Crop Guide CANADA S FORAGE SEED INNOVATOR. profit above the soil, weatlh below the soil

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1 2017 Crop Guide CANADA S FORAGE SEED INNOVATOR profit above the soil, weatlh below the soil

2 We are an Alberta based forage seed company created with an objective of innovation, partnership, local testing, expertise, and customer support. We offer a complete support system to extend the duration and quality of grazing for all growing regions in Canada, including annual grazing systems for summer growth and winter stockpile for irrigation and dryland production. Our strategic partnership with leading global forage researchers provides years of practical agronomic and technical advice from around the world. At our core are three annual and five perennial seed mixtures to fit your locale and stock. These mixtures incorporate proprietary cultivars developed specifically for palatability, biomass production, and most importantly, for profit. When regrowth is capitalized, the soil biota benefits from increased soil carbon, water, and nutrient cycling. When you grow more, you leave more for the soil. When you leave more for the soil, you capture wealth. Use more sunlight itʼs free! Tap into the inherent wealth of your soil, complement your low cost perennial pasture, lower your cost of production per acre and capitalize on regrowth potential. Livestock grazing is a most direct use of sunlight, if not one of the most efficient. The animalʼs rumen links sustainability and profit in managed grazing. ANNUALS (page 3) Pastoral Farming integrates crops and livestock into a sustainable and profitable system. Annual grazing crop rotations are an important aspect of this system. Annuals or short rotation crops extend quality grazing, as they produce large amounts of biomass. These crops also act as a break crop, for interruption of disease weed cycles in both conventional crops and perennial pasture. PGG Seeds is a distributor of top performing proprietary forage products. PGG Wrightson seeds, the parent of PGG Seeds, has been a world leader in development of cultivars for pastoral farming for over 150 years. This is proprietary, certified seed encompassing brassicas, forbs, legumes, and grasses. Research and development is driven by animal 1

3 Questions? Contact Us! more info on back cover performance. PGG Seedsʼ Forage Brassicas are known throughout North America for their ease of establishment, biomass production, and palatability. This plant material is a complement to traditional cool and warm season forage systems. PGG Seeds has partnered with Union Forage to develop several seed blends and profitable annual grazing programs for growers in Canada. (page 8) PERENNIALS Union Forage offers five core blends for perennial planting. From grazing pastures to dual purpose pastures, these mixes contain the appropriate portions of alfalfas, grasses, and legumes needed to sustain or improve existing pastures. We specialize in custom blends for individual farms and ranches. Union Forage is partnered with Barenbrug to bring you the best in perennials. Barenbrug has a century long history of forage breeding at its multiple breeding stations around the world. These breeding stations are strategically placed to cover various climatic zones in different parts of the world. Even more importantly, a large network of locations is established where forage germplasm is evaluated for performance. Forage varieties are characterized for their winter dormancy versus winter activity. Winter active forages are desirable in areas with mild winter where winter grazing is feasible. But such winter active varieties are not suited for Canada. So we have selected varieties with higher levels of winter dormancy for Canada, which provides winter hardiness to the forage species. At Union Forage we have a blend that will suit all grazing programs. We can help with custom design blends for special needs areas. (page 11) COATINGS Legumes in Union Forage seed blends are coated to protect the seed and to attract and hold moisture, ensuring seedling establishment under dry land conditions. Colour is added to more easily measure seed depth. Find more info on page 11. 2

4 ANNUAL SEED SPECIES Our three core annual mixtures, developed from our partnership with PGG Seeds, incorporate proprietary cultivars developed specifically for palatability, biomass production, and most importantly, for profit. When grazing regrowth, soil biota benefits from increased soil carbon, water, and nutrient cycling. Featured in these blends are some key annual species, including: Winfred Forage Brassica (brassica napus ssp. biennis) Winfred is a unique selection of forage brassica comprised of a cross of kale and turnip. The result is a drought tolerant and winter hardy cultivar useful in a broad range of grazing regions. Winfred is suited to multiple grazings for summer and early-autumn feed requirements. It is also a stockpile winter feed complementary to winter cereals. Winfred reaches maturity (as a stockpiled feed) in 90 days. It is capable of surviving significant summer drought without loss of forage quality. 3 Sowing Guide Sow in spring at 2-4 lb/acre. Time until first grazing is 6-8 weeks. Sow with 10 lb Italian Ryegrass (as well as 2 lb HUNTER Forage Brassica) for extended grazing, from summer through fall.

