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Reduce concentrate costs with your own cultivation
Due to the sharp rise in raw material prices, the costs of concentrates have a significant impact on the feed balance. For dairy farmers with sufficient arable land or opportunities for cooperation with arable farming, concentrate cultivation is an interesting option to reduce feed costs.
Field beans are by far the most suitable crop for concentrate cultivation in the Netherlands. Successful cultivation yields 5 to 8 tons of beans, with good feed values of 270 – 320 grams RE, 350 – 400 grams starch and 1.050 to 1.200 VEM/kg DM. Livestock farmers report good feeding experiences, such as mts. grabma en Corne Zijlmans.
The benefits of field beans for livestock farmers:
- High-quality concentrate catcher with a lot of protein and starch.
- Perfect pre-fruit for grassland, among other things: harvest at the beginning of September, good rooting and high N-delivery.
- Significant savings on concentrate costs possible.
Sowing time for summer field beans
If the soil permits, you can sow summer field beans from mid-February. Sowing early usually gives the highest yield potential. Sow the beans in well-drained, well-structured soil with a pH of at least 6 on clay and 5,4 on sand. Field beans themselves fix nitrogen from the air, but they do need sufficient phosphate and potassium. You can read all cultivation instructions in our white paper.
The varieties LG Cartridge en LG Bank guarantee a high protein yield and harvest security. LG field bean seed is packed in units, sow 13 units per hectare.
Collaboration with arable farmers
Successful field bean cultivation requires a good soil structure, weed control and crop protection. Collaboration with arable farmers can therefore be interesting. In the crop plan, the field bean is a nice dormant crop that fixes nitrogen itself and leaves behind a very nice, early stubble.
Crop care
To achieve a high grain yield, it is important to keep the crop healthy. Follow the crop closely in consultation with a cultivation advisor. Pay special attention to infestation of chocolate stains, rust, aphids and leaf margin or bean beetle. The advice is to intervene in time!
Wondering whether field beans are a good fit for your company? Read all the information in our white paper of ask your roughage specialist for tailor-made advice.
