Comparison of the phosphate requirements of burr medic and yellow serradella with subterranean clover in the low rainfall wheatbelt of Western Australia

1992 ◽  
Vol 32 (8) ◽  
pp. 1077 ◽  
Author(s):  
BH Paynter
Keyword(s):  
Seed Production ◽  
Western Australia ◽  
Maximum Yield ◽  
Subterranean Clover ◽  
Trifolium Subterraneum ◽  
Yield Response ◽  
Absolute Maximum ◽  
Absolute Yield ◽  
Burr Medic ◽  
Internal Efficiency

Burr medic (Medicago polymorpha) and yellow serradella (Ornithopus compressus) were compared with subterranean clover (Trifolium subterraneum) in their response to freshly topdressed phosphate in the low rainfall wheatbelt of Western Australia. Species were compared on the amount of applied phosphorus (P) required for 90% maximum yield and the ratio of their curvature coefficients from the Mitscherlich relationship between P applied and absolute yield. On marginally acidic, medium-textured soils, burr medic had a higher external shoot requirement for applied P than subterranean clover. Relative differences between the species were affected by season, initial concentration of bicarbonate-extractable P in the soil (0-10 cm), and timing of plant harvest during the growing season. Burr medic generally achieved a higher absolute maximum yield at each harvest, a larger absolute yield response, and a larger percentage response to applied P than subterranean clover. There was no difference between burr medic and subterranean clover with respect to the internal efficiency of P use for shoot production. For seed production, the external requirements of burr medic and subterranean clover for applied P were similar according to the criterion of P required at 90% maximum yield, but burr medic had a higher requirement if curvature coefficient was the criterion for comparison. Burr medic also had a higher internal efficiency of P use for seed production than subterranean clover. On an acidic, light-textured soil, yellow serradella had a lower requirement for applied P than subterranean clover, according to both criteria for all harvests in 2 separate years.

Comparison of the phosphate requirements of burr medic and yellow serradella with that of wheat in the low rainfall wheatbelt of Western Australia

1993 ◽  
Vol 33 (2) ◽  
pp. 145 ◽  
Author(s):  
BH Paynter ◽  
MDA Bolland
Keyword(s):  
Seed Production ◽  
Western Australia ◽  
Maximum Yield ◽  
Lower Percentage ◽  
Yield Response ◽  
Absolute Yield ◽  
Ornithopus Compressus ◽  
Burr Medic ◽  
Curvature Coefficient ◽  
Seed Yields

The responses of burr medic (Medicago polymorpha) and yellow serradella (Ornithopus compressus) to topdressed phosphate were compared with the response of wheat (Triticum aestivum) to drilled phosphate on a range of soils in the low rainfall wheatbelt of Western Australia. Species were compared firstly on the amount of applied phosphorus (P) required for 90% maximum yield at 3 harvests, and secondly on the ratio of their curvature coefficients from the Mitscherlich relationship between absolute yield and P applied. On 7 marginally acidic, medium-textured soils, the comparative requirements of burr medic (cvv. Serena or Santiago) and wheat (cv. Gutha) for applied P changed with harvest. At harvest 1 152-55 days after sowing (DAS)], burr medic generally had a larger curvature coefficient and required less applied P for 90% maximum yield than wheat. At harvest 2 (107-111 DAS) and for harvest 3 (seed yields), the curvature coefficients for burr medic were smaller than those for wheat, and burr medic generally required more applied P at 90% maximum yield. The average P requirement at 90% maximum yield of burr medic was 14 kg P/ha at harvest 1, 22 kg P/ha at harvest 2, and 19 kg P/ha for seed production. The average P requirement of wheat was 28 kg P/ha at harvest 1,11 kg P/ha at harvest 2, and 15 kg P/ha for seed production. On 3 acidic, light-textured soils, yellow serradella (cv. Madeira) generally had a lower requirement for applied P at 90% maximum yield, and a larger curvature coefficient, than wheat (cv. Gutha) at all harvests in each experiment. The requirements of yellow serradella and wheat also varied between harvests. The average P requirement at 90% maximum yield of yellow serradella was 16 kg P/ha at harvest 1 (52-55 DAS), 21 kg P/ha at harvest 2 (105-110 DAS), and close to 26 kg P/ha for seed production. The average P requirement of wheat was 29 kg P/ha at harvest 1,25 kg P/ha at harvest 2, and >33 kg P/ha for seed production. In most experiments burr medic had a larger absolute response to applied P at harvests 1 and 2 and a lower absolute response for seed production than wheat. Yellow serradella had a smaller absolute yield response to applied P than wheat over all 3 harvests. When converted to a percentage of maximum yield, burr medic and yellow serradella had a lower percentage response to applied P at harvest 1, and a higher percentage response at harvest 2 and for seed production than wheat.

