Incorporating Plantain with Perennial Ryegrass-White Clover in a Dairy Grazing System: Dry Matter Yield, Botanical Composition, and Nutritive Value Response to Sowing Rate, Plantain Content and Season

Abstract

Incorporating plantain with perennial ryegrass and white clover (RGWC) can improve the quality and quantity of grazing pastures; however, the sowing rate could affect the persistence of plantain, pasture yield, and nutritive value in different seasons. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of increasing sowing rates of plantain when established with RGWC on the dry matter (DM) yield, botanical composition, nutritive value, and bioactive compounds of the pasture over the first two years after sowing; and to determine the relationship between plantain content and nutritive characteristics in different seasons. The pasture treatments were RGWC, RGWC + low plantain rate (PLL), RGWC + medium plantain rate (PLM), and RGWC + high plantain rate (PLH). The results showed that annual DM yield was similar between treatments. The average plantain content (including leaves and reproductive stem) was 32, 44, and 48% in PLL, PLM, and PLH, respectively. The plantain composition increased in the first 15 months, then declined rapidly to about 20–30% at day 705 after sowing. Compared with RGWC, the plantain-RGWC pastures (PLL, PLM, PLH) had a higher content of organic matter digestibility (OMD), ash, starch, non-structural carbohydrates (NSC), P, S, Ca, Mg, Na, Cl, Zn, B, Co, aucubin, acteoside, and catalpol, while they contained a lower composition of DM%, acid detergent fibre (ADF), neutral detergent fibre (NDF), crude fat (CF), Fe, and Mn. These differences were linearly associated with the content of plantain leaves in the pasture and were higher in summer and autumn than in spring. In conclusion, incorporating plantain into the RGWC pasture can improve herbage nutritive quality, thus potentially increasing farm productivity and environmental benefits. However, further work is required to investigate management interventions to sustain plantain content beyond two years from sowing.

Implementing plantain (Plantago lanceolata) to mitigate the impact of grazing ruminants on nitrogen losses to the environment: A review

“…The prolific seeding capacity of PL sees it operating as a short-term perennial, which is commonly seen in grass-based mixtures where competition from perennial ryegrass is intense and contribution to sward mass typically declines to <10% after 3 years (Dodd et al, 2019b). For example, in the study of Nguyen et al (2022a), sowing rates of 4 and 7 kg PL ha À1 in a PR-WC mix were able to maintain levels of PL at 30% and 50% respectively for only two years. Retaining a level of PL that makes a substantive contribution to livestock diet (e.g., >30%) in PR-dominant swards is difficult, unless the grass is seasonally suppressed (e.g., in warm dry environments).…”

Milk production and nitrogen excretion of grazed dairy cows in response to plantain (Plantago lanceolata) content and lactation season

“…Paddock-scale research has demonstrated that dairy cows grazing plantain pastures can halve N leaching losses from dairy systems over an entire lactation season, while maintaining milk solids production compared to RGWC pastures [15]. However, it is important to determine and maintain appropriate plantain proportions to obtain the environmental benefits over extended periods when plantain is incorporated with RGWC in A c c e p t e d A r t i c l e grazing systems [16,17]. Additionally, the composition and quality of plantain can vary significantly across seasons [18], resulting in variable effects on milk production and the UN excretion of dairy cows [12,19].…”

“…Therefore, before the widespread adoption of this technology on farms, clear evidence is needed regarding the effect of incorporating plantain in RGWC pasture on milk production and UN excretion of dairy cows under typical farm practices for extended periods. A recent study at Massey University has indicated that plantain proportion, when incorporated with RGWC under grazed conditions, increases in the first 1.5 years after sowing before declining rapidly in the following year [17]. Furthermore, plantain composition is positively associated with non-structural carbohydrates (NSC), mineral content, and bioactive plant secondary compounds, while negatively correlated with dry matter (DM) and fibre content [17].…”

“…A recent study at Massey University has indicated that plantain proportion, when incorporated with RGWC under grazed conditions, increases in the first 1.5 years after sowing before declining rapidly in the following year [17]. Furthermore, plantain composition is positively associated with non-structural carbohydrates (NSC), mineral content, and bioactive plant secondary compounds, while negatively correlated with dry matter (DM) and fibre content [17]. Changes in plantain proportion and nutritive value may impact milk production and UN excretion of dairy cows across seasons.…”

A Forage Allowance by Forage Type Interaction Impacts the Daily Milk Yield of Early Lactation Dairy Cows

“…Relative to perennial ryegrass, plantain herbage typically has a lower structural fibre content [ 29 ], which can permit individual cow DM and resultant metabolisable energy (ME) intake to be elevated sufficiently to increase milk production [ 30 ]. Plantain herbage is also known to be mineral-rich [ 31 , 32 , 33 ] and have a negative dietary cation–anion difference [ 34 ], which can reduce the incidence of the economically important metabolic disorder hypocalcaemia (milk fever) [ 35 ]. Aside from these obvious production advantages, incorporating plantain into swards can have the added benefit of reducing environmental nitrogen (N) losses [ 22 , 36 ].…”