Growth and regeneration of summer-growing pasture legumes on a heavy clay soil in south-eastern Queensland

1987 ◽  
Vol 27 (5) ◽  
pp. 633 ◽  
Author(s):  
BA Keating ◽  
JJ Mott
Keyword(s):  
Clay Soil ◽  
Summer Drought ◽  
Winter Rainfall ◽  
Pasture Legumes ◽  
Heavy Clay ◽  
Seed Reserves ◽  
Macroptilium Atropurpureum ◽  
Macroptilium Lathyroides ◽  
Stylosanthes Scabra ◽  
Autumn And Winter

Growth and regeneration of summer-growing pasture legumes were studied on a black earth site near Dalby on the Darling Downs. Pure swards of some annual and perennial species (i.e. Macroptilium atropurpureum cv. Siratro, Macroptilium lathyroides cv. Murray, Stylosanthes scabra CPI 55856 and Rhynchosia minima CQ2970) were found to be productive (rainfed, 2-3 t ha-1, irrigated, 4-6 t ha-1) over 3 years. A moderately severe summer drought (to be expected on a 1 in 6 frequency), while severely limiting DM production relative to irrigated plots, did not adversely affect plant survival or regeneration in the following season. Waterlogging associated with normally high autumn and winter rainfall did prevent perennation, but regeneration from soil seed reserves was excellent and sward survival was not affected (4 t ha-1 after 3 years). The soil studied has a moderate level of subsoil salinity (EC, of 3.6 dS m-1 at 11 5 cm) but levels of chloride found in legume tissues (0.5-1.5%) were found to be unlikely to limit growth or to prejudice survival. Observations taken over the same period on pure grass plots (Panicum coloratum var. makarikariense cv. Bambatsi) revealed the grass had a deeper and more extensive root system (459 cm cm-2) than did any of the legume species (e.g. Siratro 111-118 cm c m-2) and was more effective in extracting soil water during dry periods.

The effect of sulphur on the growth, sulphur and nitrogen concentrations, and critical sulphur concentrations of some tropical and temperate pasture legumes

1977 ◽  
Vol 28 (5) ◽  
pp. 807 ◽  
Author(s):  
CS Andrew
Keyword(s):  
Growth Responses ◽  
Flowering Stage ◽  
Critical Concentrations ◽  
Pasture Legumes ◽  
Diagnostic Indices ◽  
Stylosanthes Humilis ◽  
Nitrogen Concentrations ◽  
Macroptilium Atropurpureum ◽  
Macroptilium Lathyroides ◽  
Pasture Legume

Seven tropical and five temperate pasture legume species were grown in pots of three sulphur-deficient soils with varying additions of sulphate. Growth responses and the chemical composition of the plant tops were recorded, and from the latter, tentative critical concentrations of sulphur were established. These were compared with data from two field sites (six species only). Critical concentrations of sulphur in the tops of species sampled at the immediate pre-flowering stage of growth were: Macroptilium lathyroides 0.17%, Macroptilium atropurpureum 0.15%, Desmodium intortum 0.17%, Desmodium uncinatum 0.17%, Stylosanthes humilis 0.14%, Lotononis bainesii 0.15%, Glycine wightii 0.17%, Trifolium repens 0.18%, Trifolium semipilosum 0.17%, Medicago sativa 0.20%, Medicago truncatula 0.20% and Medicago denticulata 0.20%. Sulphate concentration and nitrogen/sulphur ratios were investigated as alternative diagnostic indices, but were not considered as suitable as total sulphur indices for the assessment of sulphur deficiency in legumes. Nitrogen concentrations in the plant tops were increased by sulphate supply, and excellent correlations were established between the nitrogen and sulphur concentrations in the plant tops.

Salt tolerance of some tropical pasture legumes with potential adaptation to cracking clay soils.

