Hybrid Rye Forage for Beef and Dairy Cattle

Hybrid Rye Forage for Beef and Dairy Cattle

Hybrid Rye for Cattle Pages: Hybrid Rye Forage for Beef and Dairy Cattle | Hybrid Rye Grain for Beef and Dairy Cattle

The KWS variety portfolio includes both dual purpose and forage varieties which are designed to maximize biomass yield and quality.

Like other forages, cutting early at the flag leaf or boot stage will produce nutrient dense, highly digestible cattle feed perfect for those requiring a nutrient packed ration. Cutting late at the milk or soft dough stage will produce a forage higher in fibre with lower energy and nutrient density. With the flexibility in harvest timing, hybrid rye works well for both dairy and beef cattle farms.

Hybrid rye makes an excellent green feed or silage, but it can also be grazed in the fall, spring or after harvest if additional pasture is needed on farm. Hybrid rye forage can be successfully included up to 30% of the forage component of the ration when balanced properly.

Nutrient Composition of Hybrid Rye Forage(1)

	Early Cut (flag leaf)		Mid Cut (Boot)		Late Cut (Milk & Soft Dough)
	Average	St. Dev.	Average	St. Dev.	Average	St. Dev
Dry Matter, %	16.89	1.61	20.18	3.89	41.1	9.04
As % of DM
Organic Matter	92.03	1.17	92.58	1.31	94.82	0.72
Crude Protein	17.49	1.4	14.84	0.86	9.38	1.29
Acid Detergent Fibre	29.89	1.41	31.5	2.41	32.54	4.82
aNDFom²	55.02	3.07	53.17	2.18	53.59	6.52
Relative Feed Value	108.62	7.31	109.38	7.61	108.13	18.2
Total Digestible Nutrients	66.37	1.48	65.68	2.72	62.74	3.4
As Kcal/KG DM
Metabolizable Energy	2,527	35.95	2,471	119.89	2,342	149.83
Net Energy maintenance	1,609	57.65	1,581	107.55	1,466	140.39
Net Energy gain	1,006	51.27	981	98.47	879	124.36
Net Energy lactation	1,508	34.33	1,489	68.49	1,416	84.75
As % of NDFom DM
NDFd³, 30	75.20	7.64	67.55	12.23	46.86	6.67
uNDFom³, 30	24.80	7.64	32.45	12.23	53.15	6.69
NDFd³, 120	87.25	5.44	73.65	9.40	57.39	6.67
uNDFom³, 120	12.80	5.37	26.40	9.33	42.61	6.67
NDFd³, 240	91.00	5.66	79.25	7.42	66.54	5.81
uNDFom³, 240	9.00	5.66	20.75	7.42	33.49	5.78

¹Data obtained from samples harvested across Canada in 2025 (early cut: n=26; mid cut: n=21; late cut: n=9)
²aNDFom is the Neutral Detergent Fibre on an organic matter basis (ash-free)
³NDFd is the digestible NDF and uNDFom is the undigested NDF on an organic matter basis after the specified hours

In addition to the high yields, hybrid rye matures earlier than other cereal crops. This means that hybrid rye forage is ready for harvest much sooner than other cereal forages, and in some geographic regions, allows for double cropping due to this early spring growth. For many cattle farmers, this is a key feature of hybrid rye, allowing them to maximize total field production throughout the year by planting a secondary crop.

Timing of Harvest for Whole Crop Forage (35% DM at Harvest)(1)

	Lacombe (Dryland)		Lethbridge (Irrigated Land)
	Mean Harvest Date	# Days After Hybrid Rye	Mean Harvest Date	# Days After Hybrid Rye
KWS Hybrid Rye	14-Jul	-	19-Jun	-
Conventional Rye	14-Jul	0	19-Jun	0
Winter Triticale	20-Jul	6	27-Jun	8
Winter Wheat	20-Jul	6	26-Jun	7
Spring Barley	01-Aug	18	18-Jul	29
Spring Oat	04-Aug	21	25-Jul	36
Spring Wheat	04-Aug	21	17-Jul	28

¹ Mean harvest date of whole crop forage (35% DM at harvest) at two Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) research sites in Alberta, Canada.
AAFC Lacombe: 4 planting years (2018-2021) at 2 sites on dryland. AAFC Lethbridge: 1 planting year (2021) at 2 sites on irrigated land.