Turnips For Sheep

Turnips For Sheep LIVESTOCK Sheep/Goats 8-3-26 Sheepmen in New Zealand regularly plant fields of turnips for sheep and let the animals graze the fields over winter. Sam Harris, a Texas sheep producer, recently described his turnip experiments in an article in the Texas Farmer Stockman. Harris planted 10 lbs. of seed per acre rising a hand-operated broadcast seeder mounted on the tailgate of his pickup. The seed grew well, fertilized with 200 lbs. of a 30-15-0 mix. During the winter, the sheep were rotated between the turnips, an oat field, and permanent pasture, but Harris says it was the turnips that really improved the quality of his flock. They produced a 130% lamb crop on less supplemental feed than ever before. He found that the Shogoin variety of turnips had the best leaf growth of the varieties he tried. He notes that sheep grub the turnips out of the ground and eat the entire vegetable.

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