1986 ◽  
Vol 26 (2) ◽  
pp. 181 ◽  
Author(s):  
BA Keating ◽  
RW Strickland ◽  
MJ Fisher
Keyword(s):  
Salt Tolerance ◽  
Maximum Growth ◽  
Clay Soils ◽  
Tropical Pasture ◽  
Pasture Legumes ◽  
Eastern Australia ◽  
North Eastern ◽  
Electrical Conductivities ◽  
Macroptilium Lathyroides ◽  
Stylosanthes Scabra

Cracking clay soils or vertisols occur in large areas of the subhumid regions of north-eastern Australia and frequently contain appreciable levels of salt in their subsoils. The comparative salt tolerance of some tropical pasture legumes was studied in pots with NaCl added to a clay soil to achieve electrical conductivities (saturated extract, ECe) over the range 2.0- 20.0 dS m-1. Tolerance, based on EC, at 50% of maximum growth (in parentheses) was in the order: Macroptilium atropurpureum cv. Siratro (10.6)> Macroptilium lathyroides cv. Murray (9.9) > Vigna trilobata (9.7) > Indigofera spicata (9.5) > Desmanthus subulatus (9.3) > Arachis pintoi (7.9) > Clitoria ternatea (6.4) > Stylosanthes scabra (5.6) > Indigofera schimperi (5.4) > Psoralea tenax (5.3) > Rhynchosia minima (5.1). The grass Panicum coloratum cv. Bambatsi was markedly more tolerant than any of the legumes studied, with 50% yield at an EC, of 16.4 dS m-1. Patterns of Na+ and Cl- uptake with increasing level of salt differed between species, but were not related to the degree oftolerance observed. The results are discussed in terms of the reported salinity tolerance of legumes generally and their implications to the search for persistent legumes for clay soils.

Evaluation of pasture legumes sown into a prepared seedbed at Tamworth, New South Wales. 2. Seed production and seed reserves

1993 ◽  
Vol 33 (3) ◽  
pp. 299 ◽  
Author(s):  
GM Lodge
Keyword(s):  
Seed Production ◽  
New South ◽  
New South Wales ◽  
Pasture Legumes ◽  
South Wales ◽  
Medicago Scutellata ◽  
Seed Reserves ◽  
Annual Medics ◽  
Perennial Legumes ◽  
Seed Yields

Plots sown in 1983 were used to examine the seed production and reserves (residual hardseeds) of 15 annual legumes over 5 years at Tamworth in northern New South Wales. Seed production characteristics were measured in 1983 for these annuals, and for 6 perennial legumes. After the annuals had set seed in 1983, an area of the plots was sprayed to prevent flowering in subsequent years, and the rates of decline in seed reserves were compared with those from areas that seeded annually. Seed yields of the perennials were often significantly lower than those of the annuals except Trifolium glomeratum. Seed yields of T. subterraneum var. subterraneum cvv. Seaton Park and Woogenellup were significantly higher than those of cv. Nungarin and T. subterrarzeum var. brachycalycinum cv. Clare. Seed numbers were lowest for Medicago scutellata cv. Sava among the annual medics, and for Nungarin among subterranean clovers. There was little relationship between the mean number of seeds produced from 1983-86 and maturity grading, and between seed numbers and relative dry matter yield. Seed reserves decreased over 5 years by more than 90% in the sprayed treatments of all species. This decrease was not continuous, with the largest declines occurring from December 1983 to August 1984. In the sprayed treatments of Seaton Park, Woogenellup, and Clare, and in both treatments of Astragalus hamosus cv. Ioman, Vicia dasycarpa var. villosa cv. Namoi, and T. hirtum cv. Hykon, none of the original 1983 seed was recovered in 1987. For the annual medics and Nungarin, the number of residual hardseeds in the sprayed treatments in 1987 was about 3-5% of the seed produced in 1983. From 1983 to 1987, seed numbers in the unsprayed treatments declined by 7040% for the annual medics and by 85-95% for Seaton Park, Woogenellup, and Clare. Long-term persistence of annual medics and Nungarin depended on seed production in most years and the maintenance of a high number of residual hardseeds in the soil. In contrast, the mid- and late-maturing subterranean clovers Woogenellup and Clare had low seed reserves and were dependent on seed production in most years for their continued regeneration.

scholarly journals Oxygation Improves Yield and Quality and Minimizes Internal Fruit Crack of Cucurbits on a Heavy Clay Soil in the Semi-arid Tropics

2010 ◽  
Vol 2 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Surya Prasad Bhattarai ◽  
Jay Dhungel ◽  
David J Midmore
Keyword(s):  
Clay Soil ◽  
Yield And Quality ◽  
Heavy Clay ◽  
Semi Arid

Investigation into the effect of tillage on solute movement to drains through a heavy clay soil

