good sites Has completed two years in the DAFM plastic RL trial The earliest variety in the trial with by far the best starch content and ME Good vigour and early emergence through the plastic Excellent performance on farms in 2013 and ,000 seeds per acre Cathy: Limagrain variety suitable for good sites. Completed two years in the DAFM plastic RL trial in 2013 & Later maturing than by about 5 days. Very high fresh yield at harvest.

3 Maize Recommended List 2015 Irish Recommended List (2015) of Forage Maize varieties suitable for growing without plastic cover (Uncovered) Actual yield data is shown for the mean of the control varieties, and the relative yield data (as % of controls) is shown for all varieties. The data is based on results of trials carried out over three years in the period 2012 to 2014 by Department of Agriculture, Food and Marine. Yield of DM (t/ha) Dry Matter Content (%) Starch content (%) ME (MJ/kg) Plant Height (m) Year first Recommended Controls* 15.5t/ha (R) Beacon (R) Activate (PR-1) Atrium (R) Beethoven (R) Kroft (R) Severus (PR-1) Varieties Highlighted in Blue are Goldcrop Varieties (R): Recommended for general use. (PR): Provisionally Recommended (The number after the PR, indicates the number of years provisionally recommended). AMBITION Growing Maize in the open The best variety is AMBITION Recommended List Highest for dry matter yield, starch yield, energy yield and crop height The best combination of yield and quality and will suit most growing sites Also suitable for use under plastic where early maturity is required ,102 Beacon 170, ,659 Activate Metabolisable Energy Yield (MJ/Ha) From RL 2015 data 176,918 Beethoven 173,386 Atrium 171,627 Severus 158,706 Kroft

4 Irish Recommended List (2015) of Forage Maize varieties suitable for growing with plastic cover (Covered) Actual yield data is shown for the mean of the control varieties, and the relative yield data (as % of controls) is shown for all varieties. The data is based on results of trials carried out in the period 2012 to 2014 by Department of Agriculture, Food and Marine. Yield of DM (t/ha) Dry Matter Content (%) Starch content (%) ME (MJ/kg) Plant Height (m) Year first Recommended Earliness of emergence through plastic Score (1 9) (9 = earliest, 1 = latest) Controls* 18.1t/ha (R) Tekni (R) Maize Recommended List 2015 Grosso (PR-1) Justina (R) P7905 (PR-1) Varieties Highlighted in Blue are Goldcrop Varieties (R): Recommended for general use. (PR): Provisionally Recommended (The number after the PR, indicates the number of years provisionally recommended). Crops grown under plastic cover produce relatively consistent yield and quality from year to year. The plastic cover reduces the adverse effects of poor climatic conditions AWARD Growing under Plastic The best variety is AWARD Very high yield and produces more starch per hectare than any other variety The best combination of yield and quality and will suit most growing sites Most popular variety in 2014 with more area sown than any other variety 4.90 Grosso 4.45 Justina 4.90 P7905 Starch Yield (t/ha) From RL 2015 data 4.62 Tekni

5 Maize Crop Management Maize Crop Management MAIZE: Dry Matter yield: t/ha Fresh yield: t/ha Dry Matter: % Crude Protein: 7 9 % ME (MJ/kg DM): Maize is an extremely high yielding forage crop that produces high quality livestock feed at a very competitive price. It is an easy crop to grow once the basics are right with site selection being the most important. Maize can also be grown as a cash crop on tillage farms for sale to livestock farmers. Selection: The ideal maize field will be well sheltered, warm with good deep soil, south facing, well drained and less than 100m over sea level. As the site moves away from this ideal field you need to use earlier maturing varieties or consider using plastic. Avoid compacted soils. Maximum height over sea level is 120m. Rotation: Maize can be grown continuously in the same field. Weed control costs tend to increase and fungal disease attacks becomes more likely with continuous maize cropping but these challenges can be overcome. Seedbed Prep: Till as for potatoes or sugar beet. A deep fine firm seedbed produced with a minimum number of passes is required for fast and uniform germination. Make sure to avoid compaction. Where compaction is a problem, subsoiling will be required and this can only be done when soils are dry. Sowing period: Not too early and not too late. Maize is a slow starter and needs good growing conditions so wait until soil temperatures are over 8 C. It also needs every day of the Irish growing season to produce good yields of high quality silage so don t delay sowing. Without Plastic: Sow from 15th April on good warm sites. Best crops will generally come from sowings done before 10th May. With Plastic: Sow from April 5th on good sites and best response from plastic will generally be achieved from sowings before April 25th Seeding rates: Seeds are precision drilled usually in 75cm rows and at 4-6cm depth. Sow at 100, ,000 seeds per ha (40,000 44,000 seeds per acre). Later maturing varieties will benefit from the lower seed rates, starch levels and dry matter % will be improved. Lime: Maize needs a ph level of and soil analysis should be carried out before each crop. Fertiliser: Fertiliser applications should be in line with the Nitrates Directive Soil Index for NPK Index 1 Index 2 Index 3 Index 4 Nitrogen 180kg/ha (144units/ac) 140kg/ha (112units/ac) 110kg/ha (88units/ac) 75kg/ha (60units/ac) Phosphorus 70kg/ha (56units/ac) 50kg/ha (40units/ac) 40kg/ha (32units/ac) 0kg/ha (0units/ac) Potash 250kg/ha (200units/ac) 225kg/ha (180units/ac) 190kg/ha (152units/ac) 80kg/ha (64units/ac)

