Differentiation of cultivars within pasture grasses with regard to leaf tensile strength

Bijeenkomst: EGF2015
Auteur: Goliński P. and Golińska B.
ISBN: 978-9090-289-61-8
Jaar van uitgifte: 2015
Producttype: Paper
The objective of this work was to analyse the differentiation of selected cultivars within five pasture grass species with regard to leaf tensile strength (LTS). The investigations were carried out in 2011- 2012 on plant material obtained from two cultivar testing experiments, in which Dactylis glomerata (10 cultivars), Festuca arundinacea (10 cvs), Festuca pratensis (15 cvs), Lolium perenne (16 2× and 15 4× cvs) and Phleum pratense (10 cvs) were analysed. LTS was estimated on fully developed leaf blades using a prototype testing stand for measuring tensile strength of biological material, designed on the basis of a subassemblies of the Höttinger Baldwin Messtechnik (HBM) Company. The fresh matter and dry matter weight, width and specific leaf area of leaf blades were also determined. The LTS of investigated species ranged from 4.06 N (L. perenne 2×) to 12.46 N (D. glomerata). The differentiation of cultivars within species was also high and statistically significant. Performance of precise tensile strength measurements of leaf blades could be a helpful plant breeding tool for the development of improved pasture grass cultivars and selection of appropriate components in seed mixtures, particularly in high output dairy farming systems.