Pasture Seed That Earns Its Keep

Getting More From Every Bite

Not all seed delivers. The difference between a paddock that performs and one that just looks the part comes down to what's actually in the bag — the genetics, the digestibility, and whether it suits your conditions.

Vernado has been supplying New Zealand farmers with high-digestibility, high-sugar pasture seed since 2006. Custom blended, delivered nationwide, and backed by consistent paddock results across dairy, beef, sheep, and mixed-farming operations.

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Seeds Range

Vernado supplies a full range of pasture and forage seeds for New Zealand farm conditions — from long-term permanent pasture through to short-rotation forages and specialist crops. All seed is available nationally, delivered direct to farm or your nearest freight depot from the Manawatu or Canterbury.

Perennial Ryegrass

The backbone of New Zealand permanent pasture. Vernado's tetraploid perennial ryegrass varieties offer improved dry matter yield, better palatability and higher sugar content compared to standard diploid options — designed to persist and perform across multiple seasons.

Hybrid Ryegrass

Combines the yield of Italian ryegrass with the persistence of perennial, giving you high production in year one and two without the full commitment of a permanent reseed. A solid option for systems needing volume and flexibility.

Italian Ryegrass

Fast to establish, high yielding in the short term. Italian ryegrass suits rotational systems where rapid autumn or winter growth is the priority. Available in tetraploid varieties for improved palatability and dry matter quality.

Clovers

White and red clover options to complement your pasture mix. Clovers fix atmospheric nitrogen, lift crude protein content, and improve overall pasture quality. Well-managed clover content in a sward consistently lifts stock performance.

Annual Ryegrass

Quick cover, rapid growth, and a reliable option for filling feed gaps. Vernado's annual ryegrass varieties include Dominate — a standout performer for winter and early spring production, with exceptional dry matter yield documented in NZ farm trials.

Chicory

A high-performing, deep-rooted summer perennial herb. Chicory delivers excellent dry matter yields during summer when ryegrass typically slows, and offers high digestibility and mineral content that supports stock health through the drier months.

Fodder Beat

High-energy, high-yield winter feed crop for dairy, beef and sheep systems. Fodder beet requires careful management but delivers exceptional dry matter per hectare when done right — typically used to support winter milking, stock maintenance, or transition feeding.

Forage Oats

A proven winter forage option for rapid establishment and reliable dry matter production. Forage oats provide grazing cover quickly after sowing and can also be cut for silage or baleage at high dry matter yields.

Maize Hybrid

High-energy silage crop for dairy systems needing a summer fill. Vernado maize hybrids are selected for NZ conditions — suited to a range of heat units and designed to deliver consistent cob development and whole-plant quality at harvest.

Plantain

Increasingly used in NZ systems for its performance and environmental benefits. Plantain reduces urinary nitrogen leaching, which matters for compliance, while also delivering strong dry matter yields and high palatability — particularly through summer and autumn.

Seed Mixes

Pre-blended or custom-formulated pasture mixes tailored to your farm type, soil, and system. Vernado seed mixes take the guesswork out of species ratios — contact the team to discuss what your paddocks actually need.

Seed Treatment & Mixing

Vernado offers seed treatment services including fungicide and insecticide coating, custom blending, and addition of Rhizobium inoculants for clover seed. Treated seed gives your establishment the best possible start — particularly important in high-risk sowing windows.

Brassica's

Swedes, turnips, kale and rape for winter grazing or finishing systems. Brassicas provide high-quality, high-energy feed through periods when pasture growth is limited — particularly valuable for dry stock and sheep operations through June–August.

Fescues

Tall fescue and meadow fescue options for farms needing persistence through summer dry or waterlogged winter conditions. Fescues suit environments where ryegrass struggles to hold — offering long-term stand durability where it counts.

Seed is delivered nationwide direct to farm or your nearest freight depot from the Manawatu, or Canterbury

Feature Tiles

High Digestibility

Digestibility is what actually drives production — not just how much grass is on the ground. Vernado's pasture genetics are selected for higher ME (metabolisable energy) values, so your stock convert more of every bite into milk and meat.

Custom Blended Mixes

Every farm is different — soil type, rainfall, grazing system, stock class. Vernado blends pasture mixes to suit your specific conditions rather than selling one bag to everyone. Tell us what you're working with, and we'll put together something that actually fits..

High Sugar Grasses

High-sugar ryegrass varieties lift palatability and energy intake, which means animals graze more willingly and perform better — especially through key production periods. More sugar in the plant means more energy in the animal, without the extra supplement cost.

Proven NZ Performance

These varieties have been performing in NZ paddocks, not just trial plots. Vernado customers across the Waikato, Manawatu, Southland, Canterbury and beyond have been re-ordering for years — which is about as honest a product review as you'll find.

What Makes Pasture Seed Worth Paying For?

Seed is one of those inputs that's easy to shop on price — and easy to regret.

The gap between a variety that performs and one that doesn't rarely shows up in the first month. It shows up in year two, when persistence drops off. In summer, when the stand thins. In the vat, when the numbers don't move the way they should.

What to actually look at when choosing pasture seed:

Metabolisable Energy (ME)

Higher ME means more energy per kilogram of dry matter consumed. For dairy, this directly affects milk production. For beef and sheep, it drives daily liveweight gain.

Water-Soluble Carbohydrates (WSC / Sugar)

High-sugar varieties increase palatability — Stock graze more readily and evenly. Reduced pasture rejection means you get better utilization of the grass you've grown.