Seed production and persistence of Carnamah and other early strains of Trifolium subterraneum in the wheatbelt of Western Australia

1967 ◽  
Vol 7 (24) ◽  
pp. 25 ◽  
Author(s):  
GB Taylor ◽  
RC Rossiter
Keyword(s):  
Seed Production ◽  
Seed Yield ◽  
Western Australia ◽  
Subterranean Clover ◽  
Trifolium Subterraneum ◽  
Growing Season ◽  
Early Flowering ◽  
The Other ◽  
Factors Affecting ◽  
Seed Yields

Seed production and persistence of the Carnamah, Northam A, Dwalganup, and Geraldton strains of subterranean clover (Trifolium subterraneum L.) were examined in undefoliated swards in the wheatbelt of Western Australia. The early flowering characteristic of Carnamah was not always associated with higher seed yields. Only when there was a well-defined, early finish to the growing season, or when flowering was very much earlier in Carnamah (viz., following an early 'break' to the season), did this strain clearly outyield both Northam A and Geraldton. The seed yield of Dwalganup was generally inferior to that of the other strains. Factors affecting regeneration are discussed. Under low rainfall conditions, poorer germination-regulation of Carnamah, compared with Geraldton and Northam A, would be expected to result in poorer persistence unless offset by higher seed yields in the Carnamah strain.

Responses of intensively grazed dairy pastures to applications of fertiliser nitrogen in south-western Australia

2007 ◽  
Vol 47 (8) ◽  
pp. 927 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. D. A. Bolland ◽  
I. F. Guthridge
Keyword(s):  
Western Australia ◽  
Dry Matter ◽  
Maximum Yield ◽  
Subterranean Clover ◽  
Trifolium Subterraneum ◽  
Growing Season ◽  
Mineral Elements ◽  
Italian Ryegrass ◽  
Total N ◽  
Dry Matter Digestibility

For the first time, we quantified pasture dry matter (DM) responses to applied fertiliser nitrogen (N) for intensively grazed, rain-fed, dairy pastures on sandy soils common in the Mediterranean-type climate of south-western Australia. The pastures are composed of subterranean clover (Trifolium subterraneum L.) and annual and Italian ryegrass (Lolium rigidum Gaud. and L. multiflorum Lam.). Six rates of N, as urea (46% N), were applied to 15 m by 15 m plots four times during 2002 and after each of the first 5–7 grazings in 2003 and 2004, throughout the typical April–October growing season. Total rates of N applied in the first year of the experiments were 0, 60, 120, 160, 200 and 320 kg N/ha, which were adjusted in subsequent years as detailed in the ‘Materials and methods’ section of this paper. The pastures in the experiments were rotationally grazed, by starting grazing when ryegrass plants had 2–3 leaves per tiller. The amount of pasture DM on each plot was measured before and after each grazing and was then used to estimate the amount of pasture DM consumed by the cows at each grazing for different times during the growing season. Linear increases (responses) of pasture DM to applied N occurred throughout the whole growing season when a total of up to 320 kg N/ha was applied in each year. No maximum yield plateaus were defined. Across all three experiments and years, on average in each year, a total of ~5 t/ha consumed DM was produced when no N was applied and ~7.5 t/ha was produced when a total of 200 kg N/ha was applied, giving ~2.5 t/ha increase in DM consumed and an N response efficiency of ~12.5 kg DM N/kg applied. As more fertiliser N was applied, the proportion of ryegrass in the pasture consistently increased, whereas clover content decreased. Concentrations of nitrate-N in the DM consistently increased as more N was applied, whereas concentrations of total N, and, therefore, concentration of crude protein in the DM, either increased or were unaffected by applied N. Application of N had no effect on concentrations of other mineral elements in DM and on dry matter digestibility and metabolisable energy of the DM. The results were generally consistent with findings of previous pasture N studies for perennial and annual temperate and subtropical pastures. We have shown that when pasture use for milk production has been maximised in the region, it is profitable to apply fertiliser N to grow extra DM consumed by dairy cows; conversely, it is a waste of money to apply N to undergrazed pastures to produce more unused DM.

