As seen in Farm Weekly, 10/04/2025

In low-rainfall areas of Western Australia, selecting the right pasture involves careful consideration of local conditions and available species.

By integrating drought-tolerant grasses with suitable legumes and managing them effectively, farmers can create productive pastures that support livestock while enhancing soil health.

A thoughtful approach to pasture planning enables reliable yields even in challenging environments.

Selecting pasture species requires attention to drought resilience, soil adaptability and livestock needs.

Key factors include choosing species that can withstand dry conditions and continue to supply forage during periods of low moisture.

Matching species to soil types – sandy, loamy, or saline, optimises establishment and growth.

Hard-seeded varieties enhance sustainability through self-reseeding.

A balanced mix of grasses and legumes is essential for meeting the nutritional requirements of livestock such as sheep and cattle.

Recommended varieties for these regions include

  • Safeguard: Diploid annual ryegrass bred from Wimmera, well-suited for low rainfall areas, providing early feed with good regeneration potential.
  • Rhodes Grass: Varieties like Reclaimer and Katambora excel in sandy and moderately saline soils.
  • Puccinellia and Tall Wheat Grass: Ideal for saline-affected paddocks.
  • Kikuyu: Suitable for areas with slightly higher rainfall, providing summer growth.
  • Couch: Effective in low rainfall areas, comparable in persistence to Kikuyu.

For legumes, options include

  • Serradella (Santorini & Margurita): Performs well in acid sands and poor soils.
  • Subterranean Clover (Dalkeith, Seaton Park, & Riverina): Known for persistence and high-quality feed.
  • Medics (Cavalier): Ideal for alkaline soils, with their hard-seeded nature ensuring yearly persistence.
  • Rose Clover: Pairs well with Serradella for a robust pasture in dry conditions.
  • Bladder Clovers: Effective in low rainfall areas and resilient against grazing.

To maximise productivity, early sowing with available moisture is recommended.

Practices such as rotational grazing support regrowth, while weed control reduces competition.

Applying targeted fertilisation, especially phosphorus and potassium, enhances legume performance and overall pasture health.

Annual ryegrasses

For high-yielding pastures, annual ryegrasses are an excellent choice.

Varieties such as Abundant, Astound, Evoke, Safeguard, Tetila, and Dargo are bred for maximum production throughout the growing season.

These grasses thrive under rotational grazing management, allowing for consistent regrowth and nutrient optimisation.

Surplus spring growth can be harvested for silage or hay, efficiently utilising pasture resources.

Post-harvest, limited regrowth may occur based on variety and environmental conditions.

However, annual ryegrasses often do not reach physiological maturity due to heat and moisture deficits, which impede seed setting.

Economic analyses suggest that re-sowing modern annual ryegrasses annually is more cost-efficient than relying on natural reseeding, which can also increase weed pressures and reduce productivity.

Legumes

Legumes significantly enhance forage quality and soil fertility through nitrogen fixation, benefiting both legumes and companion grasses.

The appropriate legume choice depends on soil type, pH, rainfall, and livestock systems.

Sheep systems may require a greater legume fraction, while cattle benefit from grass-heavy mixtures.

Persistence matters, legumes with hard and soft seed traits or pod-forming characteristics affect seasonal returns.

Irwin Hunter & Co. offers a variety of legumes tailored to different systems and goals.

Deep sands and low pH soils

In deep sands or lower pH soils, certain legumes show better adaptability:

  • Arrowleaf Clover: A late-flowering species thriving on yellow sands, needing a long growing season or perched water table for reseeding.
  • Hykon Rose Clover: An early-flowering variety adaptable to various soils, requiring relaxed spring grazing for reseeding.
  • Serradella: Effective in areas with over 350mm rainfall; a mix of Santorini and Margurita suits higher rainfall regions, while Serramax and Santorini are better for lower rainfall areas.

Waterlogged conditions

For waterlogged areas, specific clovers and grasses withstand challenging conditions:

  • Clovers: Yanninicum sub-clovers like Riverina, along with Balansa and Persian clovers, are resilient. Strawberry clover performs well in early summer and tolerates winter waterlogging.
  • Grasses: Tetraploid annual and biennial ryegrasses can tolerate temporary waterlogging if adequately drained within a week.

Saline conditions

For saline-affected pastures, select grasses and legumes can maintain viable grazing options:

  • Grasses: Puccinellia, Tall Wheat Grass, Reclaimer Rhodes Grass, and Tall Fescue are suitable for saline soils.
  • Legumes: Burr Medic thrives in well-drained saline soils, with productivity declining as salinity increases.

In moist areas, Balansa, Persian, and Strawberry clovers provide additional resilience.

Using Custom and IHSeeds pasture mixes tailored to soil type, rainfall, grazing pressure, and livestock needs helps farmers optimise productivity while preserving the land.

A well-balanced combination of grasses and legumes provides both immediate feed and long-term sustainability.

With tailored advice and quality seed options from Irwin Hunter & Co., farmers in Western Australia can boost their yields while maintaining a resilient grazing system.

Contact your local farm supplier or Irwin Hunter & Co. for more information regarding the extensive range of pasture seed and mixes.