Welcome to the first EVER Nickerson Seed Book!

Click to download your copy of the new guide!

For the very first time, you’ll find our entire range brought together in one place – Cereals, Pulses, Oilseed Rape, Maize, Circle Leys grass mixtures, plus our specialist Forage and Environmental seeds. A full catalogue designed to give you clarity, choice, and confidence when it comes to your seed decisions.

Nickerson are the Original Seed Specialists. For over 75 years, we’ve supplied seed and advice to British farmers – trusted by generations because we understand the job, the challenges, and what it takes to grow a successful crop. Our history gives us provenance. Our experience gives you peace of mind. When you choose Nickerson, you are not just buying seed – you are investing in a partnership.

That partnership is delivered through our nationwide team of Nickerson Seed Specialists. These are not simply salespeople – they are experts, practical thinkers, and trusted advisors. They know farming, they know seed, and they take the time to understand your business. Their role is simple: to help you make the best choice for every field, every season.

We are proud of our heritage, but we never stand still.

Farming is changing – new pressures, new opportunities, new demands on every hectare. Our job is to make sure you have the right seed, the right advice, and the right support to meet those challenges head-on.

This brochure is designed to help you do exactly that. It brings our portfolio together in one clear guide – from high-yielding cereals and resilient oilseed rape to productive maize, proven grass mixtures, and targeted environmental options. Every product has been selected, tested, and supported by Nickerson, so you can choose with confidence.

Quality seed. Trusted advice. Unmatched service. That has been our promise for over 75 years – and it remains our promise today.

Take a look at our 2026 Seed Book today.

As forage becomes scarcer, due to changing weather every year, stubble turnips may be a good and quick growing alternative, to see livestock through the autumn and winter months.

Not only this, but they also offer benefits when it comes to soil fertility, soil structure and blackgrass control, and they can work as a catch crop if established early enough in the season, prior to drilling an autumn crop.

Depending on when the turnips are required for grazing, establishment can be anywhere from April (for summer feeding) to early August, if they are required for overwinter feeding. Any later than this, then there is a risk that the turnips will produce more leaf and less bulb.

They can be established either by drilling or broadcast, but in both cases, a good seed bed is required and ideally establish on free draining soils with good drainage, as grazing livestock could cause a mess/ damage when wet.

If drilling, establish at 4kg/ha and if broadcasting, establish at 8kg/ha. Sowing-grazing is 12-14 weeks, and livestock can either be put to grazing immediately after establishment, or it can be left longer to allow bulbs to swell.

If grazing lambs, they should be introduced gradually and other sources of fodder, such as baled silage, should be provided, in order to encourage them to eat the bulbs, otherwise they will only be interested in the leaf. For all types of livestock, fencing is required and should be moved accordingly to manage feedstocks.

As stubble turnips are a brassica, it is important to be aware of potential diseases such as club root and cabbage stem flea beetle (CSFB). To minimise these, ensure good crop rotation is in place and monitor growth for CSFB damage, as this can lead to significant yield reduction and/or crop failure, if not treated accordingly. Furthermore, if oilseed rape is grown in the rotation, ensure it is not in close proximity to it (to protect both crops), and control volunteers prior to establishment.

Variety wise, we have 3 options, depending on requirements.

Firstly, Samson is a top selling variety due to its palatability and large tankard bulbs, which produce ample forage for both sheep and cattle.

Secondly, Hector’s bulbs sit proudly above the ground, meaning less wastage, however, the biggest disadvantage to this is that they are less winter hardy, so best utilised as summer/ autumn grazing.

Lastly, Rondo would be the choice for post-Christmas grazing, due to its good root anchorage, resulting in better protection from frost.

We also have bulbless varieties such as Skyfall, and rape hybrids such as Tyfon, which both produce leafier material, better suited for later establishment. These can also be established alongside bulb varieties, to provide extended resources.

For more information, please don’t hesitate to contact your local Nickerson Seed Specialist.

Unprecedented dry conditions last spring meant that many farms across the UK are now faced with reduced winter feedstocks.

Silage has been used on many farms to buffer feed throughout the summer, to ensure welfare and productivity from livestock, which has eaten into already reduced feed levels. September 2025 saw much of the UK have reasonably good levels of rainfall, which then led to good growth rates from grass and forage crops. This will help to prolong grazing and could offer an opportunity for a later cut of silage.

Spring 2025 was the sixth driest on record, with the UK experiencing 40% less rainfall than average. Summer 2025 also became the warmest and sunniest on record, forcing many areas into drought.

