Double‐Cropping with Forage Sorghum and Forage Triticale in New York

Abstract

A rotation trial with forage triticale (x Triticosecale Wittmack) and forage sorghum (Sorghum bicolor [L.] Moench) was conducted in central New York from 2016 to 2018. Treatments included four timings of sorghum harvest followed by next‐day triticale planting, five triticale spring N rates (0, 34, 67, 101, 135 kg N ha−1), and two N treatments applied at sorghum planting (fertilized, +N, and unfertilized, –N) using a randomized complete block split‐split‐plot design in four replications. The most economic rate of N (MERN) for triticale in spring 2016 was 86 kg N ha−1 with a yield at the MERN of 4.0 Mg dry matter (DM) ha−1. In fall 2016 and spring 2017, total forage yield (triticale plus sorghum) did not increase after the mid‐September harvest for the +N and 135 kg spring N ha−1 plots (23.8 Mg DM ha−1 average). In fall 2017 and spring 2018, there was no difference in total forage yield across harvest timings (13.4 Mg DM ha−1 average), likely due to fewer growing degree days (GDD) that year. We recommend harvesting sorghum ∼1150 GDD after planting or at the soft‐dough stage. Earlier harvests resulted in lower yield but greater digestibility and crude protein. Spring‐applied N did not affect forage sorghum yield or nutritive value. Sorghum fertilized with N resulted in MERNs of 0 kg N ha−1 for the following triticale crop. Fertilizing sorghum according to N needs and timely harvest can support both sorghum and triticale yields without having to fertilize triticale in the spring. Core Ideas Forage sorghum requires N at planting in non‐manured systems. Forage sorghum can be harvested after 1150 growing degree‐days without a yield reduction. Triticale following fertilized sorghum may not need additional N in the spring. Spring N applied to triticale may not affect forage sorghum yield.

Interseeding annual warm‐season grasses into temperate pasturelands: Forage accumulation and composition

“…Seeding of annual warm‐season grasses can take place in double cropping systems following a cereal, such as winter wheat ( Triticum aestivum L.) or triticale (× Triticosecale sp. ), which provides a long window for planting and harvest of the warm‐season crop (Goff, Moore, Fales, & Heaton, 2010; Lyons et al., 2019; Nielsen, Vigil, & Hansen, 2016). In corn–soybean ( Glycine max [L.] Merr.)…”

Dryland cropping system impact on forage accumulation, nutritive value, and rainfall use efficiency

“…Lyons et al. (2019) suggested harvesting FS for silage at about 1,150 growing degree days after planting or at a soft dough stage in double‐crop, WT/FS rotations in New York. Early harvest may reduce forage accumulation, but it increases digestibility and crude protein (CP) concentration.…”

Does harvesting cover crops eliminate the benefits of cover crops? Insights after three years

“…to soil (Jokela, Grabber, Karlen, Balser, & Palmquist, 2009;Ketterings et al, 2015;Lyons et al, 2019;Krueger, Ochsner, Porter, & Baker, 2011). Planting CCs after corn silage harvest may not only protect soil but can also provide extra N that could be otherwise lost through leaching and other pathways (Ketterings et al, 2015;Malone et al, 2018).…”

“…Continuous corn silage systems can also reduce soil organic matter concentration, degrade soil physical, chemical, and biological properties, and potentially reduce soil productivity in the long term (Jokela, Grabber, Karlen, Balser, & Palmquist, 2009; Liesch, Krueger, & Ochsner, 2011; Raimbault, Vyn, & Tollenaar, 1990). To mitigate any adverse impacts of corn silage harvest, CCs are often planted after corn silage harvest to provide protective cover to soil (Jokela, Grabber, Karlen, Balser, & Palmquist, 2009; Ketterings et al., 2015; Lyons et al., 2019; Krueger, Ochsner, Porter, & Baker, 2011). Planting CCs after corn silage harvest may not only protect soil but can also provide extra N that could be otherwise lost through leaching and other pathways (Ketterings et al., 2015; Malone et al., 2018).…”

“…Harvesting CCs as forage, which is often defined as double‐cropping (Ketterings et al., 2015; Lyons et al., 2019), can provide additional forage for livestock especially when forage supplies are limited due to increased conversion of grasslands to croplands and fluctuating climates (i.e., droughts, floods; Blanco‐Canqui et al., 2020; Sulc & Franzluebbers, 2014). For example, grass CC species could provide high‐quality forage in late fall and spring between the harvest and planting of main crops (Drewnoski et al., 2018).…”