5 Goliath Forage Brassica (brassica napus ssp. biennis) Goliath, as a traditional forage rape, supplies summer through early winter feed. Goliath produces maximum tonnage in 90 days. It is a great stockpile winter feed complementary to winter cereals. Goliath production can be as high as 12,000 lb DM/acre. Goliath has been shown to withstand some summer drought without loss of forage quality. Sowing Guide Sow in spring to the end of summer, with adequate moisture at 2-4 lb/acre. Time until first grazing is 6-8 weeks. Sow with 10 lb Italian Ryegrass (as well as 2 lb HUNTER Forage Brassica) for extended grazing from summer through fall. Hunter Forage Brassica (brassica rapa syn.b campestris) Hunter is developed by crossing turnips with related Asiatic leaf vegetables of the same species. The result is a quick-growing, leafy turnip with minimal bulb development. It is best suited to multiple grazings for summer and early-autumn feed requirements. Hunter reaches its growth potential in summer under irrigation. It matures quickly with the first grazing possible at 4-6 weeks and is an excellent quality forage capable of providing extremely high weight gain in animals. Hunter was bred for tolerance to turnip mosaic virus and cauliflower mosaic virus. This, combined with selecting for vigorous regrowth, has provided a variety with fast recovery from grazing and an excellent ability to yield in the second, third, and sometimes fourth regrowth cycle. Plants are best suited to heavier soil conditions with periodic summer moisture or irrigation. Hunter recovers very quickly from multiple grazings when given moisture, leaving excellent subsequent yields. It is an integral component of diverse annual crop mixtures. Sowing Guide Sow in spring to the end of summer, with given moisture. Sow at 1-4 lb/acre. Time until first grazing is 4-6 weeks. Sow with 10lb Italian Ryegrass for extended grazing from summer through fall 4

6 Graza Forage Brassica (raphanus sativa ssp. maritimus) Graza is a fast growing, drought tolerant fodder radish. It is the only certified fodder radish variety presently available on the market the culmination of 17 years of plant selection. It is fast to graze and rapidly regrows for multiple grazing opportunities through summer. During summer when milk production and weight gains are difficult, graza offers a palatable solution. This means that all animals, not specific to any class, will consume more feed of higher quality. Graza survives hotter drier summers than most brassicas. It is a complement to traditional warm season forages. This radish has a remarkable digestible dry matter and metaboliseable energy level. It is cost effective cultivar to grow, easy to sow, and quick to germinate. It also does not need special tillage or planting equipment as itʼs easy to drill into stubble. Sowing Guide Sow at 2-7 lb/acre in a mixture. Ready to graze in days. Italian Ryegrass (lolium multiflorum) Italian Ryegrass is a flexible and forgiving forage species that has a place in many Western Canadian forage zones. Italian Ryegrass performs well under adequate moisture, although it is not drought tolerant. We have selected Italian Ryegrass varieties with rapid establishment and vigorous growth to provide early grazing opportunities and maximum yield potential for annual or winter feed. We have also selected varities with reduced ability to produce seed a negative attribute of Italian Ryegrass. Italian Ryegrass can provide exceptional winter feed, whatever the farm system. For more information on high performance Italian Ryegrass, please contact us! 5 Sowing Guide Sow in spring or mid-late summer at lb/acre.