Weather patterns are becoming increasingly erratic. How can the risks be mitigated through cropping rotations?

Humbolt Rye is a forage rye variety bred specifically for UK conditions. It can be drilled from September to mid-October, and grows quickly to cover the soil over winter, helping to prevent erosion and intake leftover nutrients from the previous crop. With strong early growth, it’s ideal for early cattle turnout or zero grazing, producing around 5 to 6 tonnes of dry matter per hectare, to support reduced silage stocks.

Catch Crop mixtures can be used to extend grazing in late autumn/ winter. The combination of stubble turnip, forage rape and kale, offer rapid growth, good protein and energy levels, as well as being winter hardy. It can be grazed 12-14 weeks after sowing, if sown ideally by the end of August. Mixtures such as ‘Meat Maker’, offer high yields and palatability at a good price point.

A robust reseeding programme will ensure that stocks of ensiled feed aren’t as relied upon during periods of dry weather. Grass mixtures which contain hybrid ryegrass fare better in drier periods, due to their deeper root systems. Grass mixtures that contain high yielding, intermediate varieties of ryegrass will also offer earlier growth, reducing the pressure in spring for prolonged feeding of silage.

The Nickerson Circle Ley grass range offers grass mixtures to suit a range of systems. Long term mixtures, to increase yield and quality, as well as shorter term leys, to follow crops of maize, with subsequent high yielding grass crops to increase silage stocks. Our unique GPA dressing will assist with increased germination rates and greater root mass, ensuring the ley gets off to the best start possible.

For more information about planning your rotation to cope with periods of challenging weather patterns, please don’t hesitate to contact your local Nickerson Seed Specialist.

On October 29th and 30th, my Nickerson Seed Specialist colleagues and I had the privilege of attending an intensive training course at the LG Forage Crops Research Station in North Clifton, Lincolnshire. This event, led by John Spence, Limagrain Field Seed’s Forage Crops Product Manager, was an eye-opening experience into the world of alternative forage crops.

Hands-On Learning with Expert Guidance
Under John’s expert guidance, we explored a variety of forage crops including fodder beet, forage kale and rape, swedes and turnips, stubble turnips, lucerne, and forage rye. The hands-on nature of the training allowed us to inspect these crops in the field, providing a tangible understanding of their growth patterns and potential benefits.

Integrating Forage Crops into Farming Systems
A significant part of our discussions focused on how these crops could be effectively integrated into farming systems to enhance economic returns. We delved into the importance of not only selecting the right crop but also choosing the correct variety. This selection process is crucial for optimising livestock diets and reducing the reliance on bought-in concentrated feeds.

Economic and Nutritional Benefits
The course highlighted the substantial impact that alternative forage crops can have on modern farming systems. By improving livestock diets with these crops, farmers can achieve better health and productivity in their herds, ultimately leading to improved economic outcomes. The reduction in the need for external feed inputs also presents a cost-saving advantage.

A Fascinating and Informative Experience
Overall, the training was a fascinating journey into the potential of alternative forage crops. It emphasised how these crops can play a pivotal role in sustainable farming practices, offering both economic and nutritional benefits. The knowledge and insights gained from this course will undoubtedly influence our approach to forage crop selection and integration moving forward.

More Information?
If you would like to know more about how these forages could help you on your farm please contact me on 07811 746804, david.watson@nickerson.co.uk

I always look forward to the Southwest Dairy event at the Bath and West showground, not only is it an opportunity to catch up with customers new and old but it is also a chance for everyone involved in the industry to come together and talk with one another. It is a time for farmers to show their cattle and the challenging work and care that goes into these animals.

I have been attending this event since I was young, and although the site and exhibitors remain similar, the show has definitely evolved! That goes for the seed industry as well. Varieties, regardless of species have moved on so much in the past decade, with the number of different varieties and mixtures on the market currently coupled with the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) I appreciate it can seem unclear. That is where we step in to help you. Whether it is advice on the constantly changing and adapting Single Farm Incentive; deciding when to cut your maize; grass reseeding and catch crop options to name but a few, we can help you with here at Nickerson.

Simply give us a call or come along to our stand at the Dairy event, you can find us in the Edmond Rack building on stand 177, feel free to pick our brains over a cup of something!  We are also proudly celebrating the 75^th anniversary of our Circle Ley grass seed brand by giving you the chance to win 75 acres worth of grass seed with every eligible grass seed order – see your local Nickerson rep for more details!