Occurrence of alfalfa mosaic and subterranean clover red leaf viruses in legume pastures in Western Australia

1995 ◽  
Vol 46 (4) ◽  
pp. 763 ◽  
Author(s):  
SJ McKirdy ◽  
RAC Jones
Keyword(s):  
Western Australia ◽  
Alfalfa Mosaic Virus ◽  
Subterranean Clover ◽  
Trifolium Subterraneum ◽  
Seed Transmission ◽  
Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent Assay ◽  
The South ◽  
Potential Threat ◽  
South West ◽  
Burr Medic

When leaf samples were collected from 94 Trifolium subterraneum (subterranean clover) pastures from six districts in spring 1993 in the south-west of Western Australia and tested by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, no alfalfa mosaic virus (AMV) or subterranean clover red leaf virus (SCRLV) was detected. In contrast, when 21 irrigated T. repens (white clover) pastures from one district (Bunbury) were sampled and tested in January (summer) 1994, AMV was detected in 16, with eight having infection levels >86%, while SCRLV was found in seven at infection levels of <12%. When a further five T. repens pastures were tested for AMV in October (spring) 1994, the virus was found in all with incidences up to 100%. None of the T. repens pastures with high levels of AMV infection had been resown with T. repens within the last 20 years, whereas those resown within the last five years had little or no infection. AMV was detected in 9/91 annual medic (Medicago spp.) pastures from seven wheatbelt districts sampled in spring 1991 or 1993; a single pasture of M. polymorpha (burr medic) cv. Serena was 21% infected, but the other eight infected ones had <3%. AMV seed transmission was detected in 1/19 commercial seed stocks of M. polymorpha harvested in 1991-93. AMV infection was followed over a 12-year period in M. murex (murex medic) cv. Zodiac seed stocks. It persisted readily through successive seed harvests during this period. It is concluded that infection with AMV and SCRLV is currently not a threat to T. subterraneum pastures in the south-west of Western Australia and that AMV seems not to be one in wheatbelt annual medic pastures provided these are sown with healthy medic seed. In contrast, AMV poses a potential threat to the productivity of irrigated T. repens pastures. SCRLV is also sometimes present in T. repens pastures, but was not found at serious levels.

Soil and tissue tests to predict pasture yield responses to applications of potassium fertiliser in high-rainfall areas of south-western Australia

2002 ◽  
Vol 42 (2) ◽  
pp. 149 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. D. A. Bolland ◽  
W. J. Cox ◽  
B. J. Codling
Keyword(s):  
Western Australia ◽  
Field Experiments ◽  
Relative Yield ◽  
Subterranean Clover ◽  
Test Method ◽  
Yield Response ◽  
Soil Test ◽  
Test Procedures ◽  
Pasture Production ◽  
Yield Responses

