Towards sustainable temperate perennial pastures

Kemp, David; Dowling, P. M.

doi:10.1071/ea98003

Cited by 70 publications

(30 citation statements)

References 18 publications

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“…Maintaining a high perennial grass content is important to overcome environmental constraints and increase animal productivity in the high rainfall zone of southern Australia (Kemp and Dowling 2000). Therefore, the decline in perennial ryegrass and the failure of phalaris to make a significant contribution throughout the experiment despite adequate establishment is concerning.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Pasture systems to improve productivity of sheep in south-western Victoria. 1. Growth, composition, nutritive value and persistence of resown pastures

Saul¹,

Kearney²,

Borg³

2009

Anim. Prod. Sci.

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Two pasture systems were compared at five on-farm sites across south-western Victoria between 1990 and 1996. The 'typical' pasture treatment mimicked the pasture and grazing management common in the region, with volunteer annual-based pastures fertilised with around 5 kg/ha phosphorus (P) each year. The 'upgraded' pasture treatments were resown to phalaris, perennial ryegrass and subterranean clover, and higher rates of fertiliser (13-25 kg P/ha.year) plus other nutrients were applied. Both pastures were set stocked with the participating farmers breeding ewes. Stocking rate was an emergent variable on each plot. The stocking rate on the typical treatments was based on normal farm practise. Initially, the stocking rate of the upgraded pastures was 15% higher than for the typical pastures and increased over time depending if the ewes in the upgraded pastures were heavier than those in the typical pastures. Measurements included soil fertility, pasture production, nutritive value and composition, and animal production.Net annual pasture production of the upgraded pastures was 10 500 kg/ha compared with 8700 kg/ha for the typical pastures. This average difference (18%) between the treatments was greatly influenced by the large advantage (40%) of the upgraded pasture in the wet year of 1992. Upgraded pastures had higher pasture production than typical pastures in spring but the reverse occurred in autumn. In a separate small plot experiment, the response of each pasture to higher P fertiliser applications was tested. In autumn and winter, there was a significant interaction between pasture type and P rate, with higher responses on the upgraded pastures. In spring, both pastures responded to increased P applications but the upgraded pastures were more responsive at all P rates. The upgraded pastures contained significantly higher legume content (30-50%) than the typical pastures (10-20%). The proportion of sown perennial grasses in the upgraded pasture declined from around 30 to 10% after 6 years displaced by annual grasses and broad-leaf weeds. Herbage from upgraded pastures had significantly higher crude protein content (2-7 units) and digestibility (1-10 units) than the typical pastures with the difference between the treatments increasing over time.The set stocking policy used in this experiment is likely to have exacerbated the decline in sown perennial grasses and implementation of some form of strategic or rotational grazing may have improved persistence. The experiment also highlights the importance of selecting perennial grasses able to cope with the local environment and grazing conditions. Despite the decline in perennials, these results show significant potential to improve pasture productivity and quality in south-western Victoria.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Pasture systems to improve productivity of sheep in south-western Victoria. 1. Growth, composition, nutritive value and persistence of resown pastures

Saul¹,

Kearney²,

Borg³

2009

Anim. Prod. Sci.

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“…Perennial plants are important for sustainable grassland production systems because they reduce deep drainage, nutrient leakage, soil acidification and soil erosion, and increase the stability and yield of herbage production (Kemp and Dowling 2000;Ridley et al 1990). However, these benefits are only sustained if the perennials are persistent.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Root morphology, root-hair development and rhizosheath formation on perennial grass seedlings is influenced by soil acidity