7 UNION FORAGE ANNUAL BLENDS UNION FORAGE RELAY MIXTURE This blend combines the nutrient dense brassica varieties Hunter and Winfred along with Green Spirit brand italian ryegrass (a highly nutritious grass). We have added hairy vetch as a soil building component and to provide additional and diverse feed. This blend is well suited to use along with oats or barley for silage (designed to improve silage nutritional value with potential for regrowth once silage is harvested), in combination with a cereal for swath grazing (designed to provide nutrient dense complement to the cereal after swathing), or in combination with a cereal for rotational grazing in season. Suggested sowing rate is 8-12 lb/acre Add oats or barley at a rate of 50-75% of normal pure stand rate. Plant in spring for rotational grazing or as silage additive, late spring for swath grazing. Italian Ryegrass Hairy Vetch Hunter Winfred 60% - Cool Season Annual Grass 20% Annual Legume 10% Turnip/Asiatic Leaf Veg 10% Kale/Turnip Cross UNION FORAGE ULTIMATE ANNUAL BLEND Our premiere annual forage mixture is designed to combine warm and cool season grasses with annual legumes and annual brassica. Our field trials show that these species work together to yield exceptional nutritional quality and agronomic benefits for grazing and soil health. This makes for very high quality annual grazing targeted in a high performance rotation system. Suggested planting rate is 7-10 lb/acre combined with cereal (oat/barley). Consider adding lb/acre of forage peas. Combine with annual cereals to create an appropriate blend balance with cereal forage. (continued on next page) 6

8 ULTIMATE ANNUAL BLEND (continued) Because of the nutrient dense nature of brassicas, it is recommended that they comprise a max of 50% of the forage intake for most production programs. Hairy Vetch 30% - Annual Legume Winfred 10% - Kale/Turnip Cross Italian Ryegrass 25% - Cool Season Grass Hunter 5% - Turnip/Asiatic Leaf Veg Sorghum 15% - Cool Season Grass Graza 5% - Forage Radish Crimson Clover 10% - Annual Legume UNION FORAGE SWATHGRAZING BLEND Our swathgrazing blend is an additive to your own cereal swathgrazing. It is designed to increase protein, energy level, and digestibility in the feed. These brassicas will also ensure a better swath clean up by the cattle. The root system these brassicas leave in the soil will add more organic matter into your soil, increasing soil health and building organic matter. Suggest sowing rate is 4 lb/acre with 60 lb cereal. Goliath Hunter Sod Buster Turnips 35% 35% 30% UNION FORAGE ALL BRASSICA BLEND 7 This blend is designed as a combination of our four premium brassica varieties. It provides flexibility to be used in combination with cereals, annual grasses (cereals/italian rye), annual legumes, and even warm season grasses as required in each specific pasture blend. This is our most flexible blend - combine with your preferred complimentary annual grazing products including grasses, forbs, legumes, and cereals. Because of the nutrient dense nature of brassicas, it is recommended that they comprise a max of 50% of the forage intake for most production programs. Suggested planting rate is 1-4 lb/acre. Winfred Goliath Hunter Graza 25% - Kale/Turnip Cross 25% Forage Rape 25% Turnip/Asiatic Leaf Veg 25% Forage Radish

9 UNION FORAGE PERENNIAL BLENDS Union Forage is partnered with Barenbrug to bring you the best in perennials. Together, we offer five core blends for perennial planting. From grazing pastures to dual purpose pastures, these mixes contain the appropriate portions of alfalfas, grasses, and legumes needed to sustain or improve existing pastures. We also specialize in custom blends for individual farms and ranches. NITROMASTER Designed to improve forage quality and productivity of old pastures as well as a component of new forage plantings. Nitromaster is a mixture of perennial drought tolerant legumes that improve the protein production in the pasture and also fix nitrogen in soil to reduce the needs for nitrogen fertilization. The forage species contained in Nitromaster are alfalfa and legumes selected to be low or non-bloating such as Sainfoin and Cicer milkvetch. Suggest sowing rate is 5 lb/acre in combination with a grass blend at 10 lb/acre. CO Sainfoin CO Cicer Milk Vetch Baralfa 334SC Alfalfa 50% 25% 25% GRAZEMASTER A very adaptable pasture mixture for Western Canada. Grazemaster contains drought tolerant grasses that are bred for high dry matter yields and superior energy values though improved fibre digestibility. It contains grasses from the breeding program of Barenbrug. Consider that many pastures in Western Canada need to be renovated or interseeded with pasture seed to capture higher returns. Grazemaster is formulated to be high energy with STF tall fescue, meadow brome, HLR orchard grass, and slender wheatgrass. Fleet or Regar Meadow Brome Suggest sowing rate is lb/acre STF 43 Tall Fescue in combination with a legume blend at 5 lb/acre. HLR Orchard Grass CO Slender Wheat Grass 40% 30% 20% 10% 8

