Ryegrass cultivar performance in overseeded and conventional establishment

Annual ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum; ARG) is often overseeded into bahiagrass (Paspulum notatum Fluegge) sod to provide early spring forage and extend the grazing season. Ryegrass cultivar selection for beef producers in the U.S. southeast is a major management decision, but most data available through state variety testing programs evaluate cultivar performance only from cultivated conventional seedbeds. Most producers do not consider the possible effect of ARG selection on total yield and nutritive value when overseeding into a sod compared to conventional management. Twenty ARG cultivars were planted into conventionally prepared seedbeds and overseeded into established bahiagrass plots. Forage dry matter, nutritive value, and bahiagrass suppression indexes were collected in 2019 and 2020 to determine the effects of ARG cultivar on these variables. Cultivar did not significantly affect dry matter, nutritive value, or bahiagrass suppression when overseeded. Seasonal yield of ARG decreased up to 55% in the overseeded plots and nutritive value generally decreased when compared to conventionally planted stands. Though ARG cultivars offered no apparent advantage or disadvantage to performance when overseeded, differences between planting methods were less apparent in later harvests. Considering the overseeding method involved little sod prep other than a no-till drill, it was concluded that more intense sod preparation may have led to more dynamic results among ryegrass cultivars in the fall.