Forage Productivity on Adjacent Soils in the Loessial Plain of West Tennessee

Abstract

Knowledge of yields expected from a soil mapping unit can help in making agricultural land use decisions. In most cases, soil survey reports contain productivity estimates which can be adjusted for specific situations and often must be extrapolated to similar soils for which no data are available. Many of these estimates are based on experience, although some were obtained in controlled experiments. Little information is available about the relative productivity of forage crops on different soils. The objective of this study was to determine the yield of adapted forage crops on soils lying close to each other and subject to the same general climatic influence and management. Soils varied primarily in moisture‐supplying capacity and natural drainage. Crops included perennial and annual warm‐ and cool‐season forages adapted to Tennessee. The soils were Calloway (fine‐silty, mixed, thermic Glossaquic Fragiudalfs), Grenada (fine‐silty, mixed, thermic Glossic Fragiudalfs), Henry (coarse‐silty, mixed, thermic typic Fragiaqualfs), Lexington (fine‐silty, mixed, thermic Typic Paleudalfs), Loring (fine‐silty, mixed, thermic typic Fragiudalfs), and Memphis (fine‐silty, mixed, thermic Typic Hapludalfs). The soils were characterized in terms of their yield for each crop, relative to tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea Schreb.) production. Productivity of forage crops grown on different soils ranged from 40 to over 160% as much as that of tall fescue. The data presented could help in selection of crops needed within specific forage systems for the specific soils on a farm. They indicate the importance of matching forage species with soil types in the landscape as a primary consideration in agricultural land use decisions. The data also could be used to guide producers in the adjustment of field boundaries in order to optimize the use of available soil resources.