Bringing Back Ball Clover: Seed company finds niche with an old favorite

By CODY BEDELL, Country World Staff Writer

April 24, 2008 - In 1998, as manager of the Crop Protection Division Producers Co-op in Bryan, Jeff Snider took a business opportunity that he couldn’t turn down.

As an Agronomy major from Texas A&M University, Snider, 40, saw that there was a high demand for Ball Clover but it was difficult to find a distributor that carried the seed.

As manager of the co-op in Bryan, Snider was receiving call after call for Ball Clover. At the time Ball Clover had almost been forgotten. Older generation farmers knew about the legume, but didn’t know the difference between Ball and other varieties of clover. A new generation of farmers and ranchers were now demanding Ball Clover but couldn’t get any in the area.

Snider decided to take advantage of theopportunity and went into business with partner Greg Horn. Snider and Horn started their company in Fairlie, at an old grain elevator and mill. They still reside there today as Fairlie Seed Company, L.L.C.

“We originally got seed from Orville, Alabama in 1998, and began selling Ball Clover in North East Texas,” Snider said.

Ball Clover is planted two to five pounds per acre in early to mid-October through November. The legume is best in fine, sandy loam to clay soils that have moderate to well-drainage. Ball Clover is well-adapted to soils that are wet in the fall but too dry in the summer for white clover. Snider noted that a soil test might indicate phosphorus and potassium may need to be added for fertility, and pH levels of 5.0 - 8.0 are best for production. Ball Clover takes 21 days to germinate with around an 85 to 95 percent germination rate.

“One of the best characteristics of Ball Clover is its reseeding ability,” Snider said. “After the first year of being planted the crop will drop enough seed that it will come back year after year when the variables of weather and fertility are right.

“Ball Clover can be grazed year round and it will still come back for grazing during the winter and spring months. Ball Clover drops three to four times more seed than White and Crimson clover, according to Snider. Ball Clover offers more than just forage for grazing, it also puts nitrogen back into the soil which lowers the cost of fertilizing. Along with its reseeding ability, Ball Clover is far more resistant to insects and disease than any other clover variety, added Snider. Since 1952, when Ball Clover came to the United States, there has not been one recorded case of disease or virus in Ball Clover, therefor it is almost completely resistant, he added. Ball Clover can be mixed with other crops or grains such as rye grass for grazing too.

At the end of May the Ball Clover seed is harvested using special equipment that has been modified to be able to lift the long stems off the ground and remove the seeds.

“Due to the tiny size of the Ball Clover seeds the grain sifter inside the combine has been modified so that the seed and other plant material all goes into the grain hopper and is later separated at the grain mill,” said Snider. “Without the modification to the combine, the grain would easily fall through the sifter and be blown out of the machine with the other plant waste. Once at the grain elevator, the seed is separated from the plant waste and is stored for later shipping or planting.”

Fairlie Seed Company distributes Ball Clover to 11 states on the South Eastern coastal region, where there is adequate moisture for the clover to survive. The region for Ball Clover persists east of Interstate 35 in Fort Worth, extends east to Florida and north to Maryland. Fairlie Seed Company produces 100 percent of their Ball Clover seed on 500 acres near Fairlie. Fairlie Seed Company is the largest distributor of Ball Clover in the Southeastern United States

“Since we started business in 1998, we have sold out of Ball Clover every year,” recalled Snider. “We have plans to expand production fields so we can carry more seed and hopefully expand to more distributors and buyers.

“Each year we hope to add more and more acres to production. In the future we might try to plant and sell other varieties of clovers, but for now we are staying with Ball Clover because it is the most beneficial and versatile of all the other varieties. “

Not only does Fairlie Seed Company use Ball Clover for selling in seed production, it is also grown on their own ranches for cattle and honey production.

”Ball Clover fills the gap of grazing during the winter and early spring months when the grass in grazing pastures is dead,” explained Snider. “It adds green nutrients to livestock and also puts nitrogen into the soil when it decomposes in the summer months.

“I have noticed in the last 10 years in production of Ball Clover that with its tolerance to disease and viruses, the only variable that is a true threat is the weather. If there is no rain then there is no clover. With the Ball Clover’s ability to reseed, our fields get better and better year after year. Our plans at Fairlie Seed Company is to keep expanding in production and pickup more distributors so that more ranchers will know of the benefits of this great legume.”

For more information on Ball Clover and Fairlie Seed Company, L.L.C. visit www.ballclover.com.