Dairy and beef pastures in the high (>800 mm annual average) rainfall areas of south-western Australia, based on subterranean clover (Trifolium subterraneum) and annual ryegrass (Lolium rigidum), grow on acidic to neutral deep (>40 cm) sands, up to 40 cm sand over loam or clay, or where loam or clay occur at the surface. Potassium deficiency is common, particularly for the sandy soils, requiring regular applications of fertiliser potassium for profitable pasture production. A large study was undertaken to assess 6 soil-test procedures, and tissue testing of dried herbage, as predictors of when fertiliser potassium was required for these pastures. The 100 field experiments, each conducted for 1 year, measured dried-herbage production separately for clover and ryegrass in response to applied fertiliser potassium (potassium chloride). Significant (P<0.05) increases in yield to applied potassium (yield response) were obtained in 42 experiments for clover and 6 experiments for ryegrass, indicating that grass roots were more able to access potassium from the soil than clover roots. When percentage of the maximum (relative) yield was related to soil-test potassium values for the top 10 cm of soil, the best relationships were obtained for the exchangeable (1 mol/L NH4Cl) and Colwell (0.5 mol/L NaHCO3-extracted) soil-test procedures for potassium. Both procedures accounted for about 42% of the variation for clover, 15% for ryegrass, and 32% for clover + grass. The Colwell procedure for the top 10 cm of soil is now the standard soil-test method for potassium used in Western Australia. No increases in clover yields to applied potassium were obtained for Colwell potassium at >100 mg/kg soil. There was always a clover-yield increase to applied potassium for Colwell potassium at <30 mg/kg soil. Corresponding potassium concentrations for ryegrass were >50 and <30 mg/kg soil. At potassium concentrations 30–100 mg/kg soil for clover and 30–50 mg/kg soil for ryegrass, the Colwell procedure did not reliably predict yield response, because from nil to large yield responses to applied potassium occurred. The Colwell procedure appears to extract the most labile potassium in the soil, including soluble potassium in soil solution and potassium balancing negative charge sites on soil constituents. In some soils, Colwell potassium was low indicating deficiency, yet plant roots may have accessed potassum deeper in the soil profile. Where the Colwell procedure does not reliably predict soil potassium status, tissue testing may help. The relationship between relative yield and tissue-test potassium varied markedly for different harvests in each year of the experiments, and for different experiments. For clover, the concentration of potassium in dried herbage that was related to 90% of the maximum, potassium non-limiting yield (critical potassium) was at the concentration of about 15 g/kg dried herbage for plants up to 8 weeks old, and at <10 g/kg dried herbage for plants older than 10–12 weeks. For ryegrass, there were insufficient data to provide reliable estimates of critical potassium.

scholarly journals Harvesting subterranean clover seed – current practices, technology and issues

2021 ◽  
Vol 72 (3) ◽  
pp. 223
Author(s):  
Wesley M. Moss ◽  
Andrew L. Guzzomi ◽  
Kevin J. Foster ◽  
Megan H. Ryan ◽  
Phillip G. H. Nichols
Keyword(s):  
Soil Erosion ◽  
Case Studies ◽  
Seed Production ◽  
Subterranean Clover ◽  
Trifolium Subterraneum ◽  
Root Cause ◽  
Pasture Plant ◽  
Clover Seed ◽  
Production Industry ◽  
Pasture Legume

Subterranean clover (Trifolium subterraneum L.) is Australia’s most widely sown annual pasture legume. Its widespread use as a pasture plant requires a well-functioning seed production industry, and Australia is the only significant producer of subterranean clover seed globally. However, the sustainability of this industry is under threat due to its reliance on ageing harvest equipment and the resultant environmental impacts. In order to evaluate seed harvesting practices, technology, and issues, we report on case studies, workshops, and a survey of seed producers across southern Australia. The Horwood Bagshaw Clover Harvester, designed in the 1950s, remains the most popular subterranean clover seed harvester. We discuss its use and modifications, and document several contemporary issues facing the seed production industry. Issues are primarily soil erosion and degradation; the expensive, slow and labour-intensive harvest process; and poor reliability and maintainability of harvesters that are now at least 30 years old. We conclude the root cause of these issues is the suction harvest technology utilised by the Horwood Bagshaw Clover Harvester. Analysis of the current harvest system is provided to support the development of new approaches to harvest subterranean clover seeds.