et al. 2010

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Perennial pasture species are important for sustainable pasture systems; yet some species display poor persistence on acid soils. This work investigated the effect of soil acidity on primary root length and root-hair and rhizosheath development of five perennial grass genotypes varying in acid-soil resistance. Plants were grown in three low-P acid soils that were limed (CaCO 3 ) to modify soil pH (0.01 M CaCl 2 extractable) from <4.3 to >5.0 and Al 3+ concentrations from ≥ 16 to <4 mg kg −1 (0.01 M CaCl 2 extractable). Root morphology of tall wheatgrass (Thinopyrum ponticum (Podp.) Z.-W. Liu & R.-C Wang), phalaris (Phalaris aquatica L.), cocksfoot (Dactylis glomerata L.) and weeping grass (Microlaena stipoides Labill. R. Br.) was assessed after 20-25 days growth. The root length of tall wheatgrass and phalaris cv Sirosa was sensitive to acidity, with lateral root length more sensitive to acidity than seminal root length. Lime increased the root-hair length and density of both acid-soil sensitive and resistant genotypes (cocksfoot and an acidresistant line of phalaris) and root-hair length was positively correlated to an increase in rhizosheath size per unit root length. Restricted root length and poor root-soil contact of acid-soil sensitive genotypes may explain their low yield and relatively poor persistence on acid soils. The improvement to root-hair and rhizosheath development of genotypes that are acidsoil resistant in terms of root length demonstrates the benefit of using resistant genotypes in conjunction with liming to manage acid soils. Weeping grass was exceptional in its ability to maintain root length, roothair and rhizosheath development in acid soil.

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“…However, it has been widely recognised that retaining valuable perennial pastures in the high-rainfall temperate zone of Australia is difficult and requires careful management (Kemp and Dowling 2000).…”

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Pasture herbage mass, quality and growth in response to three whole-farmlet management systems

et al. 2013

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Abstract.The effects of different whole-farm management systems were explored in a farmlet trial on the Northern Tablelands of New South Wales, Australia, between July 2000 and December 2006. The three systems examined were first, a moderate input farmlet with flexible grazing on eight paddocks considered 'typical' of the region (farmlet B), a second, also with flexible grazing on eight paddocks but with a high level of pasture renovation and increased soil fertility (farmlet A) and a third with the same moderate level of inputs as farmlet B but which practised intensive rotational grazing on 37 paddocks (farmlet C).The changes in herbage mass, herbage quality and pasture growth followed a seasonal pattern typical of the Northern Tablelands with generally higher levels recorded over spring-summer and lower levels in autumn-winter but with substantial differences between years due to the variable climate experienced. Over the first 18 months of the trial there were no significant differences between farmlets in total herbage mass. Although the climate was generally drier than average, the differences between farmlets in pasture herbage mass and quality became more evident over the duration of the experiment. After the farmlet treatments started to take effect, the levels of total and dead herbage mass became significantly lower on farmlet A compared with farmlets B and C. In contrast, the levels of green herbage were similar for all farmlets.Throughout most of the study period, pastures on farmlet A with its higher levels of pasture renovation and soil fertility, had significantly higher DM digestibility for both green and dead herbage components compared with pastures on either of the moderate input systems (B and C). Thus, when green herbage mass and quality were combined, farmlet A tended to have higher levels of green digestible herbage than either of the other farmlets, which had similar levels, suggesting that pasture renovation and soil fertility had more effect on the supply of quality pasture than did grazing management. This difference was observed in spite of the higher stocking rate supported by farmlet A after treatments took effect.Levels of legume herbage mass, while generally low due to the dry conditions, were significantly higher on farmlet A compared with the other two farmlets. While ground cover on farmlet A was found to be less than the other farmlets, this was largely associated with the higher level of pasture renovation. Generally, all three farmlets had ground cover levels well above 70% for the duration of the experiment, thus being above levels considered critical for prevention of erosion.A multivariate analysis showed that the main explanatory factors significantly linked (P < 0.01) with the supply of high quality herbage were, in decreasing order of importance, those related to season and weather, pasture renovation, grazing management and soil fertility. Measurements of net pasture growth conducted using a limited number of grazing exclosure cages on three paddocks per farmlet reve...

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Towards sustainable temperate perennial pastures

Cited by 70 publications

References 18 publications

Pasture systems to improve productivity of sheep in south-western Victoria. 1. Growth, composition, nutritive value and persistence of resown pastures

Pasture systems to improve productivity of sheep in south-western Victoria. 1. Growth, composition, nutritive value and persistence of resown pastures

Root morphology, root-hair development and rhizosheath formation on perennial grass seedlings is influenced by soil acidity

Pasture herbage mass, quality and growth in response to three whole-farmlet management systems

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