Nutritive value and yield of reduced‐lignin alfalfa cultivars in monoculture and in binary mixtures with perennial grass

Cherney, J. H.; Smith, S. Ray; Cherney, D. J. R.

doi:10.1002/agj2.20045

Cited by 12 publications

(14 citation statements)

References 31 publications

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“…Comparison of an FD 3 cultivar with an FD 4 cultivar may bias the nutritive value results slightly, but this bias appears legitimate when comparing alfalfas in a region that borders FD 3 and 4 cultivar recommendations. With less than ideal sites for alfalfa, the typical nutritive value differences expected between a reduced-lignin alfalfa cultivar and a conventional cultivar (Cherney et al, 2020;Grev et al, 2017) were not as apparent in this study. For Site 1, HarvXtra did not differ in lignin concentration from Hi-Gest 360 but had greater in vitro true digestibility at 48 h and NDFD, with 4.2% greater NDFD for HarvXtra ( Table 2).…”

Section: Alfalfacontrasting

confidence: 71%

“…SW Minto had greater grass percentage than Tetrax at Site 1 (55.7 vs. 44.5%) and at Site 2 (68.2 vs. 62.8%). In a previous study, meadow fescue percentage in binary mixtures exceeded 30% in the year following seeding in New York with a 2 lb acre −1 grass seeding rate on a relatively productive soil for alfalfa (Cherney et al., 2020). There were no interactions for grass percentage, although grass percentage tended to be more variable for SW Minto at Site 2 (Figure 4).…”

Section: Forage Yieldmentioning

confidence: 92%

“…The nutritive value of grass species and cultivars varies by region, indicating that evaluation of perennial grasses for nutritive value needs to be conducted locally or regionally (Cherney, Smith, Sheaffer, & Cherney, 2020). Alfalfa–timothy ( Phleum pratense L.) mixtures in eastern Canada increased both yield and nutritive value over pure stands of alfalfa, measured as neutral detergent fiber digestibility (NDFD) (Bélanger, Castonguay, & Lajeunesse, 2014).…”

Section: Alfalfa–grass Mixturesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Darbysh.] has been reported to have greater nutritive value than other northern perennial grasses sown with alfalfa, particularly in the northeastern United States (Cherney et al., 2020). Meadow fescue had up to 9% more NDFD than other grasses in studies conducted in New York and Wisconsin (Casler et al., 2015, Casler, Brink, & Cherney, 2017).…”

Section: Alfalfa–grass Mixturesmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Meadow fescue seeding rate impacts mixtures with alfalfa on marginal sites

Cherney

2020

Crop Forage & Turfgrass Mgmt

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Alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.)–grass mixtures are often used to provide high‐quality dairy forage in the northeastern United States. Meadow fescue (Festuca pratensis Huds.) is popular as a companion for alfalfa in the region because of its high nutritive value. We aimed to evaluate alfalfa–meadow fescue mixtures in northern environments that are unsuited to alfalfa production. Our study was conducted in the year after seeding at two northern New York sites. A reduced‐lignin [fall dormancy (FD) = 4] and a conventional alfalfa (FD = 3) were seeded with diploid and tetraploid meadow fescue varieties in replicated plots, with five seeding rates for meadow fescue. Dry matter yield increased linearly with increased meadow fescue seeding rate. The meadow fescue percentage of mixtures had a curvilinear response to meadow fescue seeding rate, increasing from 44% at the 0.5 lb acre–1 seeding rate to 67.4% at the 4 lb acre–1 rate. Tetraploid meadow fescue had a smaller grass percentage in mixtures and higher nutritive value than a diploid meadow fescue. Reduced‐lignin alfalfa was not greatly different in nutritive value from a conventional cultivar under unfavorable environmental conditions for alfalfa production. We conclude that meadow fescue should be seeded at a very low rate (1 lb acre–1) with alfalfa in northern environments that are unsuitable for alfalfa. Moreover, reduced‐lignin alfalfa (FD = 4) may not result in large increases in nutritive value compared with conventional cultivars selected for high nutritive value on marginal northern sites better suited to FD 3 cultivars.

