Improved agronomic practices for the cultivation of ryegrass

Abstract

Ryegrass is a winter crop grown for getting high quality fodder. Its fodder is delicious, extremely nourishing, and easily digestible. It is multicut in nature and provides green fodder for 5-6 months from November to May. India currently has a 35.6% shortfall in green fodder. It is generally grown in pure stand but mixture/intercropping can also be done to fulfil this shortfall of green fodder deficit to some extent especially during lean period. With respect to seed production, most of the grasses including ryegrass are shy seeders with low seed production ability due to different factors. Forage crop seed availability meets about 15-20% of country needs. In the light of these points, improved agronomic practices for cultivation of annual ryegrass may helpful to fulfill the desired fodder demand especially during the lean period and getting high seed yield as well.