Performance of summer forage legumes in the sub-tropical sub-humid Pothwar plateau of Pakistan

Abstract

Abstract:To determine forage yield and crude protein (CP) content in four legume species viz. cowpea, lablab bean, rice bean and sesbania along with a non-leguminous reference crop of sorghum, a study was carried out . The highest dry weight of 4 t haG 1 was obtained from sesbania and sorghum and the lowest dry weight of 2 t haG 1 from cowpea was found. Maximum and minimum heights of 144 and 86 cm were obtained from sesbania and rice bean respectively. The highest fresh matter yield of 17 t haG 1 while the lowest of 9 t haG 1 was obtained from sorghum and lablab beans respectively. The highest crude protein (CP) yield of 581 kg haG 1 was recorded from sesbania.