Hostname: page-component-848d4c4894-8bljj Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-06-22T23:27:24.005Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Productivity of S. 59 red fescue with and without S. 184 white clover under hill conditions: 1. Animal performance

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 March 2009

D. A. Davies
D. A. Davies
Affiliation:
Welsh Plant Breeding Station, Plas Gogerddan, Aberystwyth
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Summary

An appraisal of the value of S. 59 red fescue (Festuca rubra L.) for grazing was made using ewes and lambs (Clun Forest in 1969, Welsh Mountain in 1970) at a site 305 m O.D. in mid-Wales. S. 23 perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.) was used as a control, and the value of S. 184 white clover (Trifolium repens L.) in conjunction with both grasses was examined.

In the first year, under a rotational grazing regime at a fixed stocking rate of 22 ewes and single lambs/ha, lamb live-weight gains were significantly poorer on S. 59/S. 184 and significantly better on S. 23/S. 184 than on either of the pure grass swards. For the 130 days grazing season, mean daily lamb live-weight gains were 157, 126, 78 and 120 g on S. 23/S. 184, S. 23, S. 59/S. 184 and S. 59 treatments respectively.

During the second year lamb growth rates on S. 59/S. 184 improved by 59%, whereas those on the other treatments were marginally lower than in 1969. Stocking rates were increased on the grass swards and decreased on the grass/clover swards for most of the grazing period in the second year in accordance with herbage availability. No significant difference was detected between the four treatments in total lamb liveweight production as a result of better individual growth rates on the grass/clover swards.

In both years wide variations were recorded between treatments at different periods within the grazing season. Red fescue swards maintained superior lamb production in early spring and late autumn, but were inferior to ryegrass in mid-summer.

Type
Research Article
Information
The Journal of Agricultural Science , Volume 84 , Issue 2 , April 1975 , pp. 265 - 272
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1975

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

REFERENCES

Alder, F. E. (1965). Aspects of the evaluation of herbage species and varieties in animal production experiments. Proceedings of the Ninth International Grassland Congress, São Paulo (Brazil) 2, 1477–81.Google Scholar
Alder, F. E. & Cooper, E. M. (1967). Comparative studies of perennial ryegrass and cocksfoot as food for the calf. The Journal of Agricultural Science, Cambridge 68, 331–46.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Armstrong, R. H. & Eadie, J. (1973). Lamb growth on grass and clover diets. Proceedings of the British Society of Animal Production, N.S. 2, 68.Google Scholar
Davies, D. A. (1971). The yield and animal performance characteristics of S.59 red fescue (Festuca rubra L.) under hill conditions. M.Sc. Thesis, University of Wales.Google Scholar
Davies, D. A. (1974). Productivity of S.59 red fescue with and without S.184 white clover under hill conditions. 2. Herbage measurements in relation to animal performance. The Journal of Agricultural Science, Cambridge 84, 273–80.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Duncan, D. B. (1955). Multiple range and multiple F tests. Biometrics 11, 1–42.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Francis, J. (1970). Nutrition of sheep. Demonstration on sheep production. Welsh Department, Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food.Google Scholar
Grimes, R. C., Watkin, B. R. & Gallagher, J. R. (1967). The growth of lambs grazing on perennial ryegrass, tall fescue, and cocksfoot, with and without clover, as related to the botanical and chemical composition of the pasture and pattern of fermentation in the rumen. The Journal of Agricultural Science, Cambridge 68, 11–21.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hight, G. K. & Sinclair, D. P. (1965). The autumn growth of hoggets on different pasture types. New Zealand Journal of Agricultural Research 8, 1079–86.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hill Farming Research Organisation (1968). Fourth Report 1964–1967, pp. 51–58.Google Scholar
Hughes, R. & Munro, J. M. M. (1964). The improvement of herbage varieties for hill reseeding. Report of the Welsh Plant Breeding Station for 1963, pp. 72–75.Google Scholar
Hughes, R. & Nicholson, I. A. (1962). Comparison of grass varieties for surface seeding upland pastures. 3: Calluna heath. 4: General discussion. Journal of the British Grassland Society 17, 74–84.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hunt, I. V. (1964). Comparative productivity of herbage varieties on upland peat. Journal of the British Grassland Society 19, 55–61.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kirton, A. H. (1970). Lamb growth rates. New Zealand Journal of Agriculture 121, 32–34.Google Scholar
McLean, J. W., Thomson, G. G., Jagusch, K. T. & Lawson, B. M. (1965). Lamb growth and development in relation to pasture species. Proceedings Ruakura Farmers Conference, Wellington, p. 34.Google Scholar
Milford, R. & Minson, D. J. (1966). The energy retention of lambs grazing S.37 cocksfoot, S.23 ryegrass and S.24 ryegrass at low grazing pressure. Journal of the British Grassland Society 21, 7–13.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Munro, J. M. M. (1970). The role of white clover in hill areas. White Clover Research. The British Grassland Society, Occasional Symposium, no. 6, pp. 259–66.Google Scholar
Munro, J. M. M. & Davies, D. A. (1974). Potential pasture production in the uplands of Wales. 6. The relative performance of sown species and varieties. Journal of the British Grassland Society. (In preparation.)Google Scholar
Munro, J. M. M., Davies, D. A. & Morgan, T. E. H. (1973). Research on pasture improvement potential at Pant-y-dŵr Hill Centre. Report of the Welsh Plant Breeding Station for 1972, pp. 209–28.Google Scholar
Munro, J. M. M. & Hughes, R. (1966). White clover and hill land improvement. Journal of the British Grassland Society 21, 224–30.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Munro, J. M. M. & Hughes, R. (1968). The evaluation of herbage varieties in hill conditions. Hill Land Productivity. The British Grassland Society, Occasional Symposium, no. 4, pp. 113–17.Google Scholar
Murphy, W. E. (1970). Effect of fertilizers on clover content of swards. White clover research. The British Grassland Society, Occasional Symposium, no. 6, 221–26.Google Scholar
Patil, B. D. (1969). Genetic variation in herbage species with respect to animal performance. Ph.D. Thesis, University of Wales.Google Scholar
Phillips, R. (1928). Rate of growth in lambs. The Welsh Journal of Agriculture 4, 121–41.Google Scholar
Rae, A. L., Brougham, R. W., Glenday, A. C. & Butler, G. W. (1963). Pasture type in relation to live weight gain, carcass composition iodine nutrition and some rumen characteristics of sheep. 1. Liveweight growth of sheep. The Journal of Agricultural Science, Cambridge 61, 187–90.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Roberts, M. (1970). Better returns from Welsh Mountain Ewes. Agriculture, London 77, 126–29.Google Scholar
Russel, A. J. F. (1970). Nutrition of the hill ewe. British Society of Animal Production. Summer Meeting, Edinburgh 1970.Google Scholar
Stapledon, R. G. (1933). Yield and productivity (carrying capacity and live weight increase). Trials with individual species and strains. An Account of the Organization and Work of the Station from its Foundation in April 1919 to July 1933. Welsh Plant Breeding Station, pp. 87–96.Google Scholar