The effect of pre-treatment of native pasture and sowing rate on establishment of Townsville lucerne of Tippera clay loam at Katherine, NT

1967 ◽  
Vol 7 (29) ◽  
pp. 515 ◽  
Author(s):  
HP Miller
Keyword(s):  
Dry Matter ◽  
First Year ◽  
Clay Loam ◽  
Wet Season ◽  
Heavy Grazing ◽  
Stylosanthes Humilis ◽  
Native Pasture ◽  
Loam Soil ◽  
Pre Treatment ◽  
Made In

At Katherine, N.T., on Tippera clay loam soil, Townsville lucerne (Stylosanthes humilis H.B.K.) was sown in December 1965 at 4, 16, and 64 lb an acre of abraded pods into uncleared uncultivated perennial native pasture that had been subjected to three pre-treatments : heavy grazing in the previous wet season, late dry season burning, and early wet season burning. The amount and incidence of rainfall was particularly favourable for establishment. At counts made in December 1965, and in January and February 1966, pre-treatment did not affect Townsville lucerne density, which was proportional to sowing rate on all pre-treatments. Dry matter yields of Townsville lucerne in April 1966 were higher after early wet-season burning than after other pre-treatments. At a final seedling count at the start of the next wet season, December 1966, there was an interaction between pre-treatment and sowing rate, seedling density showing an approximate correspondence with dry matter yield of Townsville lucerne in April 1966. At the practical sowing rates of 4 and 16 lb an acre, first and second year seedling densities and first year yields were comparable with average figures for Townsville lucerne established with full land clearance and cultivation.

Effect of time of cessation of wet season grazing on Townsville stylo-annual grass pasture at Katherine, N.T

1973 ◽  
Vol 13 (64) ◽  
pp. 544 ◽  
Author(s):  
MJT Norman ◽  
LJ Phillips
Keyword(s):  
Dry Matter ◽  
Recovery Period ◽  
Dry Matter Yield ◽  
Annual Grass ◽  
Wet Season ◽  
Active Growth ◽  
Heavy Grazing ◽  
Stylosanthes Humilis ◽  
Dry Conditions ◽  
Townsville Stylo

A Townsville stylo (Stylosanthes humilis)-annual grass pasture at Katherine, N.T., was subjected to a series of treatments in 1969-70 and 1970-71 under which plots were grazed heavily from the beginning of the wet season for a period and then allowed to recover undefoliated for the remainder of the season. The dates at which heavy grazing ceased were spaced at 2-week intervals from November 24 to March 16. At the end of the wet season, total dry matter yield was linearly related to length of recovery period. Townsville stylo yield declined as recovery period was reduced from 18 to 8 weeks, but showed little response to a further reduction to 4 weeks. In contrast, annual grass yield showed little change as recovery period was reduced from 18 to 8 weeks, but fell with a further reduction to 4 weeks. As a result, the proportion of Townsville stylo in the pasture at the end of the season was high with long and short recovery periods but reached a minimum with an 8 - 10 week recovery period. Dry conditions prevailed in the first half of both seasons. The evidence suggests that young Townsville stylo is sensitive to heavy grazing when under water stress, and that early grazing for grass control should be imposed only during periods of active growth.

The effect of subsoiling and different levels of manuring on yields of cereals, lucerne and sugar beet

1967 ◽  
Vol 69 (2) ◽  
pp. 183-187 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Hull ◽  
D. J. Webb
Keyword(s):  
Sugar Beet ◽  
Dry Matter ◽  
First Year ◽  
Clay Loam ◽  
Clay Loam Soil ◽  
Experimental Station ◽  
Loam Soil ◽  
Different Levels

The effect of subsoiling an old arable clay-loam soil at Broom's Barn Experimental Station, Suffolk, was tested with a sequence of wheat, barley and sugar-beet crops, a lucerne ley and a sugar-beet test crop in the fourth year.Subsoiling increased the yield of each crop each year, averages over 3 years were: wheat, 0·6 cwt/acre of grain; barley 0·4 cwt/acre; lucerne 0·6 cwt/acre of dry matter. Average increases of sugar beet over 4 years were 0·7 tons/acre of roots or 2·1 cwt/acre of sugar; the increase was greatest (2·9 cwt/acre of sugar) in the first year.

