Estimation of genetic parameters and selection of elephant-grass ( Pennisetum purpureum Schumach.) for forage production using mixed models

Abstract

The efficient use of fodder and grassland as the basis of animal feed represents a way of raising productivity and reducing production costs. In this scenario, elephant-grass stands out among the most used forages in the intensive animal production systems in the world mainly due to its high productive potential, support capacity and nutritional quality. The purpose of this work was to estimate genetic parameters for the selection of elephant-grass (Pennisetum purpureum Schumach.) clones for forage production in two seasons, a period of water restriction and the total period of study. We evaluated 80 accessions of elephant-grass by means of the mixed-models methodology (REML/BLUP). The evaluation of DM yield (DMY) of the different genotypes were executed in edaphoclimatic conditions in Campos dos Goytacazes, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The Selegen-REML/BLUP software accomplished the statistical and genetic analyses. It was seen that the DMY trait was with a low estimate of coefficient of genotypic variation (3.08%), which demonstrates possible difficulties with the selection for this trait. Heritability-coefficient estimate was 0.3606 for the dry season and 0.4193 for the total period. Those results were the variation in that trait due to genetic causes. Although those values may not be considered of high magnitude, they are of great interest for the breeding mainly because it is a polygenic trait. In both periods, genotypes 7, 25, 41, 43, 57, 58, 62, 64, 68, and 77 stood out among the others, since it presented the highest genetic gains for DMY, which will enhance progress in the evaluated trait.

Use of biostimulants in elephant grass cv. Napier

“…Fresh weight (FW) and DM yields were 66,143 and 11,462 kg ha -1 , respectively, which are close to the expected values for the species. Literature reports indicate FW yields of up to 80,000 kg ha -1 and DM yields between 12,000 and 31,000 kg ha -1 per harvest (Cardona, Rios, & Peña, 2012;Stida et al, 2018;E. A. Ferreira, Abreu, Martinez, Braz, & Ferreira, 2018).…”

Morphological Characteristics and Nutritional Quality of Mutant Benggala Grass (Panicum maximum cv Purple Guinea) Generation M1V3

“…The productions of fresh and dried forages are the direct character of economic value and indicate Benggala grass productivity (Stida et al, 2018). Since this characteristic is the main indicator in determining the productivity of Benggala grass, the forage weight and dry weight are the characteristics that must be considered, other than indirect characters such as the number of tillers, plant height, stem diameter, and other characteristics.…”

Forage performance of pearl millet (Pennisetum glaucum [L.] R. Br.) in arid regions: Yield and quality assessment of new genotypes on different sowing dates

“…In forage research, DMY should be considered to efficiently select a proper genotype for incorporation in breeding programs because of its economic significance to the crop (Stida et al, 2018). In comparison with other forage grasses, and with millets grown in other farming systems, the tested genotypes produced acceptable amounts of DMY.…”