Publication Date
1997
Description
Five shrub legumes, Leucaena leucocephala cv.Cunningham, L. leucocephala cv.Tarramba, L. diversifolia CPI 33820, L. pallida CQ 3439 and Calliandra calothyrsus CPI 115690 were compared for yield and steer gain in comparison to an all-grass control. Shrubs were sown in rows 4 m apart and all treatments, including the control, were sown with the grass Urochloa mosambicensis cv.Nixon. Edible legume yield was highest for L. leucocephala cv.Tarramba and lowest for L. leucocephala cv.Cunningham. In the absence of psyllid attack, liveweight gains over a 5-week period in summer were highest with cv.Cunningham (1170g/d) and lowest for C. calothyrsus (391 g/d) and the grass control (393 g/d). The steer gains ranked in a similar order to the in-vitro digestibility of the dried leaf material. The gains generally reflected lower digestibility and high fibre, lignin and tannin levels in the psyllid-tolerant material.
Citation
Jones, R J. and Palmer, B, "A Comparison of Steer Gains on Cunningham Leucaena and some Alternative Psyllid-Tolerant Shrub Legumes" (2024). IGC Proceedings (1993-2023). 17.
https://uknowledge.uky.edu/igc/1997/session23/17
Included in
Agricultural Science Commons, Agronomy and Crop Sciences Commons, Plant Biology Commons, Plant Pathology Commons, Soil Science Commons, Weed Science Commons
A Comparison of Steer Gains on Cunningham Leucaena and some Alternative Psyllid-Tolerant Shrub Legumes
Five shrub legumes, Leucaena leucocephala cv.Cunningham, L. leucocephala cv.Tarramba, L. diversifolia CPI 33820, L. pallida CQ 3439 and Calliandra calothyrsus CPI 115690 were compared for yield and steer gain in comparison to an all-grass control. Shrubs were sown in rows 4 m apart and all treatments, including the control, were sown with the grass Urochloa mosambicensis cv.Nixon. Edible legume yield was highest for L. leucocephala cv.Tarramba and lowest for L. leucocephala cv.Cunningham. In the absence of psyllid attack, liveweight gains over a 5-week period in summer were highest with cv.Cunningham (1170g/d) and lowest for C. calothyrsus (391 g/d) and the grass control (393 g/d). The steer gains ranked in a similar order to the in-vitro digestibility of the dried leaf material. The gains generally reflected lower digestibility and high fibre, lignin and tannin levels in the psyllid-tolerant material.
