Management targets for maximising the short-term herbage intake rate of cattle grazing in Sorghum bicolor

Herbage accumulation and grazing losses on Mulato grass subjected to strategies of rotational stocking management

“…Part was lost to the soil pathway, characterizing inefficiency of the grazing process particularly during periods of limiting climatic conditions for pasture growth (Figure 4b). Thus, although the 99 % LI treatments resulted in the largest amounts of herbage removal, they also resulted in greater losses (Table 6), especially during autumn/winter/early spring and late spring, when there was a smaller proportion of leaves and greater proportion of stems and dead material in the upper strata of sward canopy, a condition that could have negative implications to grazing (Fonseca et al, 2012). The total amount of losses to the soil pathway (grazing losses) per treatment was 2990, 3390, 4820 and 5600 kg ha -1 for treatments 95/20, 95/15, 99/20 and 99/15, respectively.…”

“…Recent studies conducted with tropical forage grasses (Difante et al, 2009;Cunha et al, 2010) have indicated that 95 % light interception (LI) corresponds to the appropriate time for interrupting the regrowth process of species because it maximized leaf dry matter accumulation and ensures high grazing efficiency (Carnevalli et al, 2006). To ensure high levels of intake and performance, grazing should be interrupted when sward height reaches 40 to 60 % of the pre-grazing height (Fonseca et al, 2012). However, information regarding grazing management of mulato grass is scarce.…”

Levels of defoliation and regrowth dynamics in elephant grass swards

“…The 120cm height was defined to create a contrasting management scenario widely used by local farmers. Similarly, based on the research of ZANINI et al (2012) and FONSECA et al (2012), the levels of defoliation used, of 50 and 70%, were chosen to create contrasting conditions of low and high harvest efficiency, respectively. Before grazing, samples of herbage mass were collected at ground level in three quadrats of 1m 2 each to calculate the stocking rate necessary to graze the pastures down to the desired residue targets.…”

“…In the 'Napier' cultivar, CARVALHO et al (2007) Some studies have shown that the ideal time to interrupt grazing must not exceed 50% of the initial height because beyond this point, there is a reduction in the instantaneous herbage intake rate (FONSECA et al, 2012) with a possible negative impact on herbage intake and animal performance. Studies with aruana guinea grass and annual ryegrass conducted by ZANINI et al (2012) indicated that approximately 90% of the stem mass is concentrated in the first half of the sward, suggesting that the presence of this component could act as a physical barrier to grazing animals.…”

Estrutura do dossel, interceptação de luz e acúmulo de forragem em amendoim-forrageiro (<i>Arachis pintoi </i>Krapovickas &amp; Gregory cv. Belmonte) submetido a estratégias de pastejo rotativo

“…Contudo, observou-se também a presença de plantas invasoras (Figura 7). A maior presença de folíolos na metade superior do dossel salienta a importância da definição adequada da meta de altura pós-pastejo, uma vez que remoção de mais de 50% da altura de entrada implica em pequena área foliar remanescente (de menor qualidade) e restrições ao processo de pastejo associadas com menor valor nutritivo da forragem consumida (FONSECA et al, 2012) …”