2006 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. 94-100 ◽  
Author(s):  
C.D. Brown ◽  
V.L. Marshall ◽  
A. Deas ◽  
A.D. Carter ◽  
D. Arnold ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Clay Soil ◽  
Heavy Clay ◽  
Solute Movement

Investigations in crop husbandry. III. Effect of time of application of sulphate of ammonia to wheat

1936 ◽  
Vol 26 (2) ◽  
pp. 316-327 ◽  
Author(s):  
F. H. Garner ◽  
H. G. Sanders
Keyword(s):  
Field Experiments ◽  
Clay Soil ◽  
Foot Rot ◽  
Plant Establishment ◽  
Poor Condition ◽  
Time Of Application ◽  
Gravelly Soil ◽  
Heavy Clay ◽  
Crop Husbandry

1. Over a period of six years seven field experiments were carried out to study the effect of the time of application of sulphate of ammonia to autumn-sown wheat.2. Three experiments were located on light gravelly soil which had been farmed highly for some years, and in those three cases sulphate of ammonia decreased yield, irrespective of time of application; the reduction in yield was of the order of 10 per cent. and is ascribed to more lodging and greater incidence of “foot-rot”.3. Three experiments were located on heavy clay soil in poor condition; in these sulphate of ammonia gave percentage increases in yield of 18, 20 and 7.4. Evidence is produced that early dressings of sulphate of ammonia do not affect germination or plant establishment, but that they tend to increase tiller formation by the end of February.

scholarly journals Reclamation of a Saline-Sodic Soil by Use of Molasses and Distillery Slops

1969 ◽  
Vol 50 (3) ◽  
pp. 209-217
Author(s):  
Raúl Pérez Escolar
Keyword(s):  
Puerto Rico ◽  
Organic Acids ◽  
Clay Soil ◽  
Mass Action ◽  
Soil Reclamation ◽  
Exchangeable Sodium ◽  
Dry Period ◽  
Action Effect ◽  
Saturation Extract ◽  
Heavy Clay

Data are presented on a laboratory study conducted to determine the effects of the use of blackstrap molasses and rum distillery slops on the reclamation of a highly saline-alkali heavy clay soil of southwestern Puerto Rico. The study revealed that even the lowest levels of distillery slops and diluted molasses, around 2.3 acre-inch, were sufficient to lower the conductivity of the soil-saturation extract from 67 mmhos/cm. to less than 3, and the exchangeable sodium percentage from 43 to less than 1 percent. It is believed that most of the Ca and Mg found in leachates of columns treated with the most slops or molasses may be attributed to the production of organic acids during the decomposition of slops and molasses. These organic acids rendered soluble the soil-free CaCO3 and MgCO3, widening the Ca and Mg:Na ratio to substitute the sodium by a mass action effect. Subjecting the soil to a dry period in between, the 6 and 7 acre-feet of water did not alter the movement of water and resulted in a complete soil reclamation.

scholarly journals Vegetation responses to season of fire in an aseasonal, fire-prone fynbos shrubland

PeerJ ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 5 ◽  
pp. e3591 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tineke Kraaij ◽  
Richard M. Cowling ◽  
Brian W. van Wilgen ◽  
Diba R. Rikhotso ◽  
Mark Difford
Keyword(s):  
Floristic Composition ◽  
Fire Season ◽  
Summer Drought ◽  
Winter Rainfall ◽  
Recruitment Success ◽  
Floral Diversity ◽  
Four Seasons ◽  
Different Seasons ◽  
Varied Response ◽  
One Year

