6. The Accurate Determination of Dry Matter in Forage Crops¹

The Laboratory Drying of Herbage and Faeces, and Dry Matter Losses Possible During Drying

“…At many experimental centres herbage samples have been dried at temperatures at or slightly above room temperature. However, the above authors (17) showed that as much as 12 per cent of the dry matter might be lost during the slow drying of herbage in this way. This method has been further studied in the present experiments.…”

“…Estimation of yields on a dry weight basis is necessary because ofthe variable content of both internal and adventitious moisture in fresh samples. MCROSTIE and HAMILTON (17) have shown that the comparison of yields of forage on the basis of fresh green field weights is unreliable.…”

“…samples) oven-dried at lOCC, and air-dried at 35"C. for four days before drying at lOO'C. The need for more efficient drying ovens is evident, and various types of laboratory oven have been described (17,19,25). In these in general, heated air is blown through or over trays of samples; the temperature and duration of heating have varied widely.…”

Effects of Partial Harvesting on Napier Grass: Reduced Seasonal Variability in Feedstock Supply and Increased Biomass Yield

“…The border effect refers to improved performance of plants located in outer rows compared to those in interior rows as a result of reduced competition with neighbors for resources such as light, CO 2 , water, and nutrients (Gomez and De Datta, 1971;Wang et al, 2013). Since its discovery, the border effect has been regarded as a source of overestimation of plant growth in agricultural studies (e.g., McRostie and Hamilton, 1927;Hollowell and Heusinkveld, 【Short Report】 1933;McClelland, 1934;Probst, 1943). In the 1990s, Japanese farmers attempted to take advantage of the border effect to improve rice production by leaving one out of every five to six rows unplanted ("partial nontransplanting") (Kujira et al, 1998).…”

Green and Air‐Dry Weights for Determining Hay Yields of Varieties of Alfalfa1

“…3 The accuracy of this n;_J.ethod is dependent largely upon the variability, if any, of the strains in dry matter content when air-dry. The practice of computing the forage yield of alfalfa from green weights is rapid but is accurate only when there are no differences in the percentage dry matter between plots.…”