The effect ofRhizobiuminoculation on white clover in improved hill soils in the United Kingdom

1982 ◽  
Vol 99 (3) ◽  
pp. 591-610 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. Newbould ◽  
A. J. Holding ◽  
G. J. Davies ◽  
Anne Rangeley ◽  
G. J. F. Copeman ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
White Clover ◽  
Positive Response ◽  
Statistical Significance ◽  
Plant Cover ◽  
Peat Soils ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
Matter Production ◽  
Harvest Year ◽  
Hill Soils ◽  
Podzol Soils

SUMMARYThe benefits to establishment and growth of white clover cvs Aberystwyth S.184 and Grasslands Huia of inoculation with three strains ofRhizobium trifolii, using the peat or liquid inoculum techniques, were investigated during 1975–8 on improved hill soils ranging from brown earth through dry and wet peaty podzol to deep peat.Inoculation induced positive response in either number of seedlings, plant cover or dry-matter production in 18 out of 139 comparisons, had no effect in 118 and produced a negative response in three. Most of the positive responses to inoculation were at sites with wet peaty podzol or deep peat soils but of the five sites where increase in clover D.M. production was found in the first harvest year one was a brown earth. The positive agronomic responses occurred only when the proportion of plants with nodules was high and where a substantial proportion ( > 50%) of the latter contained introducedRhizobiumstrains at least in the year of sowing. The three negative responses were in numbers of seedlings on one brown earth and two dry peaty podzol soils and with the Huia cultivar only. Despite lack of statistical significance at individual sites the dominant overall trend was for inoculation to enhance seedling establishment and the early growtli of white clover in all soil types.On one brown earth and one dry peaty podzol soil there was some evidence that spraying theRhizobiumon to emerging white clover seedlings was more beneficial, atleast in microbiological terms, than the customary peat inoculum procedure.The incorporation of even a small amount of nitrogen (30 kg/ha) into the seed bed at the time of sowing adversely affected germination, establishment and growth of white clover in some soils. Sometimes the effects of this nitrogen persisted into the first harvest year.

Inoculation of white clover with different strains of Rhizobium trifolii on a mineral hill soil

1984 ◽  
Vol 102 (2) ◽  
pp. 455-459 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. R. Mytton ◽  
D. M. Hughes
Keyword(s):  
White Clover ◽  
Dry Matter ◽  
Dry Matter Production ◽  
Rhizobium Trifolii ◽  
Matter Production ◽  
Different Strains ◽  
Harvest Year ◽  
Inoculation Treatment

SummaryS.184 white clover was established on an unimproved brown earth hill pasture using both surface seeding techniques and conventional cultivation. Inoculation with selected Rhizobium trifolii improved clover dry-matter production by 0·017 t/ha on the cultivated trial in the establishment year and by 0·13 t/ha in the first harvest year. On the uncultivated site, clover dry-matter production was increased 1·88 t/ha by the best inoculation treatment in the first harvest year and 1·01 t/ha in the second harvest year. Rhizobium strains differed in their ability to promote clover growth. Clover yields were substantially better on the uncultivated than on the cultivated trial. The implications of the results for hill land pasture improvement are discussed.

Studies with lucerne (Medicago sativa)—row distances and “smother” crops

1940 ◽  
Vol 30 (2) ◽  
pp. 182-188 ◽  
Author(s):  
F. H. Garner ◽  
H. G. Sanders
Keyword(s):  
Medicago Sativa ◽  
White Clover ◽  
Dry Matter ◽  
Total Yield ◽  
Seed Rate ◽  
Weed Infestation ◽  
Harvest Year ◽  
The University

As a result of one detailed experiment and four demonstrations carried out on the University Farm at Cambridge the following conclusions can be drawn:1. Lucerne drilled at a constant seed rate per acre, in narrow rows (3½ and 7 in.), gave a greater yield per acre than when drilled in rows 10½ and 14 in. in width. Over a four-year period the yield of dry matter per acre from narrow rows was half a ton more than from wide rows. No evidence was obtained that weed infestation is reduced by narrow drilling.2. The broadcasting of 5 lb. of trefoil per acre at the time the lucerne was drilled had no effect on the total yield or on weed infestation.3. Wild white clover broadcast at the rate of 2 lb. per acre at the time of drilling the lucerne slightly reduced the yield of lucerne in the first harvest year, but subsequently it served to secure some control of weeds, and thereby favoured the persistence of the lucerne. Differences in yield associated with sowing wild white clover were, however, slight.4. Commercial cocksfoot broadcast at the rate of 10 lb. per acre at the time of drilling the lucerne led to very considerable increases in total yield (nearly 3 tons per acre of dry matter over a four-year period). The increments were obtained principally during the spring growth, and some loss of lucerne plants was suffered, so that in a very dry summer the total aftermath yield was slightly reduced. Since cocksfoot almost completely controlled weeds and its mixture with lucerne was very suitable for hay or for silage, it is regarded as a plant that may be included in a lucerne ley with advantage.

