Forage Options Following Winter Wheat
2025-07-18
If your forage inventories are running low heading into fall and winter, consider seeding forage crops after winter wheat. These options not only boost forage production but also provide valuable cover crop benefits for your soil.
1. SOIL FIRST® COVER CROP MIXTURES
- Planting a Soil First® cover crop mix after wheat harvest is a great way to increase wet forage storage heading into winter
- Provides an opportunity to graze livestock this fall depending on your needs
- The best Soil First® cover crop mixtures to use after wheat harvest are:
2. ITALIAN RYEGRASS
- Known for high feed quality, palatability, and ease of establishment
- An excellent option for high-quality fermented forage, including baleage or haylage
- With an early wheat harvest this year there is potential for more than one cut this fall and possibly another in the spring, provided winterkill is not an issue
3. RYEGRASS-TYPE FESTULOLIUM
- Cross between Meadow Fescue and Italian Ryegrass
- Generally has higher yields, drought tolerance, and better persistence than ryegrass
- An excellent emergency forage option after winter wheat. It offers short-term yields comparable to Italian ryegrass, with better winter survival and the potential for extended growth into spring.
4. CEREAL CROPS
- Oats, cereal rye, and winter triticale are excellent forage options following wheat, offering strong yields and high feed quality
NOTE: When seeding forages following wheat, it is important to get the crop seeded as soon as possible after wheat harvest to allow for the greatest amount of growth before frost. Controlling volunteer wheat is also essential to minimize competition with newly seeded forage.