Nitrogen accretion and other soil changes in Tindall clay loam under Townsville stylo/grass pastures

1976 ◽  
Vol 16 (78) ◽  
pp. 94 ◽  
Author(s):  
RJK Myers
Keyword(s):  
Organic Carbon ◽  
Available Phosphorus ◽  
Clay Loam ◽  
Clay Loam Soil ◽  
Available Nitrogen ◽  
Absolute Value ◽  
Stylosanthes Humilis ◽  
Loam Soil ◽  
Townsville Stylo ◽  
Soil Changes

Soil changes after 3-15 years of fertilized leguminous pastures on Tindall clay loam soil at Katherine, N.T. were studied by comparison of leguminous pasture soils with their native counterparts. Soil organic carbon, total nitrogen, C/N ratio and pH were unchanged by the presence of Townsville stylo (Stylosanthes humilis). Available phosphorus (bicarbonate extraction) was significantly higher under legume pasture, reflecting its fertilizer history, but there was no pattern of increase with time, nor with quantity of fertilizer. Available nitrogen (boiling water extraction) was higher under legume pasture, and both the absolute value under legume pasture and the change in amount were correlated significantly with the age of the pasture. Available nitrogen after three years of legume pasture was equal to that under unimproved pasture, suggesting that gains in this period merely balanced losses during clearing and establishment.

Fire and survival of Stylosanthes spp. in the dry savanna woodlands of the Northern Territory

1982 ◽  
Vol 33 (2) ◽  
pp. 203 ◽  
Author(s):  
JJ Mott
Keyword(s):  
Dry Matter ◽  
Northern Territory ◽  
The Other ◽  
Dry Matter Yield ◽  
Stocking Rate ◽  
Wet Season ◽  
Native Grass ◽  
Hard Seed ◽  
Stylosanthes Humilis ◽  
Good Germination

A series of burns was carried out during the early and late, dry season and early wet season, in mixed native grass-legume plots containing Stylosanthes humilis, S. hamata, S, scabra and S. viscosa as the legume component. The least mortality was shown by S. scabra, but its survival was poor in any sward more than 3 years old. After burning the other species relied solely on seedling regeneration for subsequent season's growth. Fire killed a considerable quantity of seed, but its heat softened hard seed in the soil and good germination occurred with summer rains. However, the presence of a large proportion of soft seed through the winter months could lead to out-of-season germination and subsequent death of seedlings after unseasonal winter rains. Although the total dry matter yield of swards was reduced by all fires, burning could play an important part in increasing yields of S. hamata in swards overgrown by dense native grass, since it increases the amount of soft seed in the soil. If burning causes a high mortality of mature plants of the perennials S. scabra and S. viscosa, a reduction in stocking rate may be needed to ensure regeneration of a productive sward, as these species have slow seedling growth rates.

A lysimeter study of the water balance of border-check irrigated perennial pasture

2004 ◽  
Vol 44 (2) ◽  
pp. 151 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Bethune ◽  
Q. J. Wang
Keyword(s):  
Water Balance ◽  
Water Use ◽  
Dry Matter ◽  
Dry Matter Production ◽  
Clay Loam ◽  
Clay Loam Soil ◽  
Deep Drainage ◽  
Pasture Production ◽  
Matter Production ◽  
Loam Soil

The dairy industry is a major user of water in northern Victoria and southern New South Wales. Water is typically applied to pasture using the border-check irrigation system. The border-check system is largely gravity driven and thus energy efficient. However, deep drainage can potentially be high because the system allows only limited control over the depth of water applied in each irrigation event. For this reason, heavy soils are regarded as the most suitable for border-check irrigation. This study quantified net deep drainage (deep drainage less capillary rise) under border-check irrigated pasture on a Goulburn clay loam soil. Additionally, the study investigated the extent to which irrigation frequency and watertable conditions influence water use, dry matter production and deep drainage. The water balance and dry matter production were monitored over 2.5 years in a lysimeter facility in northern Victoria. The Goulburn clay loam is representative of the heavier textured soils used for border-check irrigation of pasture in northern Victoria. The average measured net deep drainage was 4 mm/year. This indicates that relatively small levels of net deep drainage can be achieved under well-managed border-check irrigation on a Goulburn clay loam soil. Net deep drainage losses were greatest following winter, when rainfall exceeded pasture water use for an extended period. Increasing the interval between irrigation events resulted in reduced plant water use, infiltration of irrigation water, rainfall runoff and pasture production. However, increasing the interval did not impact on net deep drainage or water use efficiency. Depth of watertable had a relatively minor impact on the water balance.

