This Demonstration forms part of the Grain & Graze II project looking at the relative merits of grazing canola and cereal crops. This demonstration looks to assess whether the effects of grazing wheat with sheep during the growing season. Factors being assessed are Yield & quality, dry matter production and grazing value.

This wheat crop provided significant grazing value, however the paddock was in late in the sowing program which reduced the ability to graze the crop early in the season. This may also have affected how well the crop recovered from grazing due to the delay in maturity of the crop.There was an 11% reduction in yield in this demonstration. Sheep grazed the trial past the Z31 stage which would have meant grain heads would have been vulnerable to the damage from grazing. Smaller yield reductions would have been possible if sheep were removed from the paddock a few days earlier.When the grazing value of the sheep was taken into account there was a $29.74 reduction in profitability from grazing the paddock.Grazing cereal crops allows farmers to alter their stocking rate quickly and easily as they progress through the season. This practise will mean in better seasons a much smaller proportion of paddocks will need to be left for stock and more paddocks can be taken through to harvest which will result in a significant increase in farm profitability. In poor seasons there will be less paddocks taken though to harvest will result in a reduction in grain income, higher sheep grazing losses and lower farm profitability. The overall profitability of grazing cereal crops will depend on the frequency of dry years and good years,Don Nairn finds that grazing cereal crops takes the stress out of running sheep as there is always an option for the farmer when feed runs short (ie he can simply graze another crop). Hopefully this trial gives farmers a better appreciation of where the dollars fall when crops are grazed.