EFFECT OF RATE AND TIME OF NITROGEN AND INTERVAL OF PHOSPHORUS AND POTASSIUM FERTILIZATION ON HERBAGE PRODUCTION ON PERMANENT PASTURE

1965 ◽  
Vol 45 (2) ◽  
pp. 153-164 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. B. MacLeod ◽  
L. P. Jackson ◽  
R. F. Bishop ◽  
C. R. MacEachern

In two 3-year cycles of a field experiment annual N treatments were superimposed on mineral treatments applied annually and triennially to a permanent pasture sward.Applications of P and K were reflected by changes in exchangeable K and acid-soluble plus adsorbed P. There was somewhat greater penetration of K than of P and soil levels of both were generally lowest where rate of N application was highest.Yields varied from year to year but tended to be more uniform with annual than with triennial mineral treatments. In the 6-year period average yields for all 0-, P-, K-, and P–K-treated plots were approximately 1.3, 1.6, 1.5, and 2.0 tons per acre of dry matter. Time of nitrogen application had little influence on total yield but seasonal distribution of herbage was much more uniform with nitrogen applied in summer than in spring. Soil moisture, which was a major factor in the response obtained with nitrogen applied in summer, was limiting during the late summer in two of the three years measured.Percentages of P and K in grass reflected the mineral treatments which had much less influence on botanical composition and species foliage cover than N. This element suppressed legumes, increased grass, and markedly influenced the K level in grass.

Author(s):  
N.S. Percival ◽  
F.R. Duder

Details are given on the production and survival over four years of five perennial grasses under rotational sheep-grazing on a pumice soil. The comparison involved three perennial ryegrasses ('Grasslands Nui and Ruanui', and Yates Ellett), and mixtures of Ellett with 'Grasslands Roa' tall fescue and Ellett with 'Grasslands Maru' phalaris. All pastures were sown with white and red clovers. Annual dry matter yields from Nui and Ellett pastures were similar, at about 6,500 kg/ha. Ruanui pastures were on average 600 kg/ha lower. The pastures containing tall fescue and phalaris were similar to Ellett. The major seasonal yield effects were in autumn and winter, when Ruanui pastures were substantially poorer than those with Nui and Ellett. Ryegrass yield of Ellett pasture was greater than Nui, and Nui was greater than Ruanui at all seasons. Ellett ryagrass was a higher proportion of the total yield at all times, and had higher tiller populations than Nui and Ruanui. Neither tall fescue or phalaris were, able to compete with Ellett ryegrass. It is suggested that neither of these be sown with ryegrass. Clover yields were higher in Ruanui than Ellett pastures, with Nui intermediate. The use of Nui, Ellett and Ruanui ryegrasses is related to the problems of seasonal distribution and total annual yields of pastures on the Central Plateau. It is suggested using Nui or Ellett as the base for perennial pastures will give substantial increases in production. Ellett ryegrass had higher survival than Nui which was considered an advantage, though this was achieved at the expense of a small reduction in clover vields. Keywords: Perennial ryegrass, Ellett, Nui, Ruanui, Roa tall fescue, Maru phalaris, canary grass, sheep grazing, central North Island, Central Plateau, grass grub, Argentine stem weevil, Lolium endophyte.


1969 ◽  
Vol 72 (2) ◽  
pp. 203-215 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maurice Eddowes

SUMMARYCompetition among maize plants in the vegetative stage of growth was postponed by application of nitrogen to the seed bed and by maintaining soil moisture near field capacity. The amount of available nitrogen was a critical factor in determining the effect of the competitive balance between nitrogen and light on maize yield. The supply of either affected the capacity of the crop to utilize the other, but ultimately light became the dominant factor.Soil moisture deficits of up to 1.0 in from field capacity, in the early stages of vegetative growth, did not reduce dry-matter accumulation and uptake of nitrogen, but in the absence of weed competition and post-planting cultivation soil moisture losses in the early stages of crop growth may be small.In 1966, maize responded quicker to surface applied than to deep-placed nitrogen and utilized the surface applied nitrogen for dry-matter accumulation more effectively.Provided that there was initially an adequate supply of nitrogen in the seed bed, there appeared to be no advantage to total yield from application of nitrogen top dressings to maize. In the West Midlands, under conditions of adequate nutrient and soil moisture supply, the optimum plant population for commercial production of forage maize was about 40000 per acre.


