Hostname: page-component-7479d7b7d-m9pkr Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-07-13T19:11:36.104Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Productivity of S. 59 red fescue with and without S. 184 white clover under hill conditions: 2. Herbage measurements in relation to animal performance

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 March 2009

D. A. Davies
D. A. Davies
Affiliation:
Welsh Plant Breeding Station, Plus Gogerddan, Aberystwyth
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Summary

Herbage availability, intake and nutritive value were recorded on swards of S. 59 red fescue (Festuca rvbra L.) and S. 23 perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.), with and without S. 184 white clover (Trifolium repens L.), and correlated with animal performance. Intake of dry matter was similar on all treatments. Animal live-weight gains during 1969 were positively correlated with digestible organic matter intake (DOMI).

Poor animal performance from red fescue swards in mid-summer was attributed to the rapid fall in digestibility at this time which affected DOMI.

Differences between treatments in efficiency of conversion of DOMI into live-weight gains were observed. Superior conversion ratios in swards containing clover could not be related to any of the herbage quality measurements recorded.

Better animal productivity from red fescue swards in early spring and in late autumn were related to the longer growing season of this grass.

The merits and demerits of red fescue as a grass for hill conditions and the possibility of reducing its limitations by breeding are discussed.

Type
Research Article
Information
The Journal of Agricultural Science , Volume 84 , Issue 2 , April 1975 , pp. 273 - 280
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1975

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

REFERENCES

Agricultural Research Council, (1965). The Nutrient Requirements of Farm Livestock. No. 2. Ruminants. London: H.M. Stationery Office.Google Scholar
Arnold, G. W. & Dudzinski, M. L. (1967). Studies on the diet of the grazing animal. III. The effect of pasture species and pasture structure on the herbage intake of sheep. Austalian Journal of Agricultural Research 18, 657–66.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Campbell, A. G. (1966). Grazed pasture parameters. I. Pasture dry matter production and availability in a stocking rate and grazing management experiment with dairy cows. The Journal of Agricultural Science, Cambridge 67, 199–210.Google Scholar
Davies, D. A. (1975). Productivity of S. 59 red fescue with and without S. 184 white clover under hill conditions. I. Animal performance. The Journal of Agricultural Science, Cambridge 84, 265–72.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Davies, W. (1940). The yield and other characteristics of grasses and clovers when sown in simple mixtures on an exposed hill at an elevation of 1,300 feet. The Welsh Journal of Agricultural Science 16, 175–205.Google Scholar
Duncan, D. B. (1955). Multiple range and multiple F tests. Biometrics 11, 1–42.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Fontenot, J. P. & Blaser, B. E. (1965). Symposium of factors influencing the voluntary intake of herbage ruminants. Selection and intake by grazing animals. Journal of Animal Science 24, 1202–1208.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Greenhalgh, J. F. D. (1967). Tenth International Grassland Congress. Review of Section 2. Grassland Utilization. Journal of the British Grassland Society 22, 13–17.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Greenhalgh, J. F. D. (1969). Herbage quality in the field. Grass and Forage Breeding. The British Grassland Society, Occasional Symposium, no. 5, pp. 45–51.Google Scholar
Hunt, I. V. (1962). The persistency and productivity of grasses on upland peat. Experimental Record no. 4, West of Scotland Agricultural College.Google Scholar
Munro, J. M. M. & Davies, D. A. (1974a). Potential pasture production in the uplands of Wales. 5. Nitrogen contribution of white clover. Journal of the British Grassland Society 29, 213–23.Google Scholar
Munro, J. M. M. & Davies, D. A. (1974b). Potential pasture production in the uplands of Wales. 6. The relative performance of sown species and varieties. Journal of the British Grassland Society. (In preparation.)Google Scholar
Raymond, W. F. (1969). The nutritive value of forage crops. Advances in Agronomy 21, 1–108.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Thomas, M. T. (1934). Competition in seeds mixtures at high elevations (850 ft) at Moelglomen, Talybont, Cardiganshire. Annals of Applied Biology 21, 553–65.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Tilley, J. M. A. & Terry, R. A. (1963). A two-stage technique for the in vitro digestion of forage crops. Journal of the British Grassland Society 18, 104–11.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ulyatt, M. J. (1969). Progress in defining the differences in nutritive value of sheep of perennial ryegrass, short rotation ryegrass and white clover. Proceedings New Zealand Society of Animal Production 29, 114–23.Google Scholar
Van Soest, P. J. (1967). Development of a comprehensive system of feed analysis and its application to forages. Journal of Animal Science 26, 119–28.CrossRefGoogle Scholar