Agronomist Ollie Johnson provides consultancy services on gamecover management to farmers and keepers across the midlands, as well as managing a game enterprise in East Leicestershire.
09/03/2020
Here Ollie discusses the pros and cons of different gamecover crops.
“From the humble farm shoot to a large commercial game operation, selecting the correct gamecover is critical. With lots to think about, many ‘play it safe’ with maize for the bulk of their covers. Although it can be used with a high degree of success if potential risks are managed, shoot managers shouldn’t be afraid of alternatives.
When considering what to grow, it’s important to pay careful attention to your ability to manage weeds. This can be challenging, as many products suitable for arable crops can’t be legally used in gamecover. The more complicated the gamecover mix, the more challenging it will be to find selective herbicides that leave all the components alive. I often see mixes chosen for their benefits to gamebirds, but in the end, little more than a single species remains.
Let’s start with maize - a tall, fast growing cereal. Whilst its feed value is limited, its dense canopy offers unrivalled cover and many farms and contractors already have the equipment and experience needed to establish it. Drill it in 30-inch rows at 45k seeds per acre, choosing a late variety that can withstand heavy snowfall.
Sorghum doesn’t provide appreciable feed value, but unlike maize won’t attract rodents. Consider mixing dwarf sorghum into a maize crop for added lower canopy warmth, or drill alone in patches within a maize cover for strategically placed flushing points. Giant sorghum is best used alongside maize on exposed sites as an effective wind break and for best results, sow in June or when soil temperatures exceed 14ᴼC.
If you’re looking for feed value, consider millet, as gamebirds and wild species love the seed. White millet lasts considerably longer and will provide feed value well into January, whereas red millet sheds its seed earlier in the season, which is ideal for a dedicated partridge cover. Millet should be sown at 10kg/acre. Quinoa is also an option, but beware that little will remain of the crop in January so like millet, is best included as part of a mix.
The mainstay of many shoots, particularly on exposed sites at risk of lodging, is kale. It’s often thought of as a ‘rescue crop’ due to its late drilling date, meaning it can be used where other crops have failed. Establishment is straight forward as it can be drilled at 2-2.5cm in the same way as oilseed rape, or broadcast onto a fine seedbed and rolled in. Kale is economical not only because it produces seed in abundance, but it also self-seeds and regenerates the following year. Weed control options are available but monitor early pest damage as flea beetle can destroy a crop very quickly.
Mustard can be drilled until September if conditions permit and comes in two forms - white and brown. Only brown mustard tolerates frost, giving cover until January. Mustard makes great soil cover after potato, beet or maize crops, reducing erosion and surface run-off. But beware – repeatedly growing brassicas in the same location can result in clubroot, so shouldn’t be grown more than one year in three. If you do develop a clubroot issue, tolerant varieties of kale are available.
A good two-year cover option is chicory. It doesn’t provide much in the first year other than a small plant, but in the second year pays dividends. Up to 2m tall with blue flowers it provides dense cover and excellent driving potential. The crop can outcompete other species in the second year, but should give two-three years cover in its own right. Ideally mix chicory with another species in the first year such as kale.
Sunflowers are attractive feed for birds and pollenating insects. They provide good vertical cover similar to maize and come in both dwarf and standard varieties. Taller sunflowers included in a maize crop aid feed value and aesthetics, whereas dwarf are better grown alone or as part of a low growing mix. Weed control options are extremely limited so sunflowers are not suited to drives with high weed pressure. Sow at 5kg/acre.
All species have advantages and disadvantages, which is why mixing is so popular. In fact, it mimics the natural cover that we’re trying to emulate by using gamecover in the first place. A combination of feed value, height and cover are beneficial in providing a suitable habitat to hold birds throughout the season. Consider the species of game you intend to release -partridges prefer a low growing cover with high feed value earlier in the season, whereas pheasants thrive in both tall and medium height covers, provided that additional feed is given.
Think about soil type, water availability and your own limitations in terms of equipment required to drill and manage such a crop. Getting the mix right really can transform the performance of the shoot and the attitude of paying guns.”