Season of fire has marked effects on floristic composition in fire-prone Mediterranean-climate shrublands. In these winter-rainfall systems, summer-autumn fires lead to optimal recruitment of overstorey proteoid shrubs (non-sprouting, slow-maturing, serotinous Proteaceae) which are important to the conservation of floral diversity. We explored whether fire season has similar effects on early establishment of five proteoid species in the eastern coastal part of the Cape Floral Kingdom (South Africa) where rainfall occurs year-round and where weather conducive to fire and the actual incidence of fire are largely aseasonal. We surveyed recruitment success (ratio of post-fire recruits to pre-fire parents) of proteoids after fires in different seasons. We also planted proteoid seeds into exclosures, designed to prevent predation by small mammals and birds, in cleared (intended to simulate fire) fynbos shrublands at different sites in each of four seasons and monitored their germination and survival to one year post-planting (hereafter termed ‘recruitment’). Factors (in decreasing order of importance) affecting recruitment success in the post-fire surveys were species, pre-fire parent density, post-fire age of the vegetation at the time of assessment, and fire season, whereas rainfall (for six months post-fire) and fire return interval (>7 years) had little effect. In the seed-planting experiment, germination occurred during the cooler months and mostly within two months of planting, except for summer-plantings, which took 2–3 months longer to germinate. Although recruitment success differed significantly among planting seasons, sites and species, significant interactions occurred among the experimental factors. In both the post-fire surveys and seed planting experiment, recruitment success in relation to fire- or planting season varied greatly within and among species and sites. Results of these two datasets were furthermore inconsistent, suggesting that proteoid recruitment responses are not related to the season of fire. Germination appeared less rainfall-dependent than in winter-rainfall shrublands, suggesting that summer drought-avoiding dormancy is limited and has less influence on variation in recruitment success among fire seasons. The varied response of proteoid recruitment to fire season (or its simulation) implies that burning does not have to be restricted to particular seasons in eastern coastal fynbos, affording more flexibility for fire management than in shrublands associated with winter rainfall.

scholarly journals Surface irrigation with saline water on a heavy clay soil in the Medjerda Valley, Tunisia.

1967 ◽  
Vol 15 (4) ◽  
pp. 281-303
Author(s):  
J.A. Van 't Leven ◽  
M.A. Haddad
Keyword(s):  
Electrical Conductivity ◽  
Clay Soil ◽  
Saline Water ◽  
Surface Irrigation ◽  
Soil Extracts ◽  
Fallow Period ◽  
Salinity Effects ◽  
Heavy Clay ◽  
Winter Crops ◽  
Resting Period

On a clay soil rich in lime, with drain spacings of 30 and 60 m, one section (A) after four crops of artichokes over a two-year period, with fairly intensive irrigation with saline water (approx 700 mm annually) showed no harmful salinity effects; in the upper 120 cm the electrical conductivity of soil extracts (EC) seldom exceeded five. On section B, with well-distributed irrigation, which was not intensive except for tomatoes in one summer, salinity was fairly uniform in the profile (EC 4-6). In section C, under continuous lucerne and with 1000-1200 mm water annually, salinity increased, especially with depth, and a fallow period was needed. In section D, under four artichoke crops followed by maize, with more intensive irrigation than in A and B, EC of the 80-120 cm layer was 7-8, and maize growth was retarded slightly. In addition to fallowing, the inclusion in rotations of winter crops and of perennials with a resting period in summer, e.g. artichokes, is recommended. A drain spacing of 60 m was adequate. (Abstract retrieved from CAB Abstracts by CABI’s permission)

Studies on potassium. IV. Interspecific differences in the uptake of non-exchangeable potassium

Soil Research ◽  
1974 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 147 ◽  
Author(s):  
IF Fergus ◽  
AE Martin
Keyword(s):  
Soil Solution ◽  
Clay Soil ◽  
Plant Roots ◽  
Exchangeable Potassium ◽  
Swelling Clay ◽  
Rhodes Grass ◽  
Interspecific Differences ◽  
Chloris Gayana ◽  
Macroptilium Atropurpureum ◽  
Plant Removal

Five soils were cropped with four plant species in pot experiments in the glasshouse, without addition of potassium, until growth virtually ceased, after which the depleted soils were replanted with either the same species, or a different one, to test the reproducibility of the 'exhaustion' conditions imposed. Uptake of potassium by the plants exceeded the changes in exchangeable potassium in four soils; the excess amounts taken up differed markedly between species and these differences were reproducible on replanting. Uptake by setaria (Setaria anceps) and siratro (Macroptilium atropurpureum) exceeded that by Rhodes grass (Chloris gayana) and lucerne (Medicago sativa), except for one swelling clay soil from which uptake by lucerne equalled that by siratro. Most of the differences between species were attributed to the uptake of initially non-exchangeable potassium, which was removed in significant amounts from three of the soils. For these three soils, uptake from non-exchangeable sources was detected only after about 80% of the exchangeable potassium had been removed. It is postulated that the efficiency of plant removal of non-exchangeable potassium from soil is directly related to the degree to which plant roots can lower the concentration of potassium in the soil solution.

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