scholarly journals Population Adjustment Methods for Indirect Comparisons: A Review of National Institute for Health and Care Excellence Technology Appraisals

2019 ◽  
Vol 35 (03) ◽  
pp. 221-228 ◽  
Author(s):  
David M. Phillippo ◽  
Sofia Dias ◽  
Ahmed Elsada ◽  
A. E. Ades ◽  
Nicky J. Welton
Keyword(s):  
Cross Validation ◽  
Individual Patient Data ◽  
Statistical Significance ◽  
Health Technology ◽  
Effective Sample Size ◽  
Simulation Studies ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
Treatment Comparisons ◽  
Indirect Comparisons ◽  
Population Adjustment

AbstractObjectivesIndirect comparisons via a common comparator (anchored comparisons) are commonly used in health technology assessment. However, common comparators may not be available, or the comparison may be biased due to differences in effect modifiers between the included studies. Recently proposed population adjustment methods aim to adjust for differences between study populations in the situation where individual patient data are available from at least one study, but not all studies. They can also be used when there is no common comparator or for single-arm studies (unanchored comparisons). We aim to characterise the use of population adjustment methods in technology appraisals (TAs) submitted to the United Kingdom National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE).MethodsWe reviewed NICE TAs published between 01/01/2010 and 20/04/2018.ResultsPopulation adjustment methods were used in 7 percent (18/268) of TAs. Most applications used unanchored comparisons (89 percent, 16/18), and were in oncology (83 percent, 15/18). Methods used included matching-adjusted indirect comparisons (89 percent, 16/18) and simulated treatment comparisons (17 percent, 3/18). Covariates were included based on: availability, expert opinion, effective sample size, statistical significance, or cross-validation. Larger treatment networks were commonplace (56 percent, 10/18), but current methods cannot account for this. Appraisal committees received results of population-adjusted analyses with caution and typically looked for greater cost effectiveness to minimise decision risk.ConclusionsPopulation adjustment methods are becoming increasingly common in NICE TAs, although their impact on decisions has been limited to date. Further research is needed to improve upon current methods, and to investigate their properties in simulation studies.

A comparison of silages made from red clover/grass, white clover/grass and high nitrogen grass swards for beef production

1985 ◽  
Vol 40 (2) ◽  
pp. 267-277 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. A. Stewart ◽  
I. I. McCullough
Keyword(s):  
Perennial Ryegrass ◽  
White Clover ◽  
Dry Matter ◽  
Total Yield ◽  
Live Weight ◽  
Red Clover ◽  
Dry Matter Yield ◽  
Grass Silage ◽  
Matter Production ◽  
Grass Sward

ABSTRACTSilage cut twice annually (June and August) from a tetraploid red clover/grass sward and three times annually (May, July and September) from a low nitrogen (N) and high N perennial ryegrass/white clover sward was fed in proportion to dry-matter yield from each cut, over a 10-week period, each winter for 3 years to castrated male cattle of initial live weight 401 kg in year 1 and 425 kg in years 2 and 3. The silages were supplemented with 0, 1, 2 and 3 kg concentrate per head daily.Total dry-matter yield from the red clover/grass sward was similar to that from the perennial ryegrass/white clover sward (high N grass) receiving 360 kg N per ha but the digestibility, particularly of first cut material was much lower. Dry-matter production of the low N grass/white clover sward was 0·73 of high N grass sward and produced silages of similar digestibility and fermentation.Dry-matter intakes by the cattle were higher on the legume-based silages in years when clover made a worthwhile contribution to total yield, but this did not significantly improve utilization or animal performance compared with high N grass silage. Mean daily carcass gain per head on red clover/grass silage was 0·41 kg which was significantly less than the 0·61 kg on white clover/grass silage and 0·59 on high N grass (P < 0·001). Carcass output from red clover/grass silage was 618 kg/ha and 629 kg/ha from white clover/grass, both of which were significantly less than the 863 kg/ha from the high N grass silage (P < 0·001). Dressing proportion was also significantly poorer in animals fed red clover/grass silage compared with the other silage types.

