The cultivation of Napier grass for livestock feed has proved lucrative for many farmers. Napier grass answers the significant challenges of farmers. One of the major challenges faced by farmers is increasing demand. With the increase in population each second, there is a high demand to feed billions of people over the world. The rise in the population also gave rise to dairy and milk products and hybrid Napier/pakchong 1 grass each rising day. Dairy farmers are facing many issues that result in an overall reduction in milk products. This can heavily affect their welfare. Not all farmers can afford the high-cost production of cattle feed, labor cost, and land.
Napier grass, or elephant grass, or Uganda grass, can resolve these challenges. The grass is a popular perennial grass for feeding livestock, integrated pest management, and improving soil fertility.
There are typically 3 methods of planting Napier grass:
-Planting Napier grass cutting
-Growing Napier grass from root slips (seeds)
-Growing Napier grass from seeds
How to grow Napier from seeds?
Growing Napier from seeds is an easy and convenient method. Here are the steps to grow Napier from seeds:
Step 1:
Prepare your seedling beds just like you do with other seeds of vegetables such as seeds of onion, tomatoes, or any other.
Step 2:
Create “drills” or “holes” in the soil using a hoe or stick about (1.5cm to 2 cm deep). These are small “v” shaped lines in your seedbed, which you can use to separate seedlings. Using drills will allow you to recognize the plants amidst weeds and other plants.
Step 3:
Plant your seeds into the hole that you have created, spacing them approximately 1.5cm between each seed. If you want to grow seeds in a row, ensure to separate each row with the same distance. Once you plant the seed, cover it with soil and water. Always ensure, hybrid Napier needs enough water but over water or waterlogged areas are not convenient for the growth of Napier.
Step 4:
Transplant the seedlings to their permanent place when they have reached between 10cm-15cm in height. Don’t forget they grow very fast to reach their height, so space them 50cm x 50cm apart.
Step 5:
The last step is to take care of your Napier or elephant grass. Ensure to water it, weed your Napier grass regularly and fertilize your grass.
Advantages of hybrid Napier grass co5:
There are many advantages of using co5 hybrid Napier grass. Some of them are listed below:
- This type of hybrid grass is both resistant to pests, as well as drought
- The hybrid Napier is very useful when it comes to preventing soil erosion
- It is also an excellent perennial for improving soil fertility
- The grass grows very fast and has large leaves
- One major advantage is that it is completely eco-friendly
- It is space-saving and highly yielding too
- It can be cultivated easily
- The grass is considered one of the highly nutritive forage
- Cattles prefer the lush green leaves of Napier grass because they are broader and soft
- The hybrid Napier is rich in water-soluble carbohydrates
- The grass helps cattle absorb all essential nutrients and is easy to digest because it has lower percentage of indigestible crude fiber content
- It can be retained 4-5 times
- It helps better growth in animals like goat and sheep
- The grass is also optimal for lactating cattle and helps increase the production of milk
If you are planning to plant co5 hybrid Napier grass, Rivashaa offers the highest-quality fodder products that not only serve the purpose but also maintain equilibrium between mankind and nature. They offer other fodder products such as Moringa Oleifera and Melia Dubia. For more details visit Rivasshaa and know what difference they make.