Sward structure affects herbage growth, pasture species dynamics, and herbage utilization. Defoliation management has a major impact on sward structure. In particular, tiller size-tiller density compensations allow for the maintenance of herbage growth. Tiller size and tiller density are determined by several major morphogenetical components. Defoliation affects these morphogenetical components...

Harvesting frequency and intensity are management criteria in forage plants their choices affect herbage yield quality. The objectives of the study were to evaluate yields morphological components chemical composition (crude protein, neutral detergent fiber acid fiber) Saia oats (Avena strigosa Schreb) at three harvest frequencies (40, 50 60 cm sward height) intensities (8, 14 20 residual folia...

The pasture and animal productivity of established high producing pastures in the Waikato has been compared with newly sown pastures based on recently released herbage cultivars. The established pastures were a mixture of Nui perennial ryegrass, Paspalum dilatatum and Htiia white clover. The new cultivars tested were Ellett perennial ryegrass, Wana cocksfoot and Roa tall fescue, each sown with ...

In mid-season prime lamb production it is essential to optimise lamb performance from grazed pasture to minimise costs and so improve margins from sheep production. This is achieved by continuously supplying high feed value herbage for the duration of the grazing season. Feed value is a combination of nutritive value (i.e. digestibility) and intake characteristics (which is a combination of her...

OBJECTIVE The study aimed to assess the N use efficiency (NUE) of pig slurry (in comparison with chemical fertilizer) for each regrowth yield and annual herbage production and their nutritive value. METHODS Consecutive field experiments were separately performed using a single application with a full dose of N (200 kg N/ha) in 2014 and by four split applications in 2015 in different sites. Th...

Festulolium is a promising but little-studied fodder crop. The authors found that in the year of laying herbage mixtures, height plants increased by 6–11% compared with singlespecies sowing. However, number shoots per plant decreased from 3 to 2, and root length 20%. survival rate was 84.9–97.4% after winter, depending on Survival 46–92% for alfalfa it as low 46–84% when sown mixture seeds. Thi...

Sward composition and structure influence herbage intake of grazing animals. We conducted a grazing study to examine how forage mixture complexity affected sward structure. Replicated 1-ha pastures (Hagerstown silt loam soil: fine, mixed, semiactive, mesic, Typic Hapludalf) were planted to either orchardgrass (Dactylis glomerata L.) and white clover (Trifolium repens L.) or a nine-species mixtu...

In southeastern regions of the US, herbage systems are primarily based on grazing or hay feeding with low nutritive value warm-season perennial grasses. Nutritious herbage such as annual ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum Lam.) may be more suitable for preserving as baleage for winter feeding even with more intensive production inputs. Emerging in-line wrapped baleage storage systems featuring rapid ...

This animal simulation model, named e-Cow, represents a single dairy cow at grazing. The model integrates algorithms from three previously published models: a model that predicts herbage dry matter (DM) intake by grazing dairy cows, a mammary gland model that predicts potential milk yield and a body lipid model that predicts genetically driven live weight (LW) and body condition score (BCS). Bo...

Abstract: High concentrations of selenium (Se) and sulfur (S) often occur in overburden soils and underlying shales associated with western coal mining areas. Knowing the role of Se and S in the soil-plant-animal system is important for proper management of mine spoil reclamation. I will discuss recent findings about Se and S forms in soil, their absorption and accumulation by plants, and their...