Factors influencing the yield and feeding value of pasture grown for conservation

Browse, John; Haslemore, R. M.; Thaine, R.

doi:10.1080/03015521.1984.10427782

Cited by 6 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 18 publications

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“…The trend for declining nutritional value as DM yield increased is consistent with published research (Murdoch 1965;Browse et al 1984;Jacobs et al 1998). The inverse relationship between stem development and digestibility (Browse et al 1984) was probably the underlying reason for this trend.…”

Section: Length Of Closuresupporting

confidence: 88%

“…Yield when pasture had an OMD of 70% was reduced by 660 kg DM/ha for each week delay in closure. The current study showed pasture last grazed on 17 October reached 70% digestibility 11 days earlier in the regrowth cycle than pasture grazed on 25 September which agrees with the results of Browse et al (1984). These results would tend to suggest that the time taken for a pasture to fall to 70% digestibility was associated with the reproductive state of the plant rather than days post grazing.…”

Section: Length Of Closuresupporting

confidence: 88%

“…Grazing to low post-grazing residuals in October probably killed developing reproductive tillers (Woodward 1998). The resulting pasture, therefore, had a higher proportion of vegetative tillers and, as an inverse relationship exists between stem development and herbage digestibility (Browse et al 1984), better quality after the hard grazing treatment.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Previous New Zealand research by Browse et al (1984) suggested date of removal from grazing, closing time and the herbage mass after the last grazing were important parameters affecting silage quality. This paper presents two experiments that examine the effect of these factors on silage quality.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 98%

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Effect of date and length of closure and post grazing residual on pasture quality for silage

Mcgrath¹,

Penno²,

Davis³

et al. 1998

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The nutritional value of pasture silage made in New Zealand is often sub-optimal for lactating dairy cows. As farming systems require more pasture silage to be used in an attempt to increase lactation lengths and milksolids production per cow, the quality of this silage becomes more important. In spring 1995, pastures were closed for silage at weekly intervals from 11 September to 17 October, representing six distinct closure dates, to determine the effect that date and length of closure has on pasture quality. In spring 1997 pastures were grazed to different residuals (1.2- 1.4, 1.8-2.0, 2.1-2.4 and 2.5-2.9 t DM/ha) and then closed for silage to determine the effect that post grazing residual has on pasture quality. In both experiments pasture dry matter (DM) yield and chemical and botanical composition was monitored over the 63 day closure. Pasture closed on 11 or 17 September had higher metabolisable energy (ME) (P

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Section: Length Of Closuresupporting

confidence: 88%

Section: Length Of Closuresupporting

confidence: 88%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 98%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Effect of date and length of closure and post grazing residual on pasture quality for silage

Mcgrath¹,

Penno²,

Davis³

et al. 1998

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Effects of perennial ryegrass cultivar, duration of lock up and nitrogen fertiliser application on dairy pasture dry matter yield and quality for silage in south-western Victoria

Jacobs¹,

McKenzie²,

Ward³

et al. 2001

Aust. J. Exp. Agric.

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A study in south-western Victoria determined effects of 3 perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.) cultivars (Vedette, Impact and Nevis) with differing maturities, duration of lock up and nitrogen (N) application on the dry matter yield and nutritive characteristics of pasture for silage. Treatments were cultivar (3), N (0 and 50 kg N/ha) and duration of lock up (5–10 weeks) arranged in a completely randomised design in 3 by 5 m plots replicated 3 times. Plots were mown to a uniform height (5 cm) on 14 September 1998 (first day of lock up) and 1 week later N was applied as urea (46% N) at either 0 or 50 kg N/ha to the respective plots. Weekly sampling commenced on 19 October (week 5 of lock up), and continued until 23 November. For each treatment and harvest date, dry matter yield and botanical composition were determined, and samples of total pasture and the ryegrass fraction were collected and chemically analysed for dry matter digestibility, concentrations of crude protein, neutral detergent fibre, water-soluble carbohydrates and minerals. Metabolisable energy was derived from dry matter digestibility. All pasture types were predominantly ryegrass (>90%) with no differences in the nutritive characteristics of total pasture swards or the respective ryegrass fraction. Nitrogen at 50 kg N/ha significantly (P<0.05) increased dry matter yield for all cultivars. Metabolisable energy (MJ/kg DM) of the pasture declined with time for all treatments, with Vedette having a significantly (P<0.05) greater rate of decline than the other cultivars. Vedette reached early ear emergence about 3 weeks earlier (week 7) than the other cultivars. The harvestable metabolisable energy yield (MJ/ha) at ear emergence was highest for Impact, followed by Nevis and Vedette. In conclusion, there is potential to use later-maturing cultivars of ryegrass in south-eastern Australia to allow for later harvesting of forage for silage, while maintaining metabolisable energy and maximising dry matter yields. Furthermore, the use of N fertiliser can also increase dry matter yields without impinging on pasture quality provided the time between N application and harvest date does not exceed 5–6 weeks.

