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Publication Date
1981
Description
The effect of three different utilization patterns upon the productivity and botanical composition of typical natural pasture was studied during a year of growth. The trial consisted of cutting the swards of three plots of a natural pasture in a humid zone in the south of Chile when they reached an average height of 20 cm, leaving only a height of 5 cm. This process was carried out in three plots of 20 x 20 musing the following methods: plot 1, harvesting with bovines; plot 2, mechanized harvesting with a mower; plot 3, not harvested but sampled each time from the forage accumulated from the start of the trial. The botanical composition and other characteristics when starting the experiment were, in plots 1, 2, and 3, respectively: Lolium spp., 16.4 % , 12.7%, 14.8%; Dactylis glomerata, 24.0%, 23.6%, 18.1%; Anthoxanthum odoratum, 0.7%, 4.3%, 6.2%; other grass spp., 2.1 %, 2.3%, 1.9%; Trifolium spp., 4.5%, 2.7%, 7.4%; wide leaf spp., 12.9%, 7.7%, 8.9%; organic matter, 31.4%, 35.9%, 37.0%; and bare soil, 8.0%, 10.8%, 5.7%. Unimportant variations in botanical composition were observed. Annual dry-matter yields were 10,442, 10,147, and 9, 184 kg/ha in plots 1, 2, and 3, respectively. The results suggest that pastures with several species and with a high homeostatis and stability grade can be utilized by different methods without affecting significantly the pasture performance in an annual growing period. This capacity is very important for farmers of these zones who must change management according to seasonal, environmental, and economic conditions.
Citation
Riveros, E and Olivares, A, "Productivity and Botanical Composition Response of a Stabilized Pasture to Different Utilization Patterns" (1981). IGC Proceedings (1977-2023). 7.
(URL: https://uknowledge.uky.edu/igc/1981/section7/7)
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Productivity and Botanical Composition Response of a Stabilized Pasture to Different Utilization Patterns
The effect of three different utilization patterns upon the productivity and botanical composition of typical natural pasture was studied during a year of growth. The trial consisted of cutting the swards of three plots of a natural pasture in a humid zone in the south of Chile when they reached an average height of 20 cm, leaving only a height of 5 cm. This process was carried out in three plots of 20 x 20 musing the following methods: plot 1, harvesting with bovines; plot 2, mechanized harvesting with a mower; plot 3, not harvested but sampled each time from the forage accumulated from the start of the trial. The botanical composition and other characteristics when starting the experiment were, in plots 1, 2, and 3, respectively: Lolium spp., 16.4 % , 12.7%, 14.8%; Dactylis glomerata, 24.0%, 23.6%, 18.1%; Anthoxanthum odoratum, 0.7%, 4.3%, 6.2%; other grass spp., 2.1 %, 2.3%, 1.9%; Trifolium spp., 4.5%, 2.7%, 7.4%; wide leaf spp., 12.9%, 7.7%, 8.9%; organic matter, 31.4%, 35.9%, 37.0%; and bare soil, 8.0%, 10.8%, 5.7%. Unimportant variations in botanical composition were observed. Annual dry-matter yields were 10,442, 10,147, and 9, 184 kg/ha in plots 1, 2, and 3, respectively. The results suggest that pastures with several species and with a high homeostatis and stability grade can be utilized by different methods without affecting significantly the pasture performance in an annual growing period. This capacity is very important for farmers of these zones who must change management according to seasonal, environmental, and economic conditions.
