Agrivoltaic systems are designed to mutually benefit solar energy and agricultural production in the same location for dual-use of land. This study was conducted to compare lamb growth and pasture production from solar pastures in agrivoltaic systems and traditional open pastures over 2 years in Oregon. Weaned Polypay lambs grew at 120 and 119 g head−1 d−1 in solar and open pastures, respectively in spring 2019 (P = 0.90). The liveweight production between solar (1.5 kg ha−1 d−1) and open pastures (1.3 kg ha−1 d−1) were comparable (P = 0.67). Similarly, lamb liveweight gains and liveweight productions were comparable in both solar (89 g head−1 d−1; 4.6 kg ha−1 d−1) and open (92 g head−1 d−1; 5.0 kg ha−1 d−1) pastures (all P > 0.05) in 2020. The daily water consumption of the lambs in spring 2019 were similar during early spring, but lambs in open pastures consumed 0.72 L head−1 d−1 more water than those grazed under solar panels in the late spring period (P < 0.01). No difference was observed in water intake of the lambs in spring 2020 (P = 0.42). Over the entire period, solar pastures produced 38% lower herbage than open pastures due to low pasture density in fully shaded areas under solar panels. The results from our grazing study indicated that lower herbage mass available in solar pastures was offset by higher forage quality, resulting in similar spring lamb production to open pastures. Our findings also suggest that the land productivity could be greatly increased through combining sheep grazing and solar energy production on the same land in agrivoltaics systems.
Nitrogen (N) is a pivotal element that drives plant growth, yet it is the most limiting nutrient for pasture production (Mills, Moot, & Jamieson, 2009). In particular, dryland pasture soils in arid and temperate regions are often low in N. Therefore, increasing N availability in dryland pastures that are managed under low-input production systems is a primary need to improve productivity. Application of chemical fertilizers can be costly and challenging, particularly in difficult terrains such as hill and high-country pastures. In such environments, biological N 2 fixation by legumes, through their symbiotic relationship with soil bacteria, is an excellent tool to increase N availability for pasture plants (Ledgard & Steele, 1992). Nitrogen recycled through the grazed grass-legume pasture systems improves forage quality. Additionally, a higher legume content of pastures leads to higher herbage intake and productivity of grazing livestock
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