Yield and Nutritive Value of Summer Legumes as Influenced by Dairy Manure Compost and Competition with Crabgrass

Abstract

Warm‐season legumes have the potential to improve range and pasture value as well as provide wildlife feed and habitat but are often unable to compete with aggressive annual grasses on infertile, low‐P soils. A strip split‐plot design experiment was established on a Windthorst fine sandy loam (fine, mixed, thermic, Udic Paleustalf) under irrigation to evaluate legume herbage production and nutritive value in the 1999 and 2000 growing seasons in competition with crabgrass (Digitaria ciliaris Koetz.) and with dairy manure compost as a soil amendment. Legumes included ‘Sabine’ Illinois bundleflower [Desmanthus illinoiensis Michx. Mac Mill ex B.L. Rob & Fernald], rayado bundleflower [Desmanthus virgatus (L.) Willd.], partridge‐pea [Chamaecrista fasciculata (Michx.) Greene], and phasey bean [Macroptilium lathyroides (L.) Urban] grown in either pure stands or mixed with crabgrass. The application of 15.5 Mg dry matter (DM) dairy compost ha−1 yr−1 increased P concentration in all forage species but did not influence total herbage DM yield or other nutritive factors. Illinois bundleflower was the most productive legume followed by rayado bundleflower and partridge‐pea while phasey bean was the least productive. Although Illinois bundleflower had low crude protein concentrations (152–160 g kg−1), it and rayado bundleflower had lower acid detergent fiber (166–219 g kg−1) and acid detergent lignin concentrations (37–51 g kg−1) than the other entries. Soil amendment with compost did not affect legume development but did favor crabgrass competition. Competition with crabgrass depressed legume yields during the establishment year. This was less a factor during the second year, indicating that legume stand establishment is possible, albeit slowed, in the presence of an annual grass.

Sustainable, low‐input, warm‐season, grass–legume grassland mixtures: mission (nearly) impossible?

“…None of these are as yet widely recommended in cultivated pasture seed mixtures because of the lack of seedling vigour, low productivity and persistence, and anti‐quality factors (Posler et al. , 1993; Berg, 1996; Jackson, 1999; Nguluve et al. , 2004).…”

Effect of competition between Vicia faba and Camelina sativa as a model weed in breeding for organic conditions

“…Under competition with C. sativa , faba bean genotypes had lower chlorophyll content in the leaves. Low chlorophyll content could be due to a deficiency in nitrogen uptake and low protein content (Nguluve et al ., ). In winter oilseed rape, the chlorophyll content was significantly and positively correlated with the seed protein content (Kessel, ).…”

“…Nguluve et al . () showed that legumes, such as Desmathus sp. and Macroptilium sp., had lower protein concentrations in vegetative parts under competition with grasses when compared with plots without competition, apparently due to a lower nitrogen uptake.…”

Minimal soil quality impact by cold season pasture management in Vermont

“…These changes in forage quality may be explained by shifts in plant community composition and relative abundance, known to influence forage quality (Pirhofer-Walzl et al 2011). Compost amendment can increase grass competition with legumes (Nguluve et al 2004), and grasses have lower N and mineral content and greater lignin content than forbs (Knapp et al 2011). Forage species composition and relative abundance were not measured during this study but would help analysis and interpretation as well as provide a potential field indicator for forage quality.…”