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Effect of lock up and harvest dates on dairy pasture dry matter yield and quality for silage in south-western Victoria

Jacobs¹,

Rigby²,

McKenzie³

et al. 1998

Aust. J. Exp. Agric.

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Summary. At 2 sites in south-western Victoria, 132 plots of predominantly perennial ryegrass pasture were randomly allocated, within 4 replicate blocks, to each of 3 lock up dates (L1, L2, L3) by 12, 12 or 9 harvest times. Harvesting commenced 2 weeks after initial treatment lock up with L1 and L2 being harvested 12 times (weekly intervals) and L3, 9 times. Lock up dates were 15 August (L1), 5 September (L2) and 26 September (L3) at site 1 and 17 August (L1), 7 September (L2) and 28 September (L3) at site 2. For each treatment and harvest date, dry matter yield and botanical composition were determined and samples of total pasture and the ryegrass fraction were collected and assessed for dry matter digestibility, crude protein and neutral detergent fibre. Dry matter yield was measured from the start of L1 (site 1, 15 August; site 2, 17 August) until the final harvest date of L3 (site 1, 12 December; site 2, 14 December). At site 1, L3 produced higher dry matter yields than L1 and L2 at comparable lengths of lock up time, whilst there were no differences at site 2. Over the total experimental period (site 1, 15 August–12 December; site 2, 17 August–14 December) there were no differences in total dry matter yield (t/ha) between treatments at either site (site 1—L1 5.79, L2 6.43, L3 5.94; site 2—L1 6.68, L2 5.07, L3 5.73). Treatments had little effect on botanical composition at either site when compared at the same time after lock up, both during the harvesting period or in the subsequent autumn. Pasture metabolisable energy and crude protein all declined with increasing length of lock up whilst neutral detergent fibre content increased, changes which were similar for both the total pasture and the ryegrass fraction. The metabolisable energy of pasture in L1 and L2 was higher than that of L3 at least until week 8 at both sites. Initial crude protein values were higher for L1 and L2 than for L3 at site 1, whilst at site 2, L1 had higher values than either L2 or L3. Although longer lock up periods produced more herbage, if conserving forage is to be an integral component of managing surplus spring pasture, then dairy farmers should aim to produce high quality pasture for forage conservation. This will be achieved through shorter lock up periods and harvesting pasture no later than early ear emergence in the ryegrass fraction of the sward. This management will reduce dry matter yields, but allow more flexibility for maintaining intensive grazing practices through the spring period. The decision about when to lock up pasture will depend on both plant growth rates and animal feed requirements.

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Factors influencing the yield and feeding value of pasture grown for conservation

Cited by 6 publications

References 18 publications

Effect of date and length of closure and post grazing residual on pasture quality for silage

Effect of date and length of closure and post grazing residual on pasture quality for silage

Effects of perennial ryegrass cultivar, duration of lock up and nitrogen fertiliser application on dairy pasture dry matter yield and quality for silage in south-western Victoria

Effect of lock up and harvest dates on dairy pasture dry matter yield and quality for silage in south-western Victoria

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