[DartmoorLiz]

Its sweed planting time and I've heard they're good for feeding sheep in winter.  I could put several rows in the veg patch but I will eat about 4 over the whole winter so how do I get the sheep to eat them?  Do I leave them whole and round in the field or do I need to chop them up?  How many sweed will 50 ewes eat?


Google is surprisingly unhelpful so its time to ask the experts here.   

[farmershort]

We're experimenting with this this year. 2.5 acres of Swede in the.hope that we can have some for the house, some for pigs when we get them, and most for strip grazing the sheep. I'm assuming they'll eat them in the same fashion as fodder beet.

[shep53]

25 yrs since iv'e  grown  swedes  put in stubble turnips since then  ( easier to grow )   with swede used to apply lots of  FYM  and then plough deep  then ridge up  and sow in ridges  (turnip flea beetle were always  a problem and you often had to re sow )         DartmoorLiz  best to either  split the swede into quarters using a spade or better still buy  an old root chopper and feed in troughs , 50 sheep will eat lots , remember that if their teeth are slack then they don't do well on only swedes .      farmershort  they just eat  them in the ground right down to the soil and as above young or old with slack teeth don't do well