In 2018, summer annual forage variety trials were conducted across Kansas near Garden City, Hays, and Scandia. All sites evaluated hay and silage entries. Companies were able to enter varieties into any possible combinations of research sites, so not all sites had all varieties. Across the sites, a total of 77 hay varieties and 87 silage varieties were evaluated. The full 2018 Kansas Forage Report can be accessed online at https://newprairiepress.org/kaesrr/vol5/iss3/1/.
Study Objectives
The objectives of the Kansas Summer Annual Forage Variety Trial are to evaluate the performance of released and experimental varieties, determine where these varieties are best adapted, and increase the visibility of summer annual forages in Kansas. Breeders, marketers, and producers use data collected from the trials to make informed variety selections. The Summer Annual Forage Trial is planted at locations across Kansas based on the interest of those entering varieties into the test.
This work was funded in part by the Kansas Agricultural Experiment Station and seed suppliers. Sincere appreciation is expressed to all participating researchers and seed suppliers who have a vested interest in expanding and promoting annual forage production in the U.S.
Inestimable differences in soil type, weather, and environmental conditions play a part in increasing experimental error, therefore one should use more than one location and one year of data to make an informed variety selection decision. Please refer to previous years’ forage reports to see how a variety performed across years.
John Holman, Cropping Systems Agronomist, Southwest Research-Extension Center
jholman@ksu.edu
Augustine Obour, Agricultural Research Center – Hays
aobour@ksu.edu
Andrew Esser, Agronomist-in-Charge, North Central Kansas Experiment Field
aresser@ksu.edu
Jane Lingenfelser, Assistant Agronomist, Crop Performance Testing
jling@ksu.edu