Glen Rubie has been growing lucerne seed as part of his Lachlan Merinos operation for seed companies since 1983, but he never thought he would get a variety that would last beyond 11 years.
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And it is still going strong.
The variety is called Cal West 1 and is closely related to a grazing tolerant variety currently available on the Australian market.
Mr Rubie received the original seed from the US and grew seed to go back into that market as the seed company didn't want two similar grazing tolerant varieties on the local market.
As part of his contract, Mr Rubie would get 200 grams of mother seed from research stations, sow it in rows and then grow seeds for the seed company.
Over the span of the 11 years, Mr Rubie has expanded the amount of the lucerne that he has grown and when his seed contract was up he sowed even more of it throughout his grazing operation.
He says it is hard to kill.
"During the floods here two years ago, a neighbour was about to go under water and he needed somewhere to put 700 stud Border Leicesters," Mr Rubie said.
"So we flew them into the paddock with the Cal West 1 and basically gave it up as a sacrifice paddock.
"They grazed it right out before they were moved and I thought I was going to have to go in and sow something in there.
"But after a bit of rest and some rain, it came back just as strong as ever.
"We have since grazed it down to dirt with some of our stud animals and then rest it, and when it gets rain it bounces right back.
"When I was first putting it in, someone said you can't kill it because it is grazing tolerant.
"I can really see that now.
"I've since sown it all around the farm and it is everywhere now."
The variety similar to the Cal West 1 on the local market is Stamina Torrens GT8.
It is a grazing tolerant, winter active lucerne and Mr Rubie put some in nearly 12 months ago.
"It hasn't had a birthday yet but I'm hopeful to get some seeds off it," he said.
Mr Rubie desiccates with Spray Seed, but has a secret weapon when it comes to maximising results.
"I use double the wetter to make it stick," he said.
"Don't use your normal amount of wetter. Whatever your rate, if its 100 milliliters use 200ml.
"They say you shouldn't even use it because it's already part of the Spray Seed, but I double it and it works."
Sales agronomist for DLF Seeds, Jonathon Tink, said these grazing tolerant varieties were hardier than past varieties because of how they grow.
"They're hardier because they have a low crown and the old lucerne varieties had that higher crown and needed to send up two stalks," he said.
"I don't talk grazing tolerance anymore. I talk increased trafficability, whether it be a hoof of the animal or a tyre on a machine.
"These varieties can handle more trafficability."
Mr Tink said many people expect to get at most three years out of a winter active grazing tolerant variety with hay producers getting less cuts each season as well.
"Because it is a GT, I don't think people realise the quality of the bale stuff that comes out the other end," he said.
"They all expect it to be like the old Aurora that would drop all of its leaf if it got hot.
"If you didn't cut it at week three and a half, or week four, it was all flower and a stalk.
"This variety just keeps shooting from the bottom and shooting from the bottom.
"You think, well, it's still got five per cent flower and it's still going. It has not gone past it's used by date."
Mr Rubie said the one drawback was it was a harder variety to seed and DLF Seeds product development manager Mel Gooseman said it was a balancing act for the variety.
"It is like anything, you stack everything on one side and tick the boxes for quality and growth but that's its one nemesis. Producing seed," she said.
"Through the breeding program, we've been trying to do it from the grazers point of view and get as much vegetative growth as we can. Because when you're trying to finish stock, that's what you want.
"It just means that when we bring that next generation through for a seed grower, we need that plant to come under serious stress.
"It needs to be stressed enough in order for it to think it needs to go reproductive."
She said this characteristic was down to the fact the plant had been bred to be hardier and more vegetative for an end user who needed grazing productivity.
"And then all of a sudden we are trying to get seed out of of it," she said.
