Sammanfattning

Increasing herd size often brings major challenges in maintaining dense swards, especially near cow houses. High-quality, trampling-resistant swards are crucial for grazing management, animal welfare and environmental protection. A field experiment initiated in July 2012 (triplicate plots) at Uppsala, Sweden, is comparing four seed mixtures with regard to establishment rate, resistance to trampling and grazing behaviour. The mixtures comprise forage and amenity cultivars of smooth meadow-grass (Poa pratensis) and red fescue (Festuca rubra), with/without inclusions of white clover (Trifolium repens), perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne) and tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea). Degree of ground cover was evaluated by spatial analysis of Unmanned Aircraft System photographs (taken May, July, Sept. 2013, April 2014) and field measurements (plants m-2) (August 2012, May 2013). Botanical composition was determined in May 2014. The seed mixture with tall fescue (35% cv. Borneo) established significantly more slowly than other mixtures (P<0.05), but by September 2013 had the highest ground cover (70%) due to a high proportion of white clover. In May 2014, all four mixtures had sufficient ground cover after winter (~86%). Next, the treatments will be intensively grazed and trampling resistance and grazing behaviour analysed.

Nyckelord

seed mixture, establishment, ground cover, spatial analysis, pasture

Publicerad i

Grassland Science in Europe
2015, Volym: 20, sidor: 277–279
Titel: Grassland and forages in high output dairy farming systems. Proceedings of the 18th Symposium of the European Grassland Federation Wageningen, the Netherlands 15-17 June 2015
ISBN: 9789090289618
Utgivare: European Grassland Federation, EGF

Konferens

18th Symposium of the European Grassland Federation

SLU författare

• Nilsdotter-Linde, Nilla

  • Institutionen för växtproduktionsekologi, Sveriges lantbruksuniversitet
    

• Spörndly, Eva

  • Institutionen för tillämpad husdjursvetenskap och välfärd, Sveriges lantbruksuniversitet
    

UKÄ forskningsämne

Jordbruksvetenskap


Permanent länk till denna sida (URI)

https://res.slu.se/id/publ/69969