Self Seeder Blend

Management Considerations

Manure seeding techniques are best suited for hard-coated forage seed such as legumes. The legumes selected in this blend can pass through an animal’s digestive system without being damaged. Grass seeds such as brome and orchard grass seed are typically softer seeds and can be damaged in the rumen. Cicer milk vetch is one legume that is targeted for the manure seeding technique. It’s a high yielding, palatable, high protein legume, that is also a prolific seed producer. It is a bloat-resistant legume that works well in a grazing system.

Legumes can germinate and grow without inoculants, but they cannot fix nitrogen into the soil unless they are inoculated with the right bacteria. Some soils contain natural bacteria that can inoculate the legume roots and promote nitrogen fixation. Effective inoculation and nitrogen fixation will be most likely to occur in pastures that already contain some established legumes whose roots have nodules that are well-developed and pink or reddish inside.