10 BARRICADE Barricade is designed for new planting or inter-seeding into pastures and can be used in low rainfall areas. It protects the pastures against drought as it contains the latest varieties of grasses selected for germination, establishment, and growth under low rainfall. Barricade seed is coated with Yellow Jacket which absorbs nearly 600 times its weight in water (see page 11). This facilitates improved protection of seedlings during germination and establishment by keeping a layer of moisture around the seed under below average rainfall conditions. Barricade is optimized with drought tolerance varieties of meadow and smooth brome, tall fescue, and pubescent or intermediate wheatgrass. Suggested sowing rate is lb/acre in combination with a legume blend at 5 lb/acre. Fleet/Regar Meadow Brome STF 43 Soft Leaf Fescue CO Pub or Int Wheatgrass CO Smooth Brome CO Slender Wheat Grass 25% 25% 25% 15% 10% MILKWAY (effective fiber and high energy) Milkway contains fescue varieties that test and perform well in TMR of high producing dairy cows at the University of Wisconsin. Research by numerous agronomists and dairy scientists indicates Barenbrug forage fescues are ideally suited for the TMR of high producing dairy cows in North America. Barenbrug has created the ideal product so that dairymen can take advantage of benefits of Barenbrug forage fescues. Milkway contains high yielding meadow fescue and extremely digestible soft leaf tall fescue cultivars. Pradel meadow fescue provides exceptionally high NDFd and thus improved rate of digestion. It does not cause ʻrumen fillʼ as it is one of the lower NDF grasses that can be grown in the Northern USA. BarElite and Bariane soft leaf tall fescues are world renowned for their suitability for dairy TMR due to their low NDF and high NDFd values. Milkway is the ideal grass blend for TMR silage production; it provides stable NDF and NDFd throughout the season so the dairyman can pack different cuttings in the same bunk. Milkway is planted as a monostand and produces high dry matter yields under manure application or with nitrogen fertilizer applications. It is traffic tolerant and can sustain 10

11 multiple manure applications. Milkway is ideally suited for interplanting with alfalfa as its growth rhythm matches the growth rhythm of alfalfas, it will not take over the alfalfa, nor does it disappear after a couple of years in an alfalfa stand. HDR Meadow Fescue STF 43 Soft Leaf Fescue 60% 40% STF 43 (high energy) STF-43 is an innovative blend of late-heading, soft-leaved tall fescues. It produces impressive dry matter yields with exceptional levels of digestible fiber. STF-43 is the result of Barenbrugʼs forage analyses program which measured NDF (neutral detergent fiber) and NDFd (NDF digestibility). With the laboratory analyses, Barenbrug identified significant differences in amount of fiber (NDF) and its digestibility (NDFd) between improved varieties. STF-43 is formulated with varieties to provide exceptional levels of digestible fiber per pound of dry matter fed. Fed to high-producing animals such as dairy cows, STF-43 provides energy derived from digestible fibre (as well as the valuable effects of fibre) which together promote rumen health and productivity and, in turn, animal health and productivity. STF-43 is well-suited for hay and haylage/baleage production. It is an excellent selection for a mixed or interplanting with a legume. STF-43 is late-maturing and endophyte-free. STF-43 is ideal for interceding into existing pastures to improve the energy levels for dramatically higher weight gains on cattle. E2 631 (high energy hay) E2 631 is formulated for dry hay production. Besides hybrid alfalfa, it contains very late heading STF-43 (soft leaf tall fescue) and very late heading HLR (high leaf ratio) orchard grass. This combination results in high tonnage per acre throughout the season with a good balance of grass and alfalfa in the hay. Bar X42 Alfalfa 60% STF 43 Tall Fescue Intensiv Orchard Grass 30% 10% 10

