• A fast growing hybrid with fine stems, aggressive tillering and a mass of leaves at harvest
• Adapted to all geographies where sorghum sudan hybrids or sudangrass are normally grown
• Can be harvested as pasture, green chop or hay
• Fine stems facilitate field drying
• Reduced lignin, improved digestibility and enhanced animal intake for improved animal performance
• Product Profile and Management Guide
  

 

Animal Performance

• Beef Cattle: Replicated grazing studies document a 20% greater weight gain per animal per day and a 20% greater weight gain per acre for beef cattle grazing HayKing versus Piper sudangrass.
• Sheep: In a controlled feeding study, pelleted HayKing had a 12% higher digestibility than pelleted Piper Sudangrass.
• Dairy: A replicated milk output study documented a 5% increase in feed intake per day and a 12% increase in milk production per day when 18% of the TMR ration was HayKing versus Piper Sudangrass.
• Dairy and Beef Cattle: Grazing trials in Wisconsin, Kentucky, Illinois and Mississippi demonstrated that HayKing with Hi-Gest Technology was preferentially grazed over Piper Sudangrass and BMR sorghum/sudangrass hybrids.

Field Appearance at Harvest Maturity

• A fast-growing hybrid with very fine stems, aggressive tillering and a mass of leaves at harvest maturity.
• Medium, dark green leaves with a characteristic brown midrib.  The brown coloring may also express at the stems.

Adaptation and Use

• Adapted to all areas of the US where hybrid sudangrass or hybrid sorghum/sudangrass are normally grown.
• For direct pasture, dried hay, green chop or silage.  HayKing’s fine stems may help field dry down in humid production areas.
• Drilled Seeding Rates*:

Midwest, Northeast, Southeast	25 to 40 pounds per acre
Plains dryland	15 to 30 pounds per acre
Plains irrigated	25 to 40 pounds per acre
Southwest irrigated	125 to 150 pounds per acre
*Approximately 32,000 seeds per pound.  Seed color varies from tan to black.

Management

• Plant after the danger of frost and soil temperatures exceed 65°.
• Apply approximately 100 pounds of nitrogen per acre preplant and 40 to 60 pounds after each harvest to maximize yield.
• Harvest at height of 45-50 inches.  Leave 3-6” of stubble to encourage faster recovery and tillering of the next crop.  Do not graze until growth exceeds 18”.
• Multiple harvests each season.
• Improved fall disease package over many sudangrass or sorghum/sudangrass hybrids in humid production areas.
• Follow the same feeding precautions as with other forage sorghums to minimize the risk of prussic acid or nitrate poisoning.

 

 

©2009 Producer's Choice Seed