Tall Fescue for grazing livestock is commonly considered a versatile and persistent perennial forage. In addition, fescue is used for erosion control, reclamation and in turfgrass. Tall fescue can tolerate somewhat poorly drained soils and low pH. It can grow and establish on medium fertility soils and is somewhat resistant to drought. Tall fescue tends to be a persistent and aggressive species. Tall fescue was planted on a wide-spread basis in the United States in the 1940's and occupies over 34 million acres. Most of the tall fescue stands in Ohio are Kentucky-31 fescue with a 70 -85% infection level of a fungal endophyte which can have associated adverse affects on livestock
Tall fescue is the most desirable grass to
stockpile for late autumn and winter grazing. During the winter, higher
yields of quality stockpiled fescue are obtained when compared to other
species of cool season grasses. New varieties of endophyte free and low
endophyte tall fescue have potential to increase animal performance
during the summer grazing season as well as provide adequate forage
quality for beef cattle and sheep during the autumn and early winter.
This study was initiated to evaluate varieties for stand, vigor,
durability, palatability, yield, quality, and persistence of endophyte
free (EF) and endophyte infected (EI) tall fescue varieties. This is
the second year of a three year study.
| Tall Fescue Varieties in Ohio Trials. | |
|---|---|
| Variety: | Seed Sources: |
| AuTriumph Martin | International Seeds Inc. |
| Kentucky 31 - (endophyte free) | Auburn University |
| Barcel Fawn Kentucky 31 - (endophyte infected) Warrior - Orchardgrass | Ohio Seed Co. |
| Jessup (endophyte free) Jessup (endophyte infected) | University of Georgia |
| Benchmark - Orchardgrass Phyter StarGrazer | Countrymark |
| Festorina | Oldfields Seed |