Medic Seed

Not well. Burr medics such as Cavalier are more acid tolerant than barrel and strand medics, but Cavalier is not productive on deep, acid sandy soils, and medic rhizobia are less tolerant of acid soil than clover rhizobia. On deep acid sands, a serradella such as Santorini or Serramax, or Casbah biserrula, is the better choice. Keep Cavalier for sandy loams to clays with a soil pH of 4.8 (CaCl2) or more, where it is more productive and persistent than sub clover in low rainfall areas.

Yes, Cavalier spineless burr medic. It is relatively tolerant of transient waterlogging and has mild salinity tolerance, more than most other medics, and it also handles acid soil better than barrel medics. It needs 350 mm or more and suits sandy loams to clays. Think of it for short wet spells, not prolonged inundation, and for mildly salty patches rather than scalds. Badly salt-affected ground needs a salt-tolerant grass such as puccinellia.

Spineless burr medic pods lack the hooked spines of common burr medic, so they are far less likely to catch in wool and cause vegetable-matter faults. That makes Cavalier easier to run with sheep while keeping burr medic's strengths. Cavalier is a prolific seeder, palatable at all growth stages including dry matter over summer, and more acid tolerant than barrel and strand medics. It suits sandy loams to clays and is very tolerant of heavy grazing once established.

Sow Cavalier at 10–15 kg/ha in dryland paddocks, 15–20 kg/ha under irrigation, or 3–5 kg/ha in a mix. Medic seed is relatively small, so shallow sowing at 1–2 cm is essential, using press wheels, harrows or prickle chains for good seed-soil contact. Sow between April and June, inoculate with Group AM medic inoculant, and on infertile soils topdress with superphosphate and potassium based on a soil test. Our Cavalier is supplied as coated seed.

Hold off until the medic is well established: about 4–6 leaves, 2–3 cm high and more than 700 kg/ha of dry matter, or until the ground is covered. Medic relies on building leaf area before soil and air temperatures fall, so early grazing slows winter growth. After that, graze through winter and ease pressure while it flowers to maximise pod and seed set. In a new stand, don't crash graze or cut it for hay in the first year if you want it to regenerate.

Yes, provided the medic pasture is kept grass-free. A clean burr medic pasture in rotation with cereals is a disease break for several cereal pathogens, including cereal cyst nematode, take-all and crown rot. Root lesion nematode (Pratylenchus neglectus) is the exception to watch: medic may not build up big numbers of it, but medic productivity drops where it is present. Control grass weeds and volunteer cereals in the pasture year to get the full break.

Medic is suited to mild growing conditions of about 15–25°C, so when autumn rains come late it can't build enough leaf area before soil and air temperatures drop, and winter growth stalls. Growth usually picks up again as temperatures rise in spring. To reduce the problem, sow within the April to June window as early as moisture allows, make sure phosphorus and potassium aren't limiting, and keep stock off until plants are well established so they hold their leaf.

Poor nodulation is the likely cause, and acid soil is a common culprit, because medic rhizobia are much less tolerant of acidity than clover rhizobia. Check soil pH: Cavalier needs at least 4.8 (CaCl2), so lime acid paddocks first. Always inoculate with fresh Group AM medic inoculant, not a clover or serradella strain. On infertile soils, phosphorus or potassium deficiency can also hold seedlings back, so get a soil test and topdress as needed.

Cavalier averages 13.8% soft seed in its first year, which gives denser second-year pastures. It still carries enough hard seed to regenerate from the soil seed bank after cropping phases of typically 1–3 years. Its seed also tends to soften later in summer and autumn, which gives some protection against false breaks. Let it set plenty of seed in the first year so that bank builds up quickly.

Yes. Cavalier makes good hay and silage and can be grown with annual ryegrass, volunteer cereals or sown cereals for grass and legume hay. Feed quality ranges from 17–23% crude protein and 55–75% DMD, depending on growth stage. Don't crash graze it or cut it for hay in the first year if you want the stand to regenerate. Remember too that the cereal disease-break benefit relies on a grass-free pasture.