Comparative growth of white clover sown into pots of soil from old pastures and adjacent roadsides

1990 ◽  
Vol 41 (6) ◽  
pp. 1083 ◽  
Author(s):  
AA McGowan
Keyword(s):  
Perennial Ryegrass ◽  
White Clover ◽  
Dry Matter ◽  
Early Years ◽  
Allelopathic Effect ◽  
Roadside Soils ◽  
Average Growth ◽  
Pests And Diseases ◽  
Matter Production ◽  
Different Levels

It is often claimed that improved pastures grow better in the early years after initial establishment than after many years of fertilization and grazing. A pot experiment was conducted to compare the dry matter production of white clover and perennial ryegrass when sown into soil from old established pastures and into soil taken from adjacent roadsides which had not previously been cultivated, fertilized, sown or grazed. On 8 out of 10 sites, white clover growth was consistently poorer when sown into the paddock soil than into the roadside soil. The average growth on paddock soil from these 8 sites was only 61% that of growth on the roadside soils. With perennial ryegrass there was no similar depression; in fact, the overall average growth of grass on the paddock soils was 121% that on the roadside soils. The explanation for this difference in growth of clover on the two soil types was apparently not due to any difference in the N status of the clover plants, as at no harvest was this difference significantly reduced when N fertilizer was regularly applied to the clover. The economic importance of these findings depends on confirmation of the results in the field. Possible, but untested, explanations may lie in different levels of soil-borne pests and diseases, or a residual allelopathic effect of improved pasture species on the growth of clover on the old pasture soil.

Effects of irrigation frequency and transient waterlogging on the production of a perennial ryegrass - white clover pasture

1997 ◽  
Vol 37 (2) ◽  
pp. 165 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. S. Dunbabin ◽  
I. H. Hume ◽  
M. E. Ireson
Keyword(s):  
Perennial Ryegrass ◽  
White Clover ◽  
Dry Matter ◽  
Soil Surface ◽  
Dry Matter Production ◽  
Irrigation Frequency ◽  
Pasture Production ◽  
Absolute Increase ◽  
Irrigation Interval ◽  
Matter Production

Summary. Perennial ryegrass–white clover swards were irrigated for 3 years every 50, 80 and 120 mm of crop evapotranspiration minus rainfall (ETc–R) and water ponded on the soil surface for either 4, 12 or 24 h at each irrigation. Pasture production and clover content were highly seasonal, peaking in spring and autumn. Frequent irrigation increased dry matter production by an average of 56%. When irrigating at 50 mm ETc–R, dry matter production was decreased by ponding water on plots, 17% for 12 h ponding and 14% if ponded for 24 h. However, when irrigating at an interval of 80 mm ETc–R ponding increased dry matter production by 7% for 12 h ponding and by 25% for 24 h ponding. Ponding also increased production at an irrigation interval of 120 mm ETc–R by 25% for 12 h ponding but only by 2.4% for 24 h ponding. While these increases in dry matter production are large in relative terms the absolute increase in production is small. More water infiltrated per irrigation at longer irrigation intervals, and at longer ponding times. Frequently irrigated, rapidly drained swards used irrigation water most efficiently. The small gain in dry matter production achieved by prolonging ponding at longer irrigation intervals is an inefficient use of water and likely to recharge regional groundwater systems. Oxygen diffusion rate measurements suggested that ponding for as short as 4 h was likely to cause waterlogging stresses and that these stresses were higher when irrigating frequently. The relative increase in waterlogging stress by extending the period of ponding from 4 to 24 h was small.

The effect of melatonin implants on breeding activity and litter size in commercial sheep flocks in the UK

1990 ◽  
Vol 50 (1) ◽  
pp. 111-121 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. Haresign ◽  
A. R. Peters ◽  
L. D. Staples
Keyword(s):  
Breeding Season ◽  
Litter Size ◽  
Statistical Significance ◽  
Mating Period ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
Commercial Farming ◽  
Natural Breeding ◽  
The Individual ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Subcutaneous Implant

