The Report of Fall-Seeded Winter Forages and Cover Crops
In fall 2025, a trial evaluating fall-seeded winter forages and cover crops was established at the Russell E. Larson Agricultural Research Center in Rock Springs, central PA. Planting occurred on October 3, and harvest took place in spring 2026. The trial featured two harvest management systems: a single-cut system and a multi-cut system.
Cereal species (rye and triticale) were harvested using the single-cut approach, while annual ryegrasses were evaluated under both systems. Eight annual ryegrass varieties were included in each. In the multi-cut system, annual ryegrass was harvested twice—first on May 18, followed by a second cut on June 8. In the single-cut system, varieties were harvested at the boot stage. Harvesting for cereal species began on April 23, 2026, and concluded on May 14, 2026.
Our soil fertility program is based on phosphorus and potassium maintenance applications that are aligned with soil test recommendations. Plots received 100 pounds of nitrogen at spring green-up on (3/26/2026) and, for the multi-cut system, an additional 50 pounds after the first harvest. For detailed recommendations on establishment, fertilization, and other management practices, please refer to the current Penn State Agronomy Guide.
Table 1 lists the fall-seeded winter forage and cover crop varieties included in this trial that are currently available—or may soon become available—in Pennsylvania (availability may vary; please confirm with suppliers). Tables 2 and 3 provide guidelines for assessing the production potential of these varieties.
| Forage | Species/Variety | Marketer | Appears in Table No. |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Annual Ryegrass |
Jackson |
WAX |
2，3 |
|
ME-4 |
WAX |
2，3 |
|
|
ME-94 |
WAX |
2，3 |
|
|
Nelson Tetraploid |
WAX |
2，3 |
|
|
WAX Marshall |
WAX |
2，3 |
|
|
WMCT |
WAX |
2，3 |
|
|
WMWL |
WAX |
2，3 |
|
|
WMWL-2 |
WAX |
2，3 |
|
|
Cereal Rye |
KWS Progas |
KWS Cereals |
2 |
|
KWS Aviator |
KWS Cereals |
2 |
|
|
Bonfire |
DSV Zaden Nederland BV |
2 |
|
|
Triticale |
BCT24001 |
Seed-link |
2 |
|
BCT24002 |
Seed-link |
2 |
|
|
BCT23003 |
Seed-link |
2 |
|
|
BCT23002 |
Seed-link |
2 |
|
|
BCT23001 |
Seed-link |
2 |
|
|
BCT19004 |
Seed-link |
2 |
|
|
BCT19005 |
Seed-link |
2 |
|
|
BCT18501 |
Seed-link |
2 |
|
|
Forage FX1002 Triticale |
Albert Lea |
2 |
|
|
Trical Showtime |
TriCal Superior Forage |
2 |
|
|
Trical Exp 71321 |
TriCal Superior Forage |
2 |
|
|
Field Pea |
Livioletta |
DSV Zaden Nederland BV |
2 |
|
Piskator |
DSV Zaden Nederland BV |
2 |
DSV Zaden Nederland BV
Neepawa, MB Â R0J 1H0
Phone: 800-430-5955
www.dsv-northstar.com
KWS Cereals USA
495 County Rd 1300 N
Champaign, IL 61822
Phone: 303-489-4265
www.kws.com
Seed Link
208 St. David Street
Lindsay, Ontario, K9V 4Z4, CANADA
Phone:705-324-0544
www.seed-link.ca/
The Wax Company LLC
212 Front St N,
Amory, MS 38821
Phone: 662-256-3511
TriCal Superior Forage
701 Dewey Blvd #4248
Butte, MT 59701
940-503-0340
| Species/Variety | Harvest date | Yield | CP | ADF | aNDF | 30-hr NDFD | IVTDMD48 | Winter survival (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WMWL-2 experimental | 5/22 | 2.99 | 15.43 | 31.92 | 52.55 | 30.61 | 83.27 | 97.2 |
| ME-4 experimental | 5/22 | 2.28 | 17.21 | 29.50 | 47.97 | 31.94 | 87.77 | 87.2 |
| ME-94 experimental | 5/22 | 2.28 | 15.54 | 32.84 | 54.11 | 30.58 | 82.12 | 71.2 |
| WAX Marshall | 5/22 | 2.13 | 16.35 | 32.13 | 54.21 | 31.58 | 83.16 | 87.0 |
| WMWL experimental | 5/22 | 2.00 | 16.36 | 32.20 | 52.60 | 32.40 | 84.45 | 89.8 |
| Jackson | 5/22 | 1.87 | 19.01 | 30.07 | 48.81 | 33.28 | 89.46 | 56.2 |
| WMCTÂ experimental | 5/22 | 1.76 | 16.58 | 32.89 | 53.49 | 31.52 | 83.67 | 63.8 |
| Nelson Tetraploid | 5/22 | 1.40 | 18.83 | 31.62 | 52.07 | 33.32 | 86.60 | 26.2 |
| GRAND MEAN | Â | 2.09 | 17.12 | 31.61 | 51.89 | 32.09 | 85.32 | 72.3 |
