Sainfoin is a perennial legume that is highly palatable to animals and has an excellent nutritional balance. It can be grazed, fed as hay or silage.
Sainfoin has a tap root that grows down to great depth, making the plant highly drought tolerant and the ability to draw up minerals from well below the topsoil.
Sainfoin is exceptionally palatable with voluntary intake of sainfoin by cattle and sheep 20% higher than for grass.
Unlike many other legumes, Sainfoin is non-bloating and is known to have anthelmintic properties. Sainfoin contains high levels of condensed tannin, and it is these that protect animals against bloat. Sainfoin has also been shown to increase protein absorption. The result is that animals grazing sainfoin have very rapid liveweight gains.
Sainfoin flowers are reported to attract ten times more bees than clover species, and this nectar is secreted exceptionally freely.
Sainfoin is a multi cut conserved feed option and could be used as a crop whilst renewing lucerne stands. Sown into old lucerne, cropped or grazed then back into lucerne.
Sainfoin gives the opportunity to add more legumes to a pasture mix without increasing the bloat risk.
Pastoral Improvements have a limited quantity of commercial R&D dedicated Sainfoin.
We seek expressions of interest from people interested in trialing this product . Allocation will be given to applicants that are prepared to record their observations.