6 NPK can be applied as organic (slurry or FYM ploughed down) or chemical fertilizer. Nitrogen fertilizer is best applied prior to the last cultivation. Top dressing N after emergence should be avoided as it can cause crop scorch. It is recommended when sowing maize to combine drill a Phosphorus fertilizer, and possibly some Nitrogen and trace elements. Product Rate per ha Comments Calaris ltr Apply at 4 to 6 leaf stage of maize. Use higher rate for weeds past 4 leaf stage. Contact activity with residual activity for up to 6 weeks after application. Stomp Aqua 3.3 ltr Mainly residual activity. Needs soil moisture for best effect. Wing P 4 ltr Bromotril P ltr Accent gm Hurler ltr Apply pre emergence to 4 leaf stage. Best option for crops grown under plastic. Can be used for controlling weeds which emerge late in the season e.g. nightshade. Do not apply in sunny conditions. Most commonly used at approx 1.0 ltr/ha. Used mainly for grass weed control. Use up to 6 leaf stage of maize. Some variety restrictions on use. Apply from 3rd leaf stage of maize onwards. Generally used for late control of volunteer potatoes. Dow Shield ltr Used mainly for control of thistles in maize. Trace elements: Magnesium, Zinc and Manganese are most important. Carry out soil analysis to identify likely deficiencies. Trace elements can be applied at drilling in a starter fertiliser, this is recommended where severe deficiencies exist. Otherwise apply foliar trace elements from the 4 leaf stage. Weed Control: Maize will not compete with weeds so effective control is essential. Control scutch and docks with Glyphosate before ploughing Pest problems: All seed should be treated with an insecticide e.g Mesurol.This controls frit fly and acts as a crow repellant. Wireworm: In fields where wireworm is likely to be a problem seed can be ordered treated with a systemic insecticide e.g. Cruiser. Slugs: They feed on the leaves and stems and can do a lot of damage. Broadcast slug pellets at first sign of damage. Leatherjackets: Roots and stems are attacked and plants killed. Spray with Dursban 4 or Clinch Cutworms: Occasionally cause problems in coastal areas and can cause lodging. Spray Dursban 4 or Clinch. Rabbits: Shooting, trapping and Rabbit Bait are moderately effective. Where numbers are very high put up a wire fence. Disease: Disease is not generally a widespread problem in maize. However in wet seasons and particularly in coastal areas a disease called Kabatiella (commonly know as eyespot) can cause premature senescence of the leaves. Eyespot spores can be carried over on maize trash or stubble from the previous year. A fungicide can be applied preventatively before the maize crop gets too tall to drive through and this lessens the severity of the disease. Helminthosporuim and Fusarium are diseases of less significance which can occur in wet seasons. Harvesting & Storage Information: Feeding Information: Aim to harvest the crop at 28 32% dry matter and 25% plus starch (usually in Oct). The harvester should have a grain cracker. Fill the clamp quickly and compact well. Consider using an additive when crop dry matter is over 30% to avoid pit face heating at feed out. Reduce pit surface waste by applying salt at 3kg/m² on the top and 6kg/m² on the sides and shoulders of the pit. Roll the pit after salt has been applied. Cover with two polythene sheets to exclude air completely and weigh it down well. Leave the pit sealed for at least two weeks before opening. Protect the clamp from birds and rats. Maize silage is a high energy low protein forage feed. It is an excellent feed for milking cows and fattening beef animals. Diets with maize silage must be properly balanced for protein, minerals and fibre and nutritional advice should be sought if in doubt. Maize Crop Management