| CV (%) | Â | 34.6 | Â | Â | Â | Â | Â | 23.1 |
| LSD (p = .05) | Â | 1.06 | Â | Â | Â | Â | Â | 24.6 |
| Species/Variety | Harvest date | Yield | CP | ADF | aNDF | 30-hr NDFD | IVTDMD48 | Winter survival (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| KWS Progas | 5/1 | 2.68 | 18.22 | 34.87 | 58.73 | 33.40 | 80.48 | 88.3 |
| Bonfire | 4/23 | 2.06 | 20.30 | 34.80 | 56.64 | 32.74 | 81.82 | 92.8 |
| KWS Aviator | 5/1 | 1.86 | 20.80 | 33.18 | 53.98 | 31.14 | 83.28 | 91.1 |
| GRAND MEAN | Â | 2.20 | 19.77 | 34.28 | 56.45 | 32.42 | 81.86 | 90.7 |
| CV (%) | Â | 8.76 | Â | Â | Â | Â | Â | 5.7 |
| LSD (p = .05) | Â | 0.33 | Â | Â | Â | Â | Â | 8.9 |
| Species/Variety | Harvest date | Yield | CP | ADF | aNDF | 30-hr NDFD | IVTDMD48 | Winter survival (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BCT23003 | 5/14 | 3.28 | 15.07 | 39.50 | 62.65 | 31.10 | 75.33 | 92.8 |
| Trical Showtime | 5/14 | 3.02 | 12.04 | 41.77 | 65.41 | 34.54 | 74.39 | 91.7 |
| BCT18501 | 5/7 | 2.86 | 18.48 | 37.03 | 59.83 | 31.91 | 78.55 | 97.8 |
| BCT24001 | 5/12 | 2.69 | 17.38 | 32.25 | 54.19 | 31.12 | 83.31 | 91.7 |
| BCT19005 | 5/12 | 2.38 | 18.12 | 33.78 | 55.81 | 30.73 | 80.95 | 96.7 |
| Trical Exp 71321 | 5/7 | 2.35 | 18.54 | 36.12 | 58.59 | 33.09 | 79.68 | 95.0 |
| Forage FX1002 Triticale | 5/7 | 2.31 | 16.71 | 38.42 | 61.58 | 33.40 | 76.97 | 97.2 |
| BCT24002 | 5/7 | 2.17 | 18.96 | 38.04 | 58.85 | 32.50 | 79.26 | 95.0 |
| BCT23001 | 5/7 | 2.14 | 18.00 | 36.76 | 59.46 | 32.06 | 78.57 | 90.0 |
| BCT19004 | 5/14 | 2.05 | 17.60 | 35.90 | 59.03 | 31.80 | 79.10 | 88.9 |
| BCT23002 | 5/7 | 1.86 | 19.24 | 35.14 | 58.64 | 32.25 | 80.90 | 97.8 |
| GRAND MEAN | Â | 2.46 | 17.28 | 36.79 | 59.46 | 32.23 | 78.82 | 94.0 |
| CV (%) | Â | 11.7 | Â | Â | Â | Â | Â | 3.6 |
| LSD (p = .05) | Â | 0.42 | Â | Â | Â | Â | Â | 4.9 |
| Species/Variety | Harvest date | Yield | CP | ADF | aNDF | 30-hr NDFD | IVTDMD48 | Winter survival (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Livioletta* | NA | NA | NA | NA | NA | NA | NA | 0 |
| Piskator* | NA | NA | NA | NA | NA | NA | NA | 0 |
Forage quality analysis for the first cut samples.
CP=crude protein.
ADF= Acid Detergent Fiber.
aNDF= Neutral Detergent Fiber.
dNDF30= 30-hour neutral detergent fiber digestibility.
IVTDMD48= In Vitro True Dry Matter Digestibility at 48 hours.
CV=coefficient of variation.
LSD=least significant difference.
- All harvest events occurred in 2026.
- Yields are given in tons per acre on a dry matter basis.
- Variety means are means derived from LS Means.
- *100% winterkill
| Species/Variety | Yield 1st-Cut |
Yield 2ed-Cut |
Yield Total |
CP | ADF | aNDF | dNDF30 | IVTDMD48 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
WMWL-2 |
2.78 |
1.49 |
4.27 |
13.1 |
33.5 |
54.8 |
27.6 |
79.9 |
|
ME-4 |
2.47 |
1.33 |
3.80 |
14.5 |
31.9 |
52.3 |
28.2 |
82.9 |
|
WMWL |
1.99 |
1.37 |
3.36 |
13.3 |
34.4 |
57.0 |
26.3 |
78.8 |
|
Wax Marshall |
2.13 |
1.17 |
3.31 |
12.8 |
34.7 |
55.6 |
25.8 |
78.3 |
|
ME-94 |
1.70 |
1.31 |
3.01 |
12.0 |
36.1 |
57.9 |
28.3 |
76.6 |
|
WMCTÂ |
1.64 |
1.06 |
2.70 |
16.3 |
30.4 |
50.5 |
30.3 |
85.9 |
|
Jackson |
1.21 |
0.95 |
2.16 |
13.4 |
32.6 |
52.7 |
26.4 |
82.7 |
|
Nelson Tetraploid |
0.70 |
0.88 |
1.58 |
16.6 |
31.0 |
50.9 |
29.9 |
85.7 |
|
GRAND MEAN |
1.83 |
1.20 |
3.02 |
14.0 |
33.1 |
54.0 |
27.9 |
81.4 |
|
CV (%) |
18.55 |
25.35 |
15.87 |
　 |
　 |
　 |
　 |
　 |
|
LSD (p = .05) |
0.50 |
0.45 |
2.08 |
　 |
　 |
　 |
　 |
　 |
Forage quality analysis for the first cut samples.
CP=crude protein.
ADF= Acid Detergent Fiber.
aNDF= Neutral Detergent Fiber.
dNDF30= 30-hour neutral detergent fiber digestibility.
IVTDMD48= In Vitro True Dry Matter Digestibility at 48 hours.
CV=coefficient of variation.
LSD=least significant difference.
- All harvest events occurred in 2026.
- Yields are given in tons per acre on a dry matter basis.
- Variety means are means derived from LS Means.
