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    Hybrid Rye Forage for Beef and Dairy Cattle

Hybrid Rye Forage 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 & boot) Late Cut (milk & soft dough)
  Average St. Dev. Average St. Dev
Dry Matter (DM), % 21.84 3.94 28.79 1.57
As % of DM        
Crude Protein 15.39 0.96 11.02 2.18
Acid Detergent Fibre (ADF) 31.53 0.95 36.76 2.21
aNDFom2 50.35 2.70 56.52 4.17
Relative Feed Value (RFV) 116.10 6.93 98.26 8.67
Non-fibrous Carbohydrates (NFC) 23.11 2.62 20.30 1.88
Total Digestible Nutrients (TDN) 65.41 1.31 64.10 0.94
As Mcal/KG        
Net Energy maintenance (NEm) 1.28 0.02 1.19 0.05
Net Energy gain (NEg) 0.71 0.02 0.63 0.05
Net Energy lactation (NEl) 1.49 0.03 1.45 0.02
As % of NDFom        
uNDFom3, 30 16.19 0.83 29.73 6.65
NDFd4, 30 68.19 1.88 45.97 5.52
uNDFom3, 48 13.40 0.09 25.59 6.35
NDFd4, 48 73.70 1.63 53.54 5.87

1 Data obtained from 2022 and 2023 US Forage Studies covering Northeast, South Central, Midwest and Pacific Northwest regions.
2023 KWS Hybrid Rye Trial Booklet by KWS Cereals USA
2 aNDFom is the Neutral Detergent Fibre on an organic matter basis (ash-free)
3 uNDFom is the undigested NDF fractoin on an organic matter basis after the timepoint specified (hours)
4 NDFd refers to the digestibility of NDF after the specified time period (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.

Early Harvest Maximizes Nutritional Quality:

  • Flag Leaf and Boot stages
  • High in energy, nutrient dense, highly digestible
  • Ideal for nutrient packed rations
  • Yields 6-8 mt/ac

Late Harvest Maximizes Yield:

  • Milk and Soft Dough stages
  • High in fibre, lower energy
  • Great for low energy diets
  • Yields 8-18 mt/ac

References:

Darambazar et al., 2022; Zhang et al., 2025

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