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Publication Date

1997

Location

Manitoba and Saskatchewan

Description

After 16 years of grazing ‘Coastal’ and common bermudagrass [Cynodon dactylon (L.) Pers.] pastures each at 3 levels of forage mass, N vs non-N fertilizer was superimposed to assess stand maintenance of bermudagrass and cow-calf performance. After 7 additional years of fertility treatments, N plus overseeded ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum Lam.) provided for 202 days grazing; whereas, K plus overseeded clovers (Trifolium incarnatum L.) and (T. vesiculosum Savi.) provided adequate forage for 179 days grazing. Coastal supported higher stocking rates (2.3 to 7.9 680-kg animal units(AU)/ha) than common bermudagrass (2.0 to 5.3 AU/ha). Suckling calf daily gains declined from 1.2 kg on low-stocked to 0.4 on high-stocked pastures. Calf gains per ha ranged from 312 to 794 kg/ha from K plus clover to 540 to 1132 kg/ha from N plus ryegrass stocked pastures. At high grazing pressures, non-N common bermudagrass was thinned more than Coastal (18% vs 11% bare soil), and had more invasion by (Paspalum notatum Flugge).

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Bermudagrass Pastures Under Long-Term Stocking Rates and Fertility Regimes

Manitoba and Saskatchewan

After 16 years of grazing ‘Coastal’ and common bermudagrass [Cynodon dactylon (L.) Pers.] pastures each at 3 levels of forage mass, N vs non-N fertilizer was superimposed to assess stand maintenance of bermudagrass and cow-calf performance. After 7 additional years of fertility treatments, N plus overseeded ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum Lam.) provided for 202 days grazing; whereas, K plus overseeded clovers (Trifolium incarnatum L.) and (T. vesiculosum Savi.) provided adequate forage for 179 days grazing. Coastal supported higher stocking rates (2.3 to 7.9 680-kg animal units(AU)/ha) than common bermudagrass (2.0 to 5.3 AU/ha). Suckling calf daily gains declined from 1.2 kg on low-stocked to 0.4 on high-stocked pastures. Calf gains per ha ranged from 312 to 794 kg/ha from K plus clover to 540 to 1132 kg/ha from N plus ryegrass stocked pastures. At high grazing pressures, non-N common bermudagrass was thinned more than Coastal (18% vs 11% bare soil), and had more invasion by (Paspalum notatum Flugge).