Influence of pasture type and supplement on fertility and liveweight of cows, and progeny growth rate in the dry tropics of northern Queensland

1983 ◽  
Vol 23 (120) ◽  
pp. 4 ◽  
Author(s):  
RG Holroyd ◽  
PK O'Rourke ◽  
MR Clarke ◽  
ID Loxton
Keyword(s):  
Growth Rate ◽  
Reproductive Performance ◽  
Fold Increase ◽  
Dry Season ◽  
Wet Season ◽  
Calf Growth ◽  
Dry Tropics ◽  
Stylosanthes Humilis ◽  
Native Pasture ◽  
One Year

The reproductive performance of cows and growth rate of their calves to weaning was examined over a four-year period (1973-1977). Cows grazed either native pasture stocked at 1cowl4 ha, or native pasture oversown with Townsville stylo (Stylosanthes humilis) and fertilized with superphosphate stocked at 1 cow/2 ha. Animals were supplemented on each pasture type with urea-molasses in the dry season, phosphorus all year round plus urea-molasses in the dry season, or were unsupplemented. Mating was for three months from mid-January. Calving began towards the end of the dry season and cows lactated through the following wet season. Cows grazing fertilized legume pasture had significantly higher conception rates and earlier calving dates in one year only. In all years, foetal and calf losses between pregnancy diagnosis and weaning were lower on native pasture than on fertilized legume pasture. Cows grazing fertilized legume pasture were generally in better body condition and heavier throughout and their calves grew faster to weaning than on native pasture. Fertilized legume pasture produced a 2.4 fold increase over that of native pasture in cow and calf liveweight per unit area (382.7 kg/ha vs 159.8 kg/ha) over the four years. Supplementation did not influence liveweight or reproductive performance of cows or calf growth rate except during the final dry season when non-supplemented cows lost significantly more weight than those supplemented with phosphorus and urea.

Effect of pasture type and supplementary feeding on the reproductive performance of cattle in the dry tropics of north Queensland

1977 ◽  
Vol 17 (85) ◽  
pp. 197 ◽  
Author(s):  
RG Holroyd ◽  
PJ Allan ◽  
PK O'Rourke
Keyword(s):  
Reproductive Performance ◽  
Dry Season ◽  
Conception Rate ◽  
Wet Season ◽  
Lactating Cows ◽  
Dry Tropics ◽  
Stylosanthes Humilis ◽  
Native Pasture ◽  
Conception Rates ◽  
Townsville Stylo

A study was made over a four year period ( 1970-1 973) on the reproductive performance of cows grazing either native pasture stocked at 1 breeder 4.9 ha-1 or native pasture oversown with Townsville stylo (Stylosanthes humilis) and fertilized with superphosphate, stocked at 1 breeder 2.4 ha-1. Animals were supplemented on each pasture type with combinations of molasses, urea and phosphorus at various times of the year. Mating from September 1 to January 31 resulted in animals lactating during the dry season. At double the stocking rate, lactating cows on fertilized pastures had similar conception rates to those on native pasture. During a prolonged dry season, lactating cows on fertilized pasture had twice the conception rate and fewer required survival feeding. Urea compared with non-urea based supplements produced significant increases in conception rates of cows grazing native pasture especially during a dry year. Calves were born earlier, had shorter intercalving intervals and fewer cows had to be fed a survival ration when urea was available. On fertilized pasture, urea based supplements caused only a marginal increase in conception rate except in a dry year, when there was a significant increase. Over the four years, there was a diminishing response in the conception rate of lactating cows grazing native pasture and supplemented with phosphorus during the wet season compared with the control. On fertilized pasture, there was a variable but non-significant response. The addition of phosphorus either as a wet or dry season supplement to urea caused variable responses on each pasture type, but none differed significantly from that of urea.

