Maintaining High Production Of All Year-Round Pasture
Species of pasture plants and strains within those species differ considerably in their seasonal productivity. The most productive pastures for dairying are found where the soil conditions, climate and management are best. These pastures, however, rely for their high production on the wealth of feed they yield in the period from spring to autumn. The comparatively simple associations of ryegrass-white clover, ryegrass-paspalum-white clover, and ryegrass-cocksfoot-white clover, permit each species to bear the brunt of the animal’s attack in succession. Introducing species with a more active growth during the winter period is simple, and theoretically provides the answer to the problem of an all-the-year-round growth of pasture. Such complex associations of plants are, however, very difficult to maintain, owing to the type of management which suits the win-ter-growing species being unfavourable for the spring-autumn species. Hence, it may be preferable to obtain spread of pasture production by using special single-species pastures of prairie grass, Italian rye or phalaris tuberosa for autumn-spring requirements and v paspalum and cocksfoot for the summer-mid-aut-umn needs. Though the total yield of nutrients over the whole year may be reduced, the provision of feed by these special crops at the critical times when the common ryewhite pastures are producing little feed, may compensate for this apparent loss. When the losses in dry matter and the reduction in quality of pasture conserved as hay or silage are considered, the provision of fresh grass at critical periods becomes doubly valuable. However, where climatic conditions are such that there is ,a marked slump in rye-white pastures, the
special pastures will also be affected. In such cases it may be necessary to rely upon forage crops to supplement pasture. These, too, may be affected by the same adverse weather conditions which necessitated their use, but they can be expected to provide a large yield at short notice if established in sufficient time before the dry weather.
Permanent link to this item
Hononga pūmau ki tēnei tūemi
https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/BPB19480920.2.5.3
Bibliographic details
Ngā taipitopito pukapuka
Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 12, Issue 97, 20 September 1948, Page 3
Word count
Tapeke kupu
322Maintaining High Production Of All Year-Round Pasture Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 12, Issue 97, 20 September 1948, Page 3
Using this item
Te whakamahi i tēnei tūemi
Beacon Printing and Publishing Company is the copyright owner for the Bay of Plenty Beacon. You can reproduce in-copyright material from this newspaper for non-commercial use under a Creative Commons BY-NC-SA 3.0 New Zealand licence. This newspaper is not available for commercial use without the consent of Beacon Printing and Publishing Company. For advice on reproduction of out-of-copyright material from this newspaper, please refer to the Copyright guide.