1951 ◽  
Vol 41 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 64-69 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. Holmes

1. The experiment previously described (series 4, Holmes, 1949) on the effect of massive applications of nitrogenous fertilizers on the productivity of a ryegrass dominant pasture was continued for 3 years (1946, 1947, 1948). The manurial treatments ranged from none to the application of 312 lb. nitrogen per acre and this was applied with and without 135 lb. P2O5 and 168 lb. K2O per acre. Farmyard manure was applied to one block in 1948.2. With the heaviest nitrogen treatment plus phosphate and potash the average yield for 3 years was 8000 lb. dry matter and 1640 lb. crude protein (similar to the yield in 1946) compared with a control yield of 4720 lb. dry matter and 590 lb. crude protein. The yields declined from year to year when phosphate and potash were not applied, the decline being greatest with the heaviest application of nitrogen.3. The seasonal distribution of the yield of herbage was very considerably modified by the time when fertilizers were applied.4. The botanical composition of the swards was related to the yield, 70% of the grasses in the highest yielding sward being perennial ryegrass and cocksfoot while the lowest yielding sward contained only 35% of these grasses.5. The manurial treatments had no effect on the pH, loss on ignition or the content of readily soluble P2O5 in the soil, but in the first year there was some evidence of a general reduction of readily soluble K2O to a low level.


1984 ◽  
Vol 103 (3) ◽  
pp. 659-669 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. Reid

SummaryIn studies of the seasonal distribution of nitrogen fertilizer dressings on grassland using conventional experimental designs it is usually not possible to separate the true effects of an individual fertilizer dressing on the yield at a particular cut from the residual effects of previous dressings. An experiment is described which was designed to allow separation of the direct and residual effects, with certain restrictions, for a system involving five cuts and five possible fertilizer dressings per season on perennial ryegrass swards. From the results obtained over two harvest years on swards on two adjacent sites equations were derived relating the dry-matter and crude-protein yields of herbage to the rate of nitrogen application at five dressings in the season. Predictions of yield distribution patterns from the equations are compared with observed yields from various sequences of nitrogen dressings included in previous experiments at this Institute. Examples are also given of the prediction of sequences of nitrogen dressings required to obtain certain patterns of yield distribution.


1978 ◽  
Vol 90 (3) ◽  
pp. 447-457 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. Reid

SummaryIn a 3-year experiment on a sward of S. 23 perennial ryegrass 21 rates of nitrogen fertilizer ranging from 0 to 897 kg/ha were applied annually on plots cut three, five or ten times per year. The cutting dates within each frequency were decided on the basis of herbage growth stage. Four-parameter exponential curves fitted to the herbage yield data show that the pattern of response to nitrogen application in the five cuts per year treatment was markedly similar to that reported for a previous experiment (Reid, 1970). Alterations in the cutting frequency affected the pattern of dry-matter yield response to nitrogen, but not that of crude-protein yield response. The combined effects of cutting frequency and nitrogen rate are illustrated by response surfaces fitted to the dry-matter yield results using an extension of the equation for the curves fitted to the individual frequency results. These surfaces show that as the number of cuts per year was increased the total yield and the response to nitrogen decreased, but the response was maintained to an increasingly high nitrogen rate. The practical implications of the results are discussed in relation to intensive grazing managements for dairy cows.


2009 ◽  
Vol 31 (3) ◽  
pp. 361 ◽  
Author(s):  
Binali Comakli ◽  
Kamil Haliloglu ◽  
Mahmut Dasci ◽  
Omer Mentese

Meadows dominated by native herbaceous species and having a high water table are an important source of feed for livestock in semi-arid regions of Turkey. This research investigated the effects of nitrogen fertilisation (ammonium sulfate) on two meadows having different water table levels and different soils. Dry matter production was 8868 kg ha–1 at location 1 and 7276 kg ha–1 at location 2. The application of 225 kg N ha–1 increased the crude protein content of the forage from 7.1 to 10.8%. A level of 150 kg ha–1 (CP 9.6%) is recommended as a result of this study. Crude protein yield increased from 303 to 1113 kg ha–1 with the highest rate of nitrogen application. The percentage of grasses in the forage averaged 92.5% and the weeds averaged 7.5%. Increasing nitrogen fertilisation resulted in an increase in the grass percentage and a decrease in the proportion of weeds. The differences in water table depth between location 1 and location 2 were not consistent between the years, and these differences influenced the irrigation applications which were applied according to soil moisture criteria.


