Margurita French Serradella

We recommend Margurita French Serradella. It's hard seeded, so it builds a seed bank that carries through cropping, making it easier to switch between crop and pasture phases. About 50% of the seed softens over summer to germinate the following year. It suits acidic, infertile sands in 350mm+ rainfall.

Margurita French Serradella is our direct replacement for Cadiz Serradella. It was selected from hard-seeded lines of Cadiz, so it persists and regenerates far better, with a steady hard-seed breakdown over summer. It also has a more upright habit than Cadiz, with potential for better grazing tolerance.

Yes, podded Margurita French Serradella can be sown in February at about 20 kg/ha, shallow at around 10 mm, and the seed will soften by the break of the season. If you need pasture in the first year, we recommend sowing bare seed instead, as it establishes more reliably in year one.

For Margurita French Serradella, we recommend 6 to 10 kg/ha of dehulled seed, or 4 to 8 kg/ha when it's sown in a mix. Sow bare seed where you need pasture in year one, and inoculate with Group G before sowing. If you're sowing pod in February instead, use about 20 kg/ha, shallow at around 10 mm.

Margurita French Serradella tolerates some waterlogging but not inundation, so it suits sandy paddocks that get wet for short periods but not ones that stay under water. It's well adapted to highly acidic, infertile sands. For wetter ground, we recommend Paradana Balansa Clover, which is tolerant of waterlogging and suits 500mm+ rainfall areas.

Margurita French Serradella is moderately tolerant of redlegged earth mite, blue green aphid and cowpea aphid, but it's susceptible to lucerne flea. We recommend monitoring closely at establishment and controlling lucerne flea early. Good pest control protects the seed set that drives its hard-seed persistence.

A productive legume pasture fixes nitrogen that following crops can use. Margurita French Serradella's hard seediness gives longer persistence and more dry matter over an extended pasture phase, which means more nitrogen for the following crop. Inoculate with the right serradella inoculant (Group G) so it nodulates well.

Margurita French Serradella is compatible with other legumes and ryegrass suited to similar soils and pH. We'd suggest Achieve Diploid Italian Ryegrass or Wimmera Annual Ryegrass, plus Casbah Biserrula or, on loamier patches, Dalkeith Subterranean Clover. Its upright growth habit gives it the potential to be more tolerant of grazing than Cadiz Serradella, and it suits highly acidic, infertile sands.

Margurita French Serradella is medium maturing, flowering at about 107 days in Perth. That's later than Fran₂o French Serradella, our earlier-season option at around 90 days. Margurita is hard seeded, has an erect growth habit and gives good production through early to mid spring.

Margurita French Serradella is a hard-seeded, pink-flowered French serradella with an erect habit and good early to mid spring production. Santorini Yellow Serradella is a very hard-seeded yellow serradella that holds its lower leaves, doesn't lodge, and is the toughest of our serradellas under heavy grazing. Both suit acid sands in 350mm+ rainfall.