Archived
This content is available here strictly for research, reference, and/or recordkeeping and as such it may not be fully accessible. If you work or study at University of Kentucky and would like to request an accessible version, please use the SensusAccess Document Converter.
Publication Date
1981
Description
In the central areas of New South Wales, the natural pastures are dominated by annual species that grow during the cooler months, producing good-quality grazing that is particularly abundant during spring. -However, these species mature rapidly in late spring and provide poor-quality summer grazing. The 4-year study reported here was designed to examine the value of sown lucerne, equivalent to one-third of the total area, as a supplement to be grazed mainly during late spring and summer. The availability of lucerne for spring grazing by ewes and lambs was of benefit only in one year when maturing grass seeds were abundant, and it adversely affected the growth rate of lambs on the natural pastures. As supplementary grazing cl.id not affect production/ewe, the carrying capacity and productivity of an area in this semiarid environment can be calculated on the basis of the proportion of lucerne available if the carrying capacity and productivity are known for the two pasture types when grazed separately. For production/head to be increased it was concluded that a more intensive method of utilization of the supplementary grazing area is required but that such a system may not have practical relevance,
Citation
Michalk, D L.; Robards, G E.; Armstrong, E A.; and Lacy, J, "Value of Lucerne as a Grazing Supplement for Sheep Grazing Natural Pastures in a Semiarid Area of Australia" (1981). IGC Proceedings (1977-2023). 17.
(URL: https://uknowledge.uky.edu/igc/1981/section12/17)
Archival?
Archival
Included in
Agricultural Science Commons, Agronomy and Crop Sciences Commons, Plant Biology Commons, Plant Pathology Commons, Soil Science Commons, Weed Science Commons
Value of Lucerne as a Grazing Supplement for Sheep Grazing Natural Pastures in a Semiarid Area of Australia
In the central areas of New South Wales, the natural pastures are dominated by annual species that grow during the cooler months, producing good-quality grazing that is particularly abundant during spring. -However, these species mature rapidly in late spring and provide poor-quality summer grazing. The 4-year study reported here was designed to examine the value of sown lucerne, equivalent to one-third of the total area, as a supplement to be grazed mainly during late spring and summer. The availability of lucerne for spring grazing by ewes and lambs was of benefit only in one year when maturing grass seeds were abundant, and it adversely affected the growth rate of lambs on the natural pastures. As supplementary grazing cl.id not affect production/ewe, the carrying capacity and productivity of an area in this semiarid environment can be calculated on the basis of the proportion of lucerne available if the carrying capacity and productivity are known for the two pasture types when grazed separately. For production/head to be increased it was concluded that a more intensive method of utilization of the supplementary grazing area is required but that such a system may not have practical relevance,
