Perennial cereal rye performance and comparisons with winter annual cereal forages in the semiarid, subtropical southwestern United States

Abstract

The demand for forage for livestock production is increasing in semiarid regions. Winter annual cereal forages are commonly used to fill autumn through spring forage gaps where dry winters occur. Perennial cereal rye (Secale cereale L. × S. montanum Guss., P‐CR) shows promise for forage in other areas. Randomized complete block studies were conducted during the 2013–2014 and 2014–2015 autumn through spring growing seasons at two locations in the semiarid, subtropical US Southwest for a total of six site‐years (Los Lunas [two irrigation regimes] and Tucumcari, NM) to evaluate local adaptation and possible perennation of P‐CR as an alternative to winter annual cereal forages. Poor establishment of P‐CR occurred in the 2013–2014 season and prevented data collection; however, the P‐CR variety tested did not perennate in any of these site‐years in the southwestern United States. Generally, across site‐years, as annual cereal forages harvested at boot stage, P‐CR and triticale [× Triticosecale Wittm. ex A. Camus (Secale × Triticum)] had equal and greater dry matter yields than annual cereal rye (S. cereale, A‐CR) and winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L., WW) (11.89, 7.43, 11.32, and 9.66 Mg ha−1 for P‐CR, A‐CR, triticale, and WW, respectively; P < 0.0001, SEM = 0.36). Additionally, across environments, fiber components (acid detergent fiber, neutral detergent fiber, and acid detergent lignin) were generally higher, and crude protein and 48‐h neutral detergent fiber digestibility were generally lesser for P‐CR than for the annual species (110, 180, 144, and 133 g crude protein kg−1 for P‐CR, A‐CR, triticale, and WW, respectively; P < 0.0001, SEM = 6). Currently used annual species (cereal rye, triticale, or wheat) continue to be recommended.

Relay Intercropping Winter Cover Crop Effects on Spring Forage Potential of Sweet Maize Stover and Yearling Cattle Beef Performance

“…Fae et al [ 8 ] found that oat–cereal rye mixtures were more optimal for grazing in no-till maize production than annual ryegrass, because the ryegrass did not begin its period of rapid growth until shortly before the maize planting time. Cereal rye was the earliest maturing winter cereal in the studies by Lauriault and Kirksey [ 22 ] and Marsalis et al [ 29 ], attaining boot stage in early April, about the same time that grazing began in the present study. The differences in the timing of optimum forage availability of cereal rye and hairy vetch in the present study and those reported by Butler et al [ 18 ] could be due to the competition exerted by annual ryegrass in the Butler study that was not imposed in the present study, as well as environmental influences on maturity.…”

“…This was not unexpected because the cereal forage nutritive value declines with maturity, especially after heading [ 28 ]. In the studies slightly south of the present study location, rye initiated heading on about 7 April [ 29 ] and hairy vetch did not initiate flowering until 26 April [ 30 ]. In the present study, the rye in Year 2 was sampled about two weeks after heading (20 April), but only 1 week after heading (15 April) in Year 3, and sampling took place each year before the hairy vetch initiated flowering.…”

A Comparison of Native Grass and Triticale Pastures during Late Winter for Growing Cattle in Semiarid, Subtropical Regions

“…These cereals have forage production similar to that of wheat in the SHP [9], although rye and triticale tend to have greater sustained winter growth than wheat. This being stated, cereal rye is very early maturing [10], leading to a shorter grazing season than either wheat or triticale [11]. Triticale is generally limited to forage production due to low grain yields and poor grain milling properties [9].…”

Seasonal Mass, Performance under Grazing, and Animal Preference for Irrigated Winter Cereal Forages under Continuous Stocking in a Semiarid, Subtropical Region

“…In other research at this location, harvesting winter cereals in early April when cattle would be moved from winter cereals to perennial pastures [11] presents an opportunity for continued growth of all cereals for harvest as hay or silage to increase in economic returns from the same seeding (data not collected in the present study, but 1.17, 2.34, and 0.45 Mg ha −1 were harvested from 1-2 additional cuttings between early April and the end of May for rye, triticale, and wheat respectively; Leonard Lauriault and Mark Marsalis, unpublished data). Marsalis et al [21] and Niece et al [22] show that triticale and wheat typically produce more DM than cereal rye when allowed to mature to boot stage later in the spring. Chapko et al [20], Collins et al [23], and Rao et al [7] all found that forage yields of small grains were depressed by moisture stress.…”