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Section: Alfalfacontrasting

confidence: 71%

Section: Forage Yieldmentioning

confidence: 92%

Section: Alfalfa–grass Mixturesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Alfalfa–grass Mixturesmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Meadow fescue seeding rate impacts mixtures with alfalfa on marginal sites

Cherney

2020

Crop Forage & Turfgrass Mgmt

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“…Using these species in mixtures can increase the benefits that are conferred by the cover crops ( Döring et al, 2013 ; Stagnari et al, 2017 ; Storkey et al, 2015 ). Further, many cover crops are great forage crops, and using them in binary mixtures demonstrated high yield and nutritive value of the selected species ( Aponte, Samarappuli & Berti, 2019 ; Bélanger et al, 2017 ; Cherney et al, 2020 ; Waldron et al, 2020 ). Thereby, cover crop mixtures may constitute a promising future for sustainable agricultural systems and forage production.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of mixing two legume species at seedling stage under different environmental conditions

Elsalahy

Bellingrath-Kimura

Kautz

et al. 2021

PeerJ

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While intercropping is known to have positive effects on crop productivity, it is unclear whether the effects of mixing species start at the early plant stage, that is, during germination. We tested whether the germination of two legume species, alsike clover and black medic, characterized by a contrasting response to water availability and temperature is affected by mixing. We set up four experiments in each of which we compared a 1:1 mixture against the two monocultures, and combined this with various other experimental factors. These additional factors were (i) varied seed densities (50%, 100% and 150% of a reference density) in two field trials in 2016 and 2017, (ii) varied seed densities (high and low) and water availability (six levels, between 25% and 100% of water holding capacity (WHC)) in a greenhouse pot trial, (iii) varied seed spacing in a climate chamber, and (iv) varied temperatures (12 °C, 20 °C and 28 °C) and water availability (four levels between 25% and 100% of WHC) in a climate chamber. Across all experiments, the absolute mixture effects (AME) on germination ranged between −9% and +11%, with a median of +1.3%. Within experiments, significant mixture effects were observed, but the direction of these effects was inconsistent. In the field, AME on germination was significantly negative at some of the tested seed densities. A positive AME was observed in the climate chamber at 12 °C, and the mean AME decreased with increasing temperature. Higher density was associated with decreased germination in the field, indicating negative interaction through competition or allelopathy, among seedlings. Our findings indicate that interaction among seeds in species mixtures may be ongoing during germination, but that the direction of the mixture effect is affected by complex interactions with abiotic and biotic factors.

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Pasture rejuvenation using sainfoin and cicer milkvetch in western Canada

et al. 2020

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Sod‐seeding of depleted pastures with non‐bloating legumes can be a low‐cost pasture rejuvenation strategy for ranchers in the North American prairies. A study was conducted to determine if sainfoin (Onobrychis vicifolia subsp. vicifolia) or cicer milkvetch (CMV) (Astragalus cicer L.) populations or cultivars (hereinafter populations) can be used to rejuvenate alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) or grass pastures. The study included sainfoin populations with increased fitness to grow with alfalfa and CMV cultivars that were selected for early emergence and rapid seedling growth. These populations were seeded using three seeding methods: traditional re‐seeding, drilling seed with Great Plains drill, or Pan drill, using split‐plot randomization at three locations in Alberta in 2015 or 2016. Lethbridge had pre‐existing alfalfa while Ponoka and Red Deer were predominantly grass pastures. The sod‐seeded rejuvenation, as indicated by percentage dry matter (DM) contributed by newly planted species succeeded at Lethbridge (≥15), failed at Ponoka (∼1), and partially succeeded at Red Deer (≥9). Successful establishment of new plants did not increase the total forage mass of the rejuvenated pasture. Sainfoin populations established better and contributed greater forage mass compared to CMV cultivars when sod‐seeded on alfalfa pasture, but the improvement was not consistent on grass pasture. Forage nutritive values were not different among populations within species, but pasture seeded with CMV cultivars had greater crude protein than unseeded plots. Sod‐seeded grass–legume pasture had greater crude protein than unseeded plots at Red Deer. Sod‐seeding alfalfa pasture with sainfoin populations can be an efficient pasture rejuvenation strategy.

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Nutritive value and yield of reduced‐lignin alfalfa cultivars in monoculture and in binary mixtures with perennial grass

Cited by 12 publications

References 31 publications

Meadow fescue seeding rate impacts mixtures with alfalfa on marginal sites

Meadow fescue seeding rate impacts mixtures with alfalfa on marginal sites

Effects of mixing two legume species at seedling stage under different environmental conditions

Pasture rejuvenation using sainfoin and cicer milkvetch in western Canada

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