Herbage Accumulation, Nutritive Value, and Persistence Responses of Rhizoma Peanut Cultivars and Germplasm to Grazing Management

Abstract

Forage legumes increase nutritive value and provide N to grass‐based grazing systems. Few legumes have a long stand life in the southeastern US, but persistence is documented for rhizoma peanut (RP; Arachis glabrata Benth.). Several RP introductions have been released recently from the University of Florida, but their responses to grazing management have not been evaluated. The objective was to determine productivity, persistence, and nutritive value of three RP cultivars (‘Florigraze’, ‘UF Peace’, and ‘UF Tito’) and the germplasm Ecoturf grazed every 3 or 6 wk to remove 50 or 75% of pre‐grazing canopy height. Herbage accumulation (HA) was not different among RP entries and averaged 8790 and 6210 kg ha‐1 in Years 1 and 2, respectively. Greater HA occurred for the regrowth interval of 6 wk vs. 3 wk in the 50% removal treatment (8040 and 7010 kg ha‐1, respectively), and the response approached significance (P = 0.073) for the 75% treatment (7800 vs. 7140 kg ha‐1, respectively). Treatments had minimal effect on nutritive value, and all entries had crude protein (CP) ≥ 140 g kg‐1 and in vitro digestible organic matter (IVDOM) ≥ 660 g kg‐1. Grass encroachment was greater in Ecoturf and Florigraze when grazed every 3 wk (13 and 24%, respectively) than every 6 wk (7 and 15%, respectively), but regrowth interval did not affect grass percentage in Peace and Tito. New RP cultivars and germplasm had similar HA as Florigraze, but also greater percentage RP and lesser weed frequency than Florigraze, especially under frequent or close grazing.

Herbage Responses and Biological N2 Fixation of Bahiagrass and Rhizoma Peanut Monocultures Compared with their Binary Mixtures

“…However, there was no difference in HA among these four entries under grazing (Mullenix et al, 2016), probably because stubble height in this study was adjusted based on the growth habit of the RP entry. Ecoturf is a low-growing RP suited for the lower Costal Plains and peninsular Florida.…”

“…In addition, mixing grasses and legumes can potentially stimulate legume biological N 2 fixation (BNF; Nyfeler et al, 2011). is a warm-season perennial legume (Ball et al, 1996b) well adapted to the southern United States (Terrill et al, 1996;Redfearn et al, 2001;Butler et al, 2007;Mullenix et al, 2016), and it is commonly cultivated for hay production or pastures for grazing animals. is a warm-season perennial legume (Ball et al, 1996b) well adapted to the southern United States (Terrill et al, 1996;Redfearn et al, 2001;Butler et al, 2007;Mullenix et al, 2016), and it is commonly cultivated for hay production or pastures for grazing animals.…”

“…Different from most warm-climate forage legumes in Florida, RP is productive and persistent over a wide range of management practices (Ortega-S. et al, 1992). Besides being a source of N to the soil, RP presents good forage nutritive value (Mullenix et al, 2016;Dubeux et al, 2017) and improves animal performance in mixed swards (Hernández Garay et al, 2004). Besides being a source of N to the soil, RP presents good forage nutritive value (Mullenix et al, 2016;Dubeux et al, 2017) and improves animal performance in mixed swards (Hernández Garay et al, 2004).…”

“…In one of the few works performed, Dunavin (1992) evaluated the association of 'Florigraze' RP with 'Pensacola' bahiagrass. Growth habit and morphology of these entries play an important role in establishment (Mullenix et al, 2016;Jaramillo et al, 2018). Management practices adopted during RP planting , in the establishment year (Castillo et al, 2013a(Castillo et al, , 2013b, and the entries used affect the performance of the pasture over time ( Jaramillo et al, 2018).…”

Nitrogen Fertilization and Proportion of Legume Affect Litter Decomposition and Nutrient Return in Grass Pastures

“…Although efforts continue to increase adoption of legumes in warm-climate grasslands (Castillo et al, 2014;Mullenix et al, 2016aMullenix et al, , 2016b, the effect of legume proportion on grass sward nutrient cycling is not well understood, particularly when compared with grass monocultures receiving N fertilizer. The objective of this study was to quantify the effects of N fertilization of bahiagrass monoculture and the proportion of rhizoma peanut (Arachis glabrata Benth.)…”