- More palatable tall fescue option
- Good overall production
- Extremely persistent
- Excellent rust resistance
Australia’s leading tall fescue variety.
QUANTUM tall fescue has improved palatability and winter
production and is suited to summer rainfall regions, irrigated
pastures and heavy soils in central and southern regions. It is
suitable for grazing by horses, sheep, beef and dairy cattle.
QUANTUM has softer leaves and a marked improvement in rust
and general disease resistance over Au Triumph. It has the best
all round production of traditional tall fescues and is extremely
persistent.
QUANTUM is best utilised as an alternative to perennial ryegrass
pasture in areas of summer rainfall or where paddocks are prone
to waterlogging or periodic summer drought. QUANTUM does
not induce any animal health problems as it is free of the fescue
endophyte.
Due to its softer leaves and greater rust resistance, QUANTUM
has improved palatablilty over AU Triumph and Demeter. Trials
have shown that QUANTUM persists very well even under
extremely dry conditions.
What the producers say...
Martin and Cheryl Oppenheimer, Walcha, NSW
“We have been using Quantum MaxP for three years and will continue to
use it in the future because we have found it to be an excellent performer
in our environment,” Martin said. “Quantum MaxP has the right balance of quality and quantity and
produces a pasture with extra grazings of high palatability.”
Brendan Martin, Rochester VIC
Brendan settled on a mixture of Vulcan and Quantum tall fescues with
Astred red clover, Osceola white clover and Endura caucasian clover, all
from Wrightson Seeds. He sowed 7ha to this mix in 2002, using 12kg/ha
of each of the fescue and about 2 kg/ha of the clovers.
The fescue blend performed so well that in 2003, he sowed a further
30ha.
“It lifted the cows’ production every time they went in,” Brendan said. “The deep-rooted fescues handle the clay soil better than shallow-rooted
ryegrass and they just hang on a bit better in summer.
Ross and Leanne Dobson, Bracknell TAS
“The Quantum has cut twice as much hay as anything else on the place.
It’s become a talking point in the district.”
“A lot of people over the years have been a bit scared of fescues because
they used to be quite coarse and the stock didn’t like them,” he said. “Now they are so fine you can’t tell the difference between them and
ryegrass. A lot of dairy farmers are getting into fescues now.”
Richard Braham, Jeogla Station, Armidale NSW
“In 2002, the steers were putting on 1.4kg/ha to 1.6kg/ha a day on
those paddocks,” he said. “Before we sowed the Quantum mix, they used
to carry 8dse/ha - now they can carry 14 to 18dse.”
Making the difference has been a series of seven paddocks sown to a
pasture mix based on Wrightson’s Quantum tall fescue, blended with
Astred red clover, Haifa white clover and plantain.
MANAGEMENT TIPS
- Quantum should be sown at 20 - 25 kg/ha with companion
clovers and Puna chicory for sheep/beef pastures.
- Quantum should be sown in dairy pastures as sole tall fescue, or
in a mix with Vulcan II tall fescue at 20 -25 kg/ha of tall fescue
plus companion legumes and Puna chicory where suited.
- Established Quantum can tolerate set stocking for moderate
periods but it is best suited to rotational grazing systems.
- Quantum should never be allowed to become rank as palatability
will decline.
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