A very wet spring prevented many farmers from reseeding early as planned, causing unavoidable forage gaps. Now is the time to plan how to restore your forage reserves. Germinal expert Pat Delaney explains how autumn reseeding with Germinal's Aber High Sugar Grasses (HSG) can rebuild forage reserves.
What are high sugar grasses?
When grass is consumed, it enters the rumen and is rapidly broken down. However, the rumen struggles to utilise the protein efficiently if it lacks available energy. Consequently, this results in nitrogen being released in the rumen and then excreted as ammonia emissions.
Aber High Sugar Grasses have been bred to help livestock utilise more protein from grass, the increased water soluble carbohydrate (WSC or sugar) content creates a better balance of energy and protein in the rumen. This enables the rumen microbes to work with increased efficiency.
Aber HSG varieties have been shown to have on average 17% higher sugar than conventional grasses. As the rumen microbes can break down the forage more efficiently due to the increased energy available, more grass protein is converted to meat and milk and less is excreted in urine or faeces.
Climate smart grass that produces
With Irish farmers under pressure to reduce emissions, Aber HSG varieties can be used at scale to reduce ammonia and nitrous oxide excretion. Additionally, these climate smart grasses are highly productive, driving 6% more milk per cow in a grazing season while 20% liveweight gains can be achieved in beef and lamb systems.
By reseeding your grassland with mixtures containing high sugar grasses and clover, Irish farmers can increase production and reduce the dependency on fertiliser N. Pair these benefits with reduced ammonia emissions and you have a climate smart forage powerhouse that's backed up by proven monetary performance on the 2024 Pasture Profit Index (PPI).
| Ploidy | Heading date | PPI | Germinal mixture | |
| AberSpey | Tetraploid | 27th May | €240 | Top 5 Silage |
| AberClyde | Tetraploid | 25th May | €229 | Top 5 Silage |
| AberGain | Tetraploid | 4th June | €217 | Top 5 Extend |
| AberMagic | Diploid | 28th May | €198 | Top 5 Silage |
| AberChoice | Diploid | 11th June | €174 | Top 5 Extend |
| AberBann | Diploid | 10th June | €171 | Top 5 Grazing |
Where to find grass seed mixtures with Aber HSG
Several of our Aber HSG varieties are delivering proven economic performance on the PPI. You can find these varieties in the following mixtures from our Top 5 range.
Top 5 Extend
Varieties: AberGain; Ballintoy; AberChoice; Ballyvoy; white clover blend
With Top 5 Extend, you can produce a sward suited to intensive dairy, beef and sheep farming systems. The highly sward helps drive dry matter intake and increase animal performance. Primarily used for intensive grazing, Top 5 Extend is also suitable for cut-and-graze and zero-grazing.
AberChoice (diploid) and AberGain (tetraploid) have been included as Aber HSG varieties that can drive grass production through summer and autumn. With AberGain one of the highest ranked varieties for quality (€48) on the PPI, you can be confident that this intensive mixture will produce an excellent quality, highly palatable sward.
Top 5 Grazing
Varieties: AberBann; Drumbo; Ballintoy; Gracehill; white clover blend
This grazing grass seed mixture has been formulated to produce a high-quality sward suited to rotational grazing and set stocking. Top 5 Grazing can be sown in spring and cut towards the end of May if used for silage.
The high palatability of the mixture drives dry matter intake and elevates animal performance in dairy, beef and sheep systems.
Featuring AberBann, this variety has been valued at €74 and €71 for summer and autumn growth, respectively. This underlines the mixture's potential for autumn reseeding.
Top 5 Silage
Varieties: AberClyde; AberSpey; AberMagic; Galgorm, Alice white clover
Three Aber HSG varieties have been combined to create the best silage grass seed mixture for Irish farmers. Sown now, Top 5 Silage will provide an opportunity for autumn grazing and then light grazing in spring to help tiller the sward before taking a first cut in May.
AberSpey tops the Intermediate and Late Tetraploid Perennial Ryegrass Varieties for 2024 with a PPI score of €240 per ha/year, highlighting the impressive contribution this variety can make to your silage swards. Also featured in the mixture are AberClyde and AberMagic with PPI scores of €229 and €198 per ha/year, respectively.
Supporting this trio of powerful Aber HSG varieties is Galgorm, an intermediate diploid topping the 2024 PPI with €266. Top 5 Silage is expertly formulated to deliver exceptional spring and autumn yields alongside outstanding quality in a two-cut silage system.
Ask for Germinal's Aber High Sugar Grasses
You can ask your local seed retailer for Aber High Sugar Grasses. Alternatively, contact your nearest Germinal expert if you want to know more.
David Little, Agricultural Product Manager, Northern Ireland
T: 07718 658716
E: [email protected]
Diarmuid Murphy, Area Sales Manager, Southeast/Midlands/West
T: 085 747 3865
E: [email protected]
Claire Bailey Archibald, Area Sales Manager, Northeast
T: 087 470 6908
E: [email protected]
Pat Delaney, Area Sales Manager, South/Southwest
T: 085 841 6477
E: [email protected]