RAGT Seeds has launched RGT Duxxford, a new maize variety for the ultra-early sector that is listed as a first choice on the Maize Descriptive List. With an FAO maturity rating of 160 it is aimed at growers for whom an early harvest is the priority.

The variety combines early maturity with strong yield potential and forage quality, said Scott Newell, RAGT's forage technical manager, with good digestibility and starch making it a high-energy forage for livestock producers who want performance from an ultra-early maize.

Descriptive List data put RGT Duxxford at 17.6 tonnes a hectare of dry matter at 38.4% dry matter, with cell-wall digestibility of 57.2% and starch of 36.3%.

The pairing of early maturity with those forage characteristics is meant to give livestock producers an option where getting the crop off promptly matters — in northern and marginal maize areas, or where a following crop must be sown in good time.

The combination of rapid maturity, yield and nutritional quality, Mr Newell added, makes the variety a valuable addition to the ultra-early maize market.

Source: The Scottish Farmer