12 UNION FORAGE COATINGS Coatings protect the seed and attract and hold moisture to assure seedling establishment under dry land conditions. Colour is added to more easily measure seed depth. Legumes in Union Forage seed blends are coated and inoculated with rhizobium, the Nitrogen fixing organisms that live in a symbiotic relationship with the plant roots. Nitrogen fixing rhizobium increase soil fertility for future crop rotations and provide nutrients to support the grasses usually grown in combination with legume annual and perennial pasture mixtures. Union Forage perennial and annual seed mixtures are also coated and inoculated with mycorrhizal fungi which directly infect plant roots. 90% of plant species benefit from the symbiotic relationship with mycorrhizal fungi which provide them with soil derived nutrients like Phosphate and Zinc, while the plant returns the favour by providing the fungus with it sole source of nutrition in the form of liquid carbon sugars. YELLOW JACKET ENHANCED SEED COATING 11 Barenbrug is an international leader in innovative seed coatings. Its scientists are involved in research facilities worldwide to further enhance seed coating technology and bring solutions to the forage industry. Yellow Jacket is a proprietary seed coating containing a totally natural product made from starch. This active ingredient in Yellow Jacket holds up to 600 times its weight in water and nutrients. Research at New Mexico State University, North Carolina State University, and Texas A&M has proven that seed coated with Yellow Jacket established faster under less water and produced more forage than uncoated seed. Yellow Jacket seed assures seeding establishment under dry land conditions where irrigation is not available. Yellow Jacket seed provides higher yeilds while preserving our precious water resources. Yellow Jacket seed coating is available exclusively on all Barenbrug products. Yellow Jacket is like having an absorbent sponge or water reservoir around each individual seed. Once water is applied or moisture is available from rain, the coating holds both moisture and nutrients around the seed, making it available as needed for germination and establishment. Without Yellow Jacket, raw seed can quickly dry out, resulting in a need for more frequent irrigation or reliable rains.

13 UNPRODUCTIVE SOIL, UNPRODUCTIVE CROP These are high performance plants that depend on and respond to adequate nutrients. Test soil before planting. If irrigated, maintain soil moisture during stand establishment; back off to promote deep rooting. Fertilize to meet crop needs. High nitrogen rates and manured soils can require additional management considerations to avoid potential nitrate toxicity, especially under fall grazing regimes. We appreciate our customers. If you provide a feed sample we will test it for you - no charge, no problem. RIGHT CROP, RIGHT TIME, RIGHT CONDITION Choose the crop type and variety to fit the type of livestock. Grazing brassica are an essential component of high production annual grazing systems. Agronomically, be sure to rotate your brassica plantings to avoid disease considerations. Flea beetles can be a pest of forage brassica. Watch for damage for the first 3-4 weeks after planting. Remedy may be required to prevent crop damage. Refer to product descriptions for best pairings and contact us for more info. GRAZING: OFF TO A GOOD START Acclimate cattle to this high quality feed. Feed test and discuss with your Union Forage representative to maximize potential and manage any feeding issues. SHAPE AND BALANCE TO MAXIMIZE VALUE We can help you to develop a grazing strategy that optimizes cattle performance and crop productions. Forage brassica provides exceptional nutritional quality. As a general rule, to optimize animal health, balance the brassica component of animal intake to a maximum of 50%. BUILD SOIL PRODUCTIVITY Brassica species require adequate crop rotation to avoid disease build up. Use best management practices/rotation as you would for canola. 12

14 graeme finn ben stuart roger meyers (c) (h) It is important that we help you to have a great experience growing annual and perennial forages with Union Forage, PGG Seeds, and Barenbrug. Contact our technical support team to maximize your experience using our products - prior to planting, prior to grazing.