ABSTRACTTwo trials were undertaken to investigate the effects of treating seasonally anoestrous ewes with melatonin implants on date of first oestrus and other aspects of reproductive performance.Trial 1 involved a total of 368 Mule ewes and 79 Scottish Blackface ewes on five farms, approximately half of which were treated with a single subcutaneous implant of melatonin (Regulin®), containing 18 mg melatonin, between 23 July and 6 August 1986 and the remainder acted as untreated controls. Treatment had no significant effect on the date of first oestrus or conception rate in Mule ewes, although it increased the number of Scottish Blackface ewes mating (92% v. 73%) and the number of mated ewes conceiving (69% v. 54%) in a 5-week mating period, resulting in significantly more treated ewes lambing (63% v. 37%; P < 0·01). Litter size was higher in 4/5 flocks, although this only reached statistical significance in one Mule flock and the Scottish Blackface flock.A total of 2116 ewes from 17 commercial flocks were used in trial 2, approximately half of which were Suffolk/Suffolk-cross ewes and the remainder Mule/Mule-cross ewes. Implantation with melatonin occurred between 22 June and 24 July 1987. Flocks with over 100 ewes were divided into three equal-sized groups and treated with either 18 mg melatonin (one implant of Regulin, 36 mg melatonin (two implants of Regulin given at the same time) or acted as untreated controls. Flocks with less than 100 ewes contained only the 18 mg melatonin and untreated control groups. Treatment with melatonin significantly advanced the date of first oestrus in most flocks of both breeds (P < 0·05) but the magnitude of this effect was variable. Significant (P < 0·05 at least) increases in ‘potential’ (from scanning) mean litter size (+0·13 to +0·18) and actual mean litter size (+0·11 to +0·14) resulting from treatment with melatonin were apparent in ewes of both breeds when the data were pooled across all flocks, but only in 4/17 of the individual flocks.These results indicate that treatment with melatonin implants may be a simple and effective way of advancing the breeding season and enhancing litter size of early lambing flocks under commercial farming conditions in the United Kingdom, but treatment must be given >60 days before the start of the natural breeding season for benefits in date of first oestrus to be manifest.

Biological nitrogen fixation and grassland production in the United Kingdom

1982 ◽  
Vol 296 (1082) ◽  
pp. 397-404 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
United Kingdom ◽  
White Clover ◽  
Field Experiments ◽  
Agricultural Land ◽  
Red Clover ◽  
Major Constituent ◽  
Agricultural Practice ◽  
Fertilizer N ◽  
Forage Crops ◽  
The United Kingdom

Grassland occupies almost two-thirds of the agricultural land in the United Kingdom; it has a varied botanical composition and sometimes includes legumes that fix N 2 . Estimates of the amount of N fixed have been made in field experiments; for mixtures of white clover with grass it varies from 74 to 280 kg ha -1 annually, and for crops of red clover and lucerne it is at the higher end of that range. The contribution from white clover and other legumes sown with grass declines markedly with increasing addition of fertilizer N. In agricultural practice, white clover is rarely a major constituent of swards, reflecting a 30-fold increase in the use of fertilizer N during the last 35 years, and it is estimated that the average amount of N fixed annually is 11 kg ha -1 . The areas sown to red clover and lucerne are small and are declining. Experimental data suggest that fixation by free-living organisms is much less than fixation by legumes. In practice the contribution from fixation may be improved by more careful culture of white clover in swards, and by an increased use of leguminous forage crops to provide conserved feeds.

scholarly journals Leaf development and dry matter production of subterranean clover cultivars in relation to autumn sward management

2003 ◽  
Vol 11 ◽  
pp. 193-200
Author(s):  
D.J. Moot ◽  
A.D. Black ◽  
W.R. Scott ◽  
J. Richardon
Keyword(s):  
White Clover ◽  
Subterranean Clover ◽  
Trifolium Subterraneum ◽  
Physical Damage ◽  
Trifoliate Leaf ◽  
Temperature Regimes ◽  
Matter Production ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Leaf Appearance ◽  
Lincoln University

Seeds of five cultivars of subterranean clover, together with one of white clover, were sown in a wide range of temperature regimes under both controlled environment and field conditions. Results were consistent across temperature regimes and showed that the first trifoliate leaf emerged after 230 °Cd for all subterranean clover cultivars and 309 °Cd for the white clover cultivar. For subterranean clover, exponential leaf appearance commenced after 434 °Cd at the six total leaf stage. At this time, subterranean clover can be defoliated without causing permanent physical damage to seedlings. The field study at Lincoln University showed that subterranean clover that germinated in March produced 44 kg DM/ha/day for 158 days to yield approximately 7 000 kg DM/ha by mid-September. Subterranean clover that germinated in May produced 15 kg DM/ha/day for 120 days to yield only 1 800 kg DM/ha by mid September. These results are discussed in relation to the time of autumn grazing management for subterranean clover, including extrapolation to other climatic areas of New Zealand. Key words: herbage yield, phyllochron, seedling establishment, thermal time, Trifolium subterraneum, T. repens, white clover

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