Bijeenkomst: EGF2015
Auteur: Bélanger G., Tremblay G.F., Dos Passos Bernardes A., Papadopoulos Y., Fillmore S., Lajeunesse J. and Duynisveld J.
ISBN: 978-9090-289-61-8
Jaar van uitgifte: 2015
Producttype: Paper
Legume-grass mixtures generally provide more consistent forage yield than monocultures. We studied 18 binary mixtures of one legume and one grass species for dry matter (DM) yield, neutral detergent fibre (NDF) concentration and in vitro digestibility (NDFD), and estimated milk production per hectare. Cocksfoot (Dactylis glomerata L.), Kentucky bluegrass (Poa pratensis L.), meadow bromegrass (Bromus biebersteinii Roemer & J.A. Schultes), meadow fescue (Festuca elatior L.), tall fescue [Schedonorus phoenix (Scop.) Holub], and timothy (Phleum pratense L.) were seeded with birdsfoot trefoil (Lotus corniculatus L.), lucerne (Medicago sativa L.) or white clover (Trifolium repens L.). Frequent clipping at two sites, simulating grazing, and cattle grazing at one site were imposed on the 18 binary mixtures in this 3-year study conducted in eastern Canada. Legume and grass species significantly affected seasonal herbage DM yield, NDF concentration, and NDFD of the mixtures averaged over three production years. Birdsfoot trefoil in mixtures with meadow bromegrass or timothy resulted in the largest estimated milk production per hectare under frequent clipping, whereas white clover with meadow bromegrass or tall fescue provided the best results under cattle grazing. Frequent clipping and cattle grazing affected differently the performance of the mixtures, primarily for the legume component. Meadow bromegrass performed very well with the three legume species and under both frequent clipping and cattle grazing.
frequent clipping
Herbage energy to protein ratio of binary and complex legume-grass mixtures
Bijeenkomst: EGF2015
Auteur: Tremblay G.F., Bélanger G., Simili Da Silva M., Lajeunesse J., Papadopoulos Y.A., Fillmore S.A.E. and Jobim C.C.
ISBN: 978-9090-289-61-8
Jaar van uitgifte: 2015
Producttype: Paper
Herbage with a greater ratio of energy availability to protein degradability increases dairy cow N-use efficiency. We determined the variation in this ratio among 18 binary legume-grass mixtures and 8 complex mixtures combining three or four grass species with one of two legume species. Species included in those two experiments were birdsfoot trefoil (Lotus corniculatus L.), lucerne (Medicago sativa L.), white clover (Trifolium repens L.), cocksfoot (Dactylis glomerata L.), Kentucky bluegrass (Poa pratensis L.), meadow bromegrass (Bromus biebersteinii Roemer & J.A. Schultes), meadow fescue (Festuca pratensis L.), reed canarygrass (Phalaris arundinacea L.), tall fescue (Schedonorus phoenix (Scop.) Holub), and timothy (Phleum pratense L.). Carbohydrate and protein fractions of the Cornell Net Carbohydrate and protein system were measured in herbage from two clippings of the first post-seeding year at two sites in eastern Canada. The water soluble carbohydrate to crude protein ratio ranged from 0.39 to 0.70 among binary mixtures and from 0.64 to 1.04 among complex mixtures, while the ratio of non-structural carbohydrates to non-protein N and rapidly degradable proteins ranged from 3.62 to 5.28 and from 4.33 to 5.64, respectively. Our results confirm the possibility of improving the balance between energy and proteins through the choice of species in legume-grass mixtures.