Publication Date
1997
Description
Height is a good guide for management in dairy systems.Intake by dairy cows depends on amount offered and quality of pasture and for this reason a relationship between that offered and pasture quality with height should be studied. The experiment was conducted in NW of Spain with three different stocking rates in dairy systems. A lower quality sward was found in the taller offered pasture as indicated by its higher ADF and lower CP percentages. Total sward ADF (kg x ha-a) was higher in taller offered pasture, which indicated a lower pasture quality, however the total CP was positively related with the pasture height in the offered pasture interval studied. Offered pasture lower than 2500 kg/ha (a height of 17.5 cm) had higher protein content but reduced digestibility (increased the ADF) compared with lower offered pasture.
Citation
Mosquera-Losada, M R. and Gonzalez-Rodriguez, A, "Relationship Between Height and Sward Quality in Rotational Dairy Systems" (2024). IGC Proceedings (1993-2023). 54.
https://uknowledge.uky.edu/igc/1997/session29/54
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Relationship Between Height and Sward Quality in Rotational Dairy Systems
Height is a good guide for management in dairy systems.Intake by dairy cows depends on amount offered and quality of pasture and for this reason a relationship between that offered and pasture quality with height should be studied. The experiment was conducted in NW of Spain with three different stocking rates in dairy systems. A lower quality sward was found in the taller offered pasture as indicated by its higher ADF and lower CP percentages. Total sward ADF (kg x ha-a) was higher in taller offered pasture, which indicated a lower pasture quality, however the total CP was positively related with the pasture height in the offered pasture interval studied. Offered pasture lower than 2500 kg/ha (a height of 17.5 cm) had higher protein content but reduced digestibility (increased the ADF) compared with lower offered pasture.