The effect of a phosphorus supplement on the performance of steers grazing Townsville stylo-based pasture in north Queensland

1977 ◽  
Vol 17 (86) ◽  
pp. 357 ◽  
Author(s):  
L Winks ◽  
FC Lamberth ◽  
PK O'Rourke
Keyword(s):  
Dry Season ◽  
Wet Season ◽  
Dry Tropics ◽  
Stylosanthes Humilis ◽  
Native Pasture ◽  
Weight Gains ◽  
Annual Grasses ◽  
Townsville Stylo

The effect of phosphorus supplementation on the performance of steeres grazing unfertilized native pasture and Townsville stylo (Stylosanthes humilis) with andwithout superphosphate fertilizer on the subcoastal spear grass region of the dry tropics of north Queensland was studied over a period of 40 months. Liveweight gains in the absence of supplementation on fertilized Townsville stylo pastures were greater than on unfertilized Townsville stylo, where performance was similar to that recorded on untreated native pasture. Phosphorus supplementation increased weight gains during the wet season on both unfertilized Townsville stylo and native pasture but had no significant effect on dry season performance or performance on fertilized Townsville stylo. Fertilized areas became dominated by annual grasses, Digitaria ciliaris and Brachiaria milliiformis, and legume yields were higher on unfertilized than on fertilized areas. Fertilizer improved the quality of available pastures.

Wet season grazing of Townsville stylo pasture at Katherine, N.T

1970 ◽  
Vol 10 (47) ◽  
pp. 710 ◽  
Author(s):  
MJT Norman ◽  
LJ Phillips
Keyword(s):  
Dry Matter ◽  
Correlation Coefficients ◽  
Dry Matter Yield ◽  
Stocking Rate ◽  
Wet Season ◽  
Nitrogen Yield ◽  
Stylosanthes Humilis ◽  
Townsville Stylo ◽  
Using Data ◽  
Stocking Rates

At Katherine, N.T., stocking rates of 1.33, 1.00, and 0.67 Shorthorn steers an acre for a period of 18 weeks in the wet season beginning January were imposed on established pastures sown to Townsville sty10 (Stylosanthes humilis) alone but subsequently invaded to varying degrees by annual grasses. The experiment was repeated over three years. There were no significant differences in mean liveweight gain per head over three years ; hence liveweight gain per acre at the heaviest stocking rate was approximately twice that at the lightest rate. The mean dry matter yield of grass increased significantly with decreasing stocking rate, but there were no significant differences between stocking rates in Townsville stylo dry matter yield, nitrogen yield, or phosphorus yield. Correlation coefficients were calculated using data from individual paddocks and years. There was a highly significant positive correlation between liveweight gain per head and pasture nitrogen yield, and between liveweight gain per head and pasture phosphorus yield.

Animal production on sown and native pastures on brigalow land in southern Queensland during drought

1969 ◽  
Vol 9 (36) ◽  
pp. 47 ◽  
Author(s):  
JE Coaldrake ◽  
CA Smith ◽  
JJ Yates ◽  
LA Edye
Keyword(s):  
Dry Matter ◽  
First Year ◽  
Stocking Rate ◽  
Rhodes Grass ◽  
Buffel Grass ◽  
Native Pasture ◽  
Chloris Gayana ◽  
Native Pastures ◽  
Stocking Rates ◽  
Better Than

Liveweight gains of six yearling steers grazing on each of four introduced grasses, each with lucerne, were compared with those from native pasture and native pasture plus forage oats, on a weakly solonized brown clay loam of moderate fertility in the brigalow region of southern Queensland. The pastures were grazed continuously for three years (1963 to 1965) at set stocking rates during the worst drought known from 87 years of local records. At the height of the drought in 1965 the sown pastures supported animals as far into the drought as did the two native pasture treatments at half the stocking rate. Sorghum almum (CV. Crooble) and Rhodes grass (Chloris gayana CV. Pioneer) died late in the drought and did not re-establish after rain, whereas buffel grass (Cenchrus ciliaris CV. Nunbank) and green panic (Panicm maximum var. trichoglume CV. Petrie) survived. Standing dry matter in the pastures was less than 1,000 lb dry matter an acre for much of the life of the experiment. At a stocking rate of one bullock to 2.3 acres S. almm gave the highest average gain per head in the first full year of grazing (462 lb per head), but this was only significantly better (P<0.05) than the gain from buffel grass, and not significantly better than the gains (at one bullock to 4.6 acres) on native pasture (415 lb per head) and native pasture plus oats (390 lb per head). Rainfall in the first year was 18 inches. In the remaining two years, with 13 and 8 inches of rain respectively, there were no significant differences between the sown pastures until the S. almum and Rhodes grass died. Native pasture plus oats (681 lb per head) and native pasture (424 Ib per head) gave the greatest gain per head in 1964, but not per acre because of the lower stocking rate.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document