Farmers are just about to plant their forage crops to be ready for summer. These crops are not only a high protein, high energy, highly nutritious feed, they can also lower your farm's worm larval challenge and potentially reduce your reliance on chemical drenches. As you prepare lambs for weaning, consider sowing a natural solution to reducing worm challenge in your stock. Forage crops boost post weaning growth rates, increases pasture availability to improve ewe condition, and results in less scouring in the lambs.
Where the worms are
Most of the intenstinal worms found on farms are not in the sheep, but in the pasture or soil. New Zealand's temperature climate means pasture is an excellent environment for infective larvae development and survival. More than half live in the first two centimetres of the pasture sward and top centimetre of the soil, which is also where you find the best quality feed.
Summer forage crops, such as brassicas, lucerne, chicory, plaintains, and clovers, grow taller and more open than pasture. UV-light reaches the crops and soil during the establishment phase to create a hostile environment for parasites and lower the amount consumed by the animal.
Science-backed results
In a recent multi-year study, PGG Wrightson and PGG Wrightson Seeds found lambs grazing summer forage crops took far longer to reach the 500 eggs-per-gram Faecal Egg Count (FEC) threshold which is commonly used as a trigger for re-drenching. Lambs on grass reached this level within 28 to 35 days, while many on summer forage crops remained below it for up to 70 days and some never required re-drenching during the trial period.
Using summer forage crops
Before sowing your summer forage crops, you need an effective spray out of your existing pasture before direct drilling or cultivating your paddock to disrupt the larvae's environment. Then allow your summer forage crops to grow without any stock entering the paddock to prevent introducing new larvae. This can take between six weeks to three months, depending on your type of forage crop.
Finally, once your crop is ready for grazing, ensure lambs only have access to the forage crops. Any blade of grass can harbour infective larvae, so having top shelf agronomic planning and monitoring to keep unwanted weeds and grasses out of the base of the crop is essential. This is where your PGG Wrightson Technical Field Representative can really help.
One tool in the toolbox
It is important to remember, summer forage crops are just one tool in the toolbox targeting worm challenge. Drenches still have an important role in maintaining a sustainable worm management plan. Controlling worms is a multi-action approach: disrupt the life cycle, reduce the number of worms on the farm, prevent reinfection. By taking a multi-action approach, you are reducing worm challenge, saving time and money, and raising healthier, productive stock.
