Agronomic advantages conferred by endophyte infection of perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.) and tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea Schreb.) in Australia

Hume, D. E.; Sewell, James

doi:10.1071/cp13383

Cited by 43 publications

(38 citation statements)

References 39 publications

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“…Ergovaline causes heat stress (Klotz 2015), as well as giving ryegrass protection against black beetle (Heteronychus arator) (Ball et al 1997;Popay and Hume 2011). Due to the beneficial effects of endophytes, the cultivation of endophyte-free ryegrass for permanent pastures is not a costeffective option under most farming conditions in Australia and New Zealand due to poor productivity and persistence of the ryegrass component (Hume and Sewell 2014;Thom et al 2014).…”

Section: Nirsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The occurrence of ryegrass staggers and heat stress in sheep grazing ryegrass-endophyte associations with diverse alkaloid profiles

Fletcher

Finch

Sutherland

et al. 2017

New Zealand Veterinary Journal

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AIMS: To compare ryegrass pastures infected with endophytes producing diverse alkaloids for their ability to cause ryegrass staggers in grazing lambs; to compare respiration rates and rectal temperatures of these lambs after exposure to heat stress, and to compare liveweight gains during the study period.METHODS: Ryegrass pastures of cultivar Trojan infected with NEA endophytes, branded NEA2 (T-NEA2), endophyte-free Trojan (T-NIL), Samson infected with standard endophyte (S-STD), Samson infected with AR37 endophyte (S-AR37) and endophyte-free Samson (S-NIL), were grazed by lambs (n=30 per cultivar) for up to 48 days in February and March of 2012 and 2013. Pasture samples were analysed for alkaloid concentrations and lambs were scored for ryegrass staggers at intervals during the study period. Liveweight was recorded at the start (Day 0) and end of the study, and rectal temperatures and respiratory rates were measured in lambs exposed to heat stress on Days 23 and 26, in 2012 and 2013, respectively. RESULTS: Concentrations of alkaloids were lower in 2012 than 2013, associated with warmer and drier conditions in 2013, and the prevalence of ryegrass staggers was low in 2012. In 2013, concentrations of ergovaline were similar in T-NEA2 and S-STD, but concentrations of lolitrem B were lower in T-NEA2 than S-STD. S-AR37 produced epoxy-janthitrems but no lolitrem B or ergovaline. In 2013, by Day 20, 9/30 (30%) sheep grazing S-STD had severe staggers (score ≥4), and by Day 47 all sheep had been removed from this cultivar due to severe staggers. By Day 47, 18/30 (60%), 4/30 (13%) and 0/ 30 (0%) sheep grazing S-AR37, T-NEA2 and T-NIL pastures, respectively, had severe staggers. There were no differences in mean daily weight gain of lambs between cultivars in either year. In both years, mean rectal temperature and respiration rate following exposure to heat stress were highest in sheep grazing S-STD and T-NEA2, and lowest in sheep grazing T-NIL. CONCLUSIONS: In lambs grazing different ryegrass pastures infected with endophytes, ryegrass staggers was most severe on S-STD, less severe on S-AR37 and least on T-NEA2. When under heat stress, lambs grazing ergovaline-producing S-STD and T-NEA2 pastures had increased respiration rates and rectal temperatures compared with lambs grazing T-NIL.CLINICAL RELEVANCE: If ambient temperatures are suitable, NEA2-branded endophytes have the potential to express concentrations of ergovaline sufficient to induce heat stress in grazing sheep.