Dry Matter Yield

Not just what a variety can produce under ideal conditions — but what it consistently produces in your region, your soil type, and your management system.

Persistence

How long the stand holds. A cheap perennial ryegrass that's half gone by year three costs more per season than a reliable variety that's still performing in year five or six.

Endophyte

The right endophyte strain matters — particularly for animal health and stand persistence. Vernado can advise on endophyte options to suit your farming system and stock class.

Vernado works with farmers to match variety to farm — not just sell what's in the shed. A seed quote from Vernado includes advice on what will actually suit your conditions.

Talk to the Team About Your Paddocks

Common Questions About Pasture Seed in NZ

There's no single answer — it depends on your region, soil type, grazing system, and what you're trying to fix. That said, tetraploid perennial ryegrass varieties with high ME and WSC values are the most common foundation for high-producing dairy pastures in NZ. Many dairy farmers also include white clover for protein contribution and nitrogen fixation. Vernado can recommend specific varieties based on your farm setup — contact the team for a personalised seed quote.
High-digestibility pasture seed refers to varieties bred or selected for higher metabolisable energy (ME) content — meaning the plant converts more efficiently into usable energy for the animal. In practical terms, higher digestibility means more milk per cow, better daily liveweight gain in beef cattle, and improved feed conversion overall. High-sugar (high-WSC) varieties also increase palatability, so stock graze more evenly and waste less.
Perennial Ryegrass: This is the foundation species for permanent New Zealand pastures. It is built for the long term and, with solid grazing management and nutrient availability, can persist for five or more seasons. It tends to have higher cooler season productivity and stays vegetative rather than trying to go to seed during the warmer months.

Hybrid Ryegrass: Created by crossing Italian and perennial ryegrasses, hybrids offer a sliding scale of traits depending on their parentage. They combine the high early yields of Italian ryegrass with significantly more persistence than an annual, lasting anywhere from 2 to 5 years. They provide excellent winter and spring growth, followed by moderate, reliable summer production

Italian Ryegrass: Often treated as a biennial, this is a short-rotation variety typically lasting 1 to 2 years. It produces massive amounts of feed rapidly, outyielding perennials in early growth and providing superior winter/cool-season production. It is primarily used to fill temporary feed gaps, build up silage inventory, or oversow tired paddocks.

Annual Ryegrass: Westerwolds annual ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum var. westerwoldicum) is a specialist, ultra-short-term forage option engineered for ultimate speed of establishment and aggressive early growth. Standing as the fastest-growing and highest-yielding ryegrass available, it typically persists for only 8 to 12 months before naturally dying out after its spring seed set. Because it does not require a winter chilling period (vernalisation) to trigger reproduction, a spring sowing will rapidly shoot to seed, making it a highly effective emergency crop or a premium tool for quick production. When autumn-sown, it acts as an exceptional winter break crop following maize, brassicas, or cereals, outperforming other varieties to deliver critical, high-energy winter and early spring feed before being locked up for high-yielding silage.
Autumn (March–May) is the primary sowing window for most NZ pasture species — soil temperatures are still warm enough for good germination, and moisture is typically more reliable than in spring. Competition from summer weeds is also reduced.Spring sowing (August–October) works in areas where autumn conditions are too dry or where the farm program doesn't allow for autumn renovation. Spring-sown pastures establish quickly but face more weed pressure and summer dry risk.
Pasture seed pricing in New Zealand varies heavily by species, variety, and endophyte type. However, cost-per-kilogram is rarely the right metric to focus on, especially since some traditional seed companies build large profit margins and massive corporate overheads into their pricing models. What actually matters to your bottom line is the cost-per-hectare of a well-established stand and the total returns it generates over its lifetime. A paddock that establishes poorly or fails to persist will force you to pay for a full renewal all over again within 18 months.
Vernado provides free seed quotes with advice on species selection — contact the team to compare properly.
Yes. Vernado delivers seed nationwide — direct to farm or to your nearest freight depot — from distribution hubs in the Manawatu and Canterbury. Lead times vary by season and order size; contact the team to confirm availability and delivery timing for your region.

What NZ Farmers Say About Vernado Seed

Annual Ryegrass, Waikato Dairy

"We sowed Dominate at the end of May and cut silage in the third week of September — 11.7 tonne DM per hectare on the first cut. Second cut in December came in at 16.5 tonne DM/ha. The winter growth compared to other species was better than we expected."
— Dairy Farmer, Waikato
Digestibility and Milk Production, Waikato

"I oversowed Dominate in April. By August it was growing twice as strong as the rest of the paddock. In September it tested at 13.5 ME, 18.5% WSC and 27.6% protein — and we saw better milk yields through that period."
— Dairy Farmer, Waikato
Long-Term Reliability, Southland Dry Stock

"We've been using Stride for more than eight years now. The stock love it. They do really well on it, and the price is fair."
— Dry Stock Farmer, Southland

Get a Free Seed Quote for Your Farm

Whether you're renovating a tired paddock, doing a full reseed, or just comparing what you're currently using against something that might perform better — Vernado can put together a quote and recommendation tailored to your farm.

No obligation. No generic catalogue. Just advice based on what your paddocks actually need.

Seed is delivered nationwide — direct to farm or freight depot from the Manawatu or Canterbury.

Get Your Quote Call: 0508 733 343