Effects of Seasonal Nitrogen on Binary Mixtures of Tall Fescue and Bermudagrass

Abstract

Using poultry litter responsibly in cool-season/bermudagrass [Cynodon dactylon (L.) Pers.] production systems may require supplemental N fertilization. is study determined if productivity in binary mixtures of tall fescue [Schedonorus arundinaceus (Schreb.) Dumort] and bermudagrass could be improved through applying litter and fertilizer N to coincide with seasonal growth activities. e e ects of N timing on dry matter (DM) yield, forage N and P contents, and fescue percent stand were investigated in binary mixtures that comprised two tall fescue cultivars, Flecha MaxQ (summer-dormant) and Jesup MaxQ (summer-active) drill-seeded in 2007 into swards of Russell and Ti on 44 bermudagrass. ree seasonal N treatments were each comprised of 8.6 Mg litter ha -1 (as-is moisture basis) split into two applications per season with additional 168 kg N ha -1 split into three applications.

Seasonal nitrogen effects on nutritive value in binary mixtures of tall fescue and bermudagrass

“…This moisture deficit was relieved through four irrigations in summer 2010. Nonetheless, cumulative DM yield in summer was 11% less in 2010 than 2009 (5·1 vs. 5·7 t ha −1 ; P < 0·05) owing to less biomass in August and September (Read et al ., ).…”

“…In grasses, the DM yield responds primarily to N, therefore the timing of N application (inorganic or organic) on mixed swards of tall fescue and bermudagrass can influence agronomic forage traits as well as the environment (Brink et al ., ; Read et al ., ). Autumn, winter and early‐spring N fertilization (150 kg ha −1 ; split 50–50–50) of a tall fescue–bermudagrass binary mixture in a 3‐year study in Louisiana resulted in the greatest basal cover of fescue and total DM yield, with less warm‐season forage production in two years that had normal rainfall, compared with late‐spring, summer and early‐autumn N fertilization (Pitman, ).…”

“…In southern locations, there is a relatively short, 10–12 weeks, period with adequate moisture and temperature for tall fescue regeneration in autumn, and a similarly constrained period in spring before the start of active growth of the warm‐season grasses. Besides N‐application timing, the use of incompletely (or partially) summer‐dormant tall fescue cultivars of Mediterranean origin (Volaire and Norton, ), which are generally more winter productive than Continental types which originated in cooler climates and exhibit growth activity in summer, has potential to enhance tall fescue productivity and persistence in mixed swards with bermudagrass (Bartholomew et al ., ; Read et al ., ). Summer dormancy is an endogenous trait that facilitates survival during prolonged and severe summer drought, but is expressed independently from soil moisture availability and appears to be regulated by soil temperature and day length (Ofir and Kigel, ).…”

“…Objectives were to determine whether timing of applications of broiler litter and fertilizer N, primarily during the cool season vs. primarily during the warm season vs. in both the cool and warm seasons, influences forage mass and nutritive value and to compare the nutritive value of Jesup–bermudagrass to Flecha–bermudagrass binary mixtures. Information on cumulative DM yield of mixed herbage in spring and summer from this test was published previously (Read et al ., ).…”

Seasonal and diurnal relationship of forage nutritive value and mass in a tall fescue pasture under continuous stocking

“…Tall fescue [Lolium arundinaceum (Schreb.) Darbyish] shows an active and intensive growth from early April to June in the southeastern United States (Read, Lang, & Adeli, 2014), and if producers can better manage spring yields, there could be an opportunity to better utilize vegetative growth efficiently (Riesterer et al, 1999).…”