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Section: Nirsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The occurrence of ryegrass staggers and heat stress in sheep grazing ryegrass-endophyte associations with diverse alkaloid profiles

Fletcher

Finch

Sutherland

et al. 2017

New Zealand Veterinary Journal

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“…The latter change in land use has always been accompanied by pasture renewal. Secondly, the role of endophytes in the ecology of grazed pastures is now well-documented [63][64][65] and endophyte strains that do not produce the alkaloids that are toxic to animals have been commercialised [64]. Thirdly, the genetic diversity of cultivars available in the NZ market is now much greater [66].…”

Section: The Extended Ryegrass Phenome and Its Implications For Grazimentioning

confidence: 99%

Using Ecophysiology to Improve Farm Efficiency: Application in Temperate Dairy Grazing Systems

Chapman

2016

Agriculture

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Information on the physiological ecology of grass-dominant pastures has made a substantial contribution to the development of practices that optimise the amount of feed harvested by grazing animals in temperate livestock systems. However, the contribution of ecophysiology is often under-stated, and the need for further research in this field is sometimes questioned. The challenge for ecophysiolgists, therefore, is to demonstrate how ecophysiological knowledge can help solve significant problems looming for grassland farming in temperate regions while also removing constraints to improved productivity from grazed pastures. To do this, ecophysiological research needs to align more closely with related disciplines, particularly genetics/genomics, agronomy, and farming systems, including systems modelling. This review considers how ecophysiological information has contributed to the development of grazing management practices in the New Zealand dairy industry, an industry that is generally regarded as a world leader in the efficiency with which pasture is grown and utilised for animal production. Even so, there are clear opportunities for further gains in pasture utilisation through the refinement of grazing management practices and the harnessing of those practices to improved pasture plant cultivars with phenotypes that facilitate greater grazing efficiency. Meanwhile, sub-optimal persistence of new pastures continues to constrain productivity in some environments. The underlying plant and population processes associated with this have not been clearly defined. Ecophysiological information, placed in the context of trait identification, grounded in well-designed agronomic studies and linked to plant improvements programmes, is required to address this.

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“…Therefore, pasture persistence has a positive relationship with farm profitability. Perennial ryegrass has a symbiotic relationship with a fungus (endophyte) that colonizes the base of perennial ryegrass tillers and migrates to the growing point during the reproductive phase [7]. Endophyte produces unique bio-active alkaloids, which may enhance the tolerance of the host plant to various abiotic and biotic stresses [8].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

An Object-Based Image Analysis Approach to Assess Persistence of Perennial Ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.) in Pasture Breeding

et al. 2019

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Perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.) is one of the most important forage grass species in temperate regions of the world, but it is prone to having poor persistence due to the incidence of abiotic and biotic stresses. This creates a challenge for livestock producers to use their agricultural lands more productively and intensively within sustainable limits. Breeding perennial ryegrass cultivars that are both productive and persistent is a target of forage breeding programs and will allow farmers to select appropriate cultivars to deliver the highest profitability over the lifetime of a sward. Conventional methods for the estimation of pasture persistence depend on manual ground cover estimation or counting the number of surviving plants or tillers in a given area. Those methods are subjective, time-consuming and/or labour intensive. This study aimed to develop a phenomic method to evaluate the persistence of perennial ryegrass cultivars in field plots. Data acquisition was conducted three years after sowing to estimate the persistence of perennial ryegrass using high-resolution aerial-based multispectral and ground-based red, green and blue(RGB) sensors, and subsequent image analysis. There was a strong positive relationship between manual ground cover and sensor-based ground cover estimates (p < 0.001). Although the manual plant count was positively correlated with sensor-based ground cover (p < 0.001) intra-plot plant size variation influenced the strength of this relationship. We conclude that object-based ground cover estimation is most suitable for use in large-scale breeding programs due to its higher accuracy, efficiency and repeatability. With further development, this technique could be used to assess temporal changes of perennial ryegrass persistence in experimental studies and on a farm scale.

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Agronomic advantages conferred by endophyte infection of perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.) and tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea Schreb.) in Australia

Cited by 43 publications

References 39 publications

The occurrence of ryegrass staggers and heat stress in sheep grazing ryegrass-endophyte associations with diverse alkaloid profiles

The occurrence of ryegrass staggers and heat stress in sheep grazing ryegrass-endophyte associations with diverse alkaloid profiles

Using Ecophysiology to Improve Farm Efficiency: Application in Temperate Dairy Grazing Systems

An Object-Based Image Analysis Approach to Assess Persistence of Perennial Ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.) in Pasture Breeding

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