Registration of ‘Renovation’ White Clover

Abstract

‘Renovation’ (Reg. No. CV‐9, PI 680615), is a large‐leaved, synthetic intermediate type white clover (Trifolium repens f. hollandicum Erith ex Jav. & Soo) cultivar derived after hybridizing (i.e., population crosses) random, individual plants from a naturalized ecotype population from Oklahoma with those from the ‘Regal’, ‘Patriot’, ‘Tillman’, and ‘SRVR’ cultivars. Renovation was jointly developed, tested, and released in 2016 under the experimental designation NFWC04‐49 by the Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation, Ardmore, OK, and the University of Georgia Research Foundation, Athens, GA. ‘Durana’, an intermediate type white clover cultivar, and Patriot, a ladino × intermediate population hybrid, demonstrated that persistent cultivars are possible based on intermediate germplasm. Renovation was found to be an intermediate type based on seedhead number comparable to Durana but higher than Regal (ladino type). Renovation's leaf size is larger than Durana and equal to Patriot; its plant height and stolon characteristics are intermediate between Regal and Durana and more like Patriot. Renovation demonstrated animal performance and pasture growth rate much better than nitrogen‐fertilized controls when overseeded into deteriorating tall fescue pastures in replicated paddocks grazed by beef steers. Renovation is licensed for commercial production and sales to Smith Seed Services, Halsey, OR.