Description
The treatments of rest and deferment periods have shown to be effective tools to improve range condition, but little is known about their effect on the diet of animals. The present research aimed to evaluate the effect of the deferment period when applied to a short-term grazing system. The experimental design was a completely random factorial where the treatments resulted from combination of two grazing management systems: short-duration with deferment period (WD) and no deferral period (ND) both evaluated for three years. Forage yield (4.9 vs. 4.5 Tm DM ha-1 year-1) like range condition (55.5 vs. 50.7%) improved significantly (P<0.05) under a deferment period regime, unlike diet quality that decreased, evidenced by a low in vitro dry matter digestibility level (40.6 vs. 45.7 %), a higher neutral detergent fiber content (79.0 vs. 74.6 %) and a lower crude protein content (10.0 vs. 11.4%). We conclude deferment period treatments improved rangeland condition and forage availability but not the quality of the diet.
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Agricultural Science Commons, Agronomy and Crop Sciences Commons, Plant Biology Commons, Plant Pathology Commons, Soil Science Commons, Weed Science Commons
Cattle Diet Composition Under a Short- Duration Grazing With and Without Deferment in Puna Rangelands
The treatments of rest and deferment periods have shown to be effective tools to improve range condition, but little is known about their effect on the diet of animals. The present research aimed to evaluate the effect of the deferment period when applied to a short-term grazing system. The experimental design was a completely random factorial where the treatments resulted from combination of two grazing management systems: short-duration with deferment period (WD) and no deferral period (ND) both evaluated for three years. Forage yield (4.9 vs. 4.5 Tm DM ha-1 year-1) like range condition (55.5 vs. 50.7%) improved significantly (P<0.05) under a deferment period regime, unlike diet quality that decreased, evidenced by a low in vitro dry matter digestibility level (40.6 vs. 45.7 %), a higher neutral detergent fiber content (79.0 vs. 74.6 %) and a lower crude protein content (10.0 vs. 11.4%). We conclude deferment period treatments improved rangeland condition and forage availability but not the quality of the diet.
