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Why we grow maize trials at Lackham
Grainseed (Maize) Ltd undertakes detailed replicated trials on the college farm. We have a trials network to evaluate varieties around the UK and Lackham provides the high fertility site where varieties can perform to their full potential. All our varieties have been "Bred for Britain".
The maize crop at the college
The
college grows early maturing varieties to ensure that starch content is
maximised at harvest in the beginning of October. Maize starch is a good
energy source for dairy cows and combines well with high quality grass silage
to form the base to the winter ration.
Historically the college has grown a lot of Nancis, the earliest maturing
variety, to ensure that the maize is fully mature at harvest. Hotter summers
and dry autumns have allowed later varieties to be selected this year and
the college are growing Apostrof and Sibylis. Yielding over 20 tonnes of
dry matter per hectare the students help harvest and clamp the 100 acres
at the two dairies.
Who are Grainseed (Maize) Ltd
Grainseed
(Maize) Ltd is the UK agent for PAU Semences, a European maize breeder and
we test all our varieties in the UK before growing the varieties on farm.
We have specially adapted machinery to allow drilling of small numbers of
seed and harvesting equipment that allows us to cut out the harvest rows.
Maize breeding
Forage maize is a hybrid seed that is created by crossing 2 different types of plant (lines) to create a variety. This variety has improved performance due to hybrid vigour. A typical cross maybe to combine a very early maturing low yielding line with a later high yielding line with the objective of combining yield and maturity.
The UK has a maritime climate that results in varieties performing differently in the UK to that of continental Europe. We have cooler springs and less intense heat during the summer. A difference in maturity of 1 day in France or Germany maybe more than a week in the UK. This is why we need to test new varieties in the UK.
Trial design
The
varieties are precision drilled using a maize drill in 4 row plots, which
are randomly replicated (repeated) across the field. The size of the plot
depends on the amount of seed available. Plots are counted and thinned to
a constant population so that we know any difference in yield is due to
performance rather than number of plants in a row.
Growing season
Throughout
the growing season observations are made on the vigour of the crop emerging
from the soil, tasselling date (flowering from top of plant) and grain maturity
in the run up to harvest. These observations allow us to select the best
varieties for commercial seed production.
Harvesting trials
We grow control varieties within the trials to allow us to compare the performance of new varieties to existing well known varieties. These controls are monitored for maturity in the run up to harvest so that the trials are cut at the optimum time and the silage is between 30-35% dry matter.
As the maize plant matures sugars in the leaf are moved to the grain in the cob and converted to starch. The grain is the seed of the plant and starch is a stable storage molecule for energy that the seed would use to produce a new plant if it was sown. Sugars are much less stable and can be lost in solution (effluent) compared to starch.
Cutting
maize at 30-35% dry matter is the optimum for silage because most of the
sugar in the leaves has been converted to starch and the crop is still green
enough to enable the silage clamp to be well rolled and consolidated. If
dry matters exceed 35% it is harder expel air during clamping making it
longer before the clamp stabilises in its anaerobic (no air) state.
Trial results
One of the trial series undertaken at Lackham is on behalf of our breeder in France. In 1999 the Lackham results identified a high yielding variety that had good maturity. This had now undergone 2 years of defra trials and its first year of NIAB trials and has been added to the NIAB Descriptive List 2004 as one of the highest yielding Early varieties named Sibylis.
Sibylis favours good growing maize land and sheltered fields that are found up the main drive of the college farm and these types of soils allows the variety to produce maximum yields.
Other trials work
Alongside the main trials work we also undertake investigational work on new herbicides for controlling weeds, new drilling techniques and atrazine tolerant gamecover crops. It is important for Grainseed (Maize) Ltd to be able to advise growers on the latest agronomy and growing developments and by collecting our own information we can provide growers with unbiased advice.