2006 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 106-113 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. Astatkie ◽  
A.A. Joseph ◽  
R.C. Martin

In organic pasture systems, the balance of soil fertility is maintained by maximizing the cycling of on-farm nutrients. In this study, the effect of fertility management on dry matter yield in organic pasture systems was examined using an unreplicated 25 factorial design. The factors were nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), potassium (K), compost and seaweed extract, each at two levels (with [+] and without [−]). The trials were conducted in 2000 and 2001 at two fields on an organic dairy farm in Nova Scotia, Canada. The pasture mix is predominantly perennial ryegrass, orchardgrass and white clover. The fertility treatments were applied in spring, and forage yield was collected from early-, mid- and late-summer harvests. The analysis revealed the significance of several interaction effects, which varied considerably from harvest to harvest. Both +N and +Compost treatments were associated with increased yield. High levels of P and K already present in the soil either diminished or varied the effects of P and K treatments. Seaweed extract enhanced the effectiveness of N and compost, but reduced yield when used alone. The results suggest that the commonly recommended use of seaweed extract for organic pasture management can be detrimental to biomass production unless sufficient nitrogen is provided. Despite the unusually dry weather in the 2 years, the study demonstrated the applicability of unreplicated two-level factorial experiments in agricultural field studies.


1971 ◽  
Vol 76 (2) ◽  
pp. 233-241 ◽  

SUMMARYA Lolium perenne L. population derived from a very productive 6-year-old S.23 ley was compared with that obtained from breeders' seed of S.23. The ryegrasses wqre grown in boxes sown separately, together, and also with Poa trivialis L. Three rates of nitrogen were applied equivalent to 28, 336 and 672 kg N/ha.The results obtained when the two ryegrasses were sown separately differed from those obtained in mixtures. When sown alone, the difference between the two ryegrass populations was small, but the ‘survivor’ ryegrass had a slightly higher yield of dry matter and nitrogen at some sampling dates and fertilizer nitrogen rates. In the mixture of the two ryegrasses, S.23 was higher yielding than the ‘survivor’ population when the equivalent of 672 kg N/ha was applied, but not at lower nitrogen rates.When grown as pure swards, P. trivialis did not yield as much dry matter and nitrogen as L. perenne at the highest N application. In the intergeneric mixtures, the total yield of ryegrass × P. trivialis was not very different from that of ryegrass sown alone. P. trivialis depressed the yield of ryegrass in May and June, particularly when fertilizer N was applied; the reverse effect was recorded later in the year. Total drymatter yield of ryegrass and P. trivialis grown together was similar at the highest fertilizer N rate, but the yield of N was much higher in ryegrass than in P. trivialis.


2021 ◽  
Vol 38 (2) ◽  
pp. 178-183
Author(s):  
C. C. Onyeonagu ◽  
J. E. Asiegbu

A study was conducted to determine the effects of cutting frequency and fertilizer-N rates on growth and production of guinea grass (Panicum maximum Jacq). The experiment was conducted in Nsukka, Nigeria. Treatments comprised four levels of fertilizer N (0, 150, 300 and 450 kg N ha ') and four cutting intervals (3, 6, 9 and 12 weekly intervals). Plant height, tiller number and herbage dry matter yields were significantly increased by 6%, 44% and 53%, respectively, during the establishment year when fertilizer-Nrate was increased from 0 to 450 kg N ha'. The extent of weed cover was significantly (P < 0.05) reduced by 33% in 2000 when fertilizer-N rate was increased from 0 to 450 kg N ha'. Increase in interval between cuts from 3 to 12 weeks significantly (P < 0.05) increased plant height in all the years. Plant height was increased (P < 0.05) by 28% 34% and 28% in 2001, 2002 and 2004, respectively, when fertilizer N was increased from 0 to 450 kg ha'. Application of Nat 450 kg ha produced similar plant heights in 2001 with the 300 kg N ha' but differed from the 150 kg N ha'. Increase in nitrogen application progressively increased (P<0.05) plant height in 2002 and 2004. Key words: , , , 


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