Adding white clover into permanent pasture

clonagh

What's the best method for adding white clover into a old permanent pasture? Thinking of going organic so can't spray and reseed. Very little topsoil so ploughing isn't really an option either. Was thinking of mowing a small area in the late spring after the sheep have grazed it and gathering up whatever's there and then stitch it in. Would this work? Would the old pasture grasses smother the clover later in the year?

893bet

Planning similar. After silage or tight grazing run a disc and then broadcast. Maybe a roll after that.

cute geoge

One lad over there on f4f mixes clover seed with some meal for the cattle and the cattle add the clover to the sward with their dung

minerleague

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058267118/adding-white-clover-into-permanent-pasture

Keep the grass topped until clover has established, clover seed doesn't need to go in deep so maybe run of grass harrow to barely redden ground and then broadcast seed and roll after. Ph needs to be good too ( can you put out lime now or granlime in spring before setting seed )

fastrac

I used an Erth drill to oversow 5 kg/hc into a 2 yr old pasture. My advice is to get Potash and LIME up to scratch now and next April bare it and drill it.If you have watery slurry put it out after.Very important to graze it at low covers for next year.Dont panic and rush in with nitrogen if its slow by July it should be well established. conditions after sowing are more important than sowing method so use what ever suits eg Quad spreader /fertiliser spreader/drill etc. If possible use a clover off the recommended list.

clonagh

Thanks y'all.

Will the permanemt pasture grasses eventaully smother it even after its established, say one/two years after it's put in? Is keeping the grass as short as possible the only way to ensure a healthy clover cover?

weatherbyfoxer

I'm doing it for hire with a palatine grass harrow and an apv air seeder the past year,..most effective way I have seen is to take a heavy cut of silage in May and sow in 5kg/ha,..after sowing if you have access to a ring roller use it then flat roll,you need moisture in the ground too for the clover to germinate,it's more often a flop then a success doe,especially in sheep paddocks as there is too much trash on the surface of the sod

minerleague

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119738789#Comment_119738789

That I don't know, (never thought of it - can't see any great problems ) it used be recommended to spread with 0-7-30 but the clover seed is so small it often all came out towards the beginning.

Reggie.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119738671#Comment_119738671

Grass won't smother clover. It would be the other way round actually. Constant tight grazing will harm red clover but white clover is more resilient

Anto_Meath

I do mix hayseed and clover with fertilizer when spreading, about 5 kgs to the half tonne of fertilizer. I have been doing it for the last 4 years. You can defiantly see an increase of clover in the fields and better feeding in the grass. But my merchant is of the opinion that the seed wouldn't cast to far either side of the tractor behind the spreader and you can see that in the fields, so I wouldn't be covering the whole fields but I am improving the grass quality so I am happy enough with that.

ginger22

Direct drilled some red clover department spec mix into barley stubble and also into a grass silage field with ERTH Agriseeder in August, seems to have established well.

Reggie.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119743427#Comment_119743427

There was good growth at this backend in fairness