From dry gamble to feed machine: John Maben’s FlexiGraze® success at Bangalore

When you’re driving along the Golden Highway between Merriwa and Cassilis in NSW and see one paddock still green while everything else is burnt off, you stop and ask questions.

That’s what happened at Bangalore, when a 50ha block planted to FlexiGraze® hybrid forage sorghum stood out like a green oasis. It belonged to John Maben, who had taken a calculated risk to wait, fallow, and sow when conditions were right.

“I estimated that about 60–70% was coming up to soil moisture… but the 30mm of rain made sure it all came up.”

It was one of the only paddocks in the region showing green — a standout example of summer forage performance in dryland NSW.

John had prepared the paddock well ahead of summer, banking soil moisture and waiting for the right conditions. “We try and prepare a fallow for summer forage,” he explains. “There was good moisture underneath, but it just required a favourable forecast to take the risk.” When the rain came, 30mm within days of sowing, it ensured the crop came up evenly.

The paddock was sown at 7kg/ha, cleanly prepared, and left untouched until the season’s timing made sense. That decision, to treat summer forage as a crop, not an afterthought, paid off quickly.

Despite the dry start, emergence was strong, the canopy built fast, and…

“The cows couldn’t get on top of it once they were put in.”

What stood out most wasn’t just the volume — it was the grazing behaviour and regrowth.

That even utilisation speaks to the palatability and leaf density of FlexiGraze® — driven by its photoperiod sensitivity. The crop delays flowering, holding leaf quality well into the grazing window.

After the initial graze, the paddock was rotated into weaners, proving its recovery and flexibility in a mixed grazing program.

Its ability to recover quickly after grazing made it a strong alternative to traditional summer brassicas.

• Clean fallow preparation
• Sown at 7kg/ha with attention to moisture profile
• 30mm rain event post-sowing sealed emergence
• No animal health issues during transition
• First frost marked the end of grazing window

“Plan your summer pasture like a crop. FlexiGraze® repaid the effort.”

When FlexiGraze® was designed, the goal was simple:
A forage sorghum hybrid with exceptional late season production, outstanding hay quality and flexibility across a range of farming systems.

This FlexiGraze® paddock delivered the kind of summer break feed most producers would hope for, especially in a dry year.

What John’s paddock showed is that even in a dry summer, with the right plan and conditions, it can deliver more than expected.