Nutrient problems in sown pasture on an acid soil. 2. Role of lime and superphosphate

1980 ◽  
Vol 20 (106) ◽  
pp. 568 ◽  
Author(s):  
KD McLachlan
Keyword(s):  
Plant Growth ◽  
Acid Soil ◽  
Phosphorus Uptake ◽  
Subterranean Clover ◽  
Trifolium Subterraneum ◽  
Titratable Acidity ◽  
Yield Response ◽  
P 16 ◽  
Exchangeable Magnesium

A study was made of the role of superphosphate and lime on subterranean clover (Trifolium subterraneum) production on an infertile acid soil in pot culture. Both fertilizers increased the exchangeable calcium in this deficient soil. Lime and superphosphate were involved in nodulation of the clover plants. There was no evidence of the direct involvement of either of them in the nitrogen fixation process, but they did increase nitrogen uptake by the plants. Once the legume functioned adequately, full expression of the yield response to phosphorus on this deficient soil followed. Most efficient phosphorus use occurred at the lime 1255, superphosphate 2000 kg ha-1 level (lime 1/2, P 16). Heavy lime dressing reduced exchangeable magnesium and the phosphorus available to the plant. Aluminium and pH were involved in the effects observed. Lime reduced CaCl2-extractable aluminium and the titratable acidity in the soil. Phosphate increased the CaCl2-extractable aluminium and apparently reduced the titratable aluminium. The combined treatments reduced these three attributes and promoted increased plant growth. Increased plant growth was associated with increased aluminium uptake by the plants, which suggests that the real effect of aluminium may have been on the calcium and phosphorus uptake by the plants, rather than on the toxic nature of the element itself.

Response of defoliated swards of subterranean clover and yellow serradella to superphosphate applications

1991 ◽  
Vol 31 (6) ◽  
pp. 777
Author(s):  
MDA Bolland
Keyword(s):  
Field Experiment ◽  
Sandy Soil ◽  
Dry Matter ◽  
Maximum Yield ◽  
Subterranean Clover ◽  
Soil Surface ◽  
Trifolium Subterraneum ◽  
Herbage Yield ◽  
Ornithopus Compressus ◽  
The Relationship

The effect of superphosphate applications (0, 25, 50, 75, 100 and 125 kg P/ha to the soil surface) on the dry matter (DM) herbage production of dense swards of subterranean clover (Trifolium subterraneum cv. Junee) and yellow serradella (Ornithopus compressus cv. Tauro) was measured in a field experiment on deep, sandy soil in south-western Australia. The swards were defoliated with a reel mower at weekly intervals from 88 to 158 days after sowing, to a height of 2 cm for the first 9 cuts, 4 cm for the tenth cut and 5 cm for the eleventh cut. Yellow serradella was more productive than subterranean clover. Consequently, for the relationship between yield and the level of phosphorus (P) applied, yellow serradella supported larger maximum yields and required less P than subterranean clover, to produce the same DM herbage yield. Maximum yields of yellow serradella were 12-40% larger. To produce 70% of the maximum yield for yellow serradella at each harvest, yellow serradella required about 50% less P than subterranean clover. However, when yields were expressed as a percentage of the maximum yield measured for each species at each harvest, the relationship between yield and the level of P applied was similar for both species, and they had similar P requirements.

An analysis of the frequency and timing of false break events in the Mediterranean region of Western Australia

2001 ◽  
Vol 52 (3) ◽  
pp. 367 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Chapman ◽  
S. Asseng
Keyword(s):  
Western Australia ◽  
Mediterranean Region ◽  
Meteorological Data ◽  
Seasonal Pattern ◽  
Subterranean Clover ◽  
Trifolium Subterraneum ◽  
Dormancy Release ◽  
The Poor ◽  
Time Periods ◽  
The Mediterranean

Historical meteorological data were used to estimate the frequency and timing of false break events at 10 locations in the annual pasture and wheat producing area in the Mediterranean climatic region of Western Australia. The seasonal pattern of false breaks identified by this analysis was compared with the dynamics of dormancy release in a field population of subterranean clover (Trifolium subterraneum L.) to determine the influence that these events may have on the legume content of annual pasture communities in this region. False break events were estimated to occur on approximately 2 of every 3 years (611–72% of years) with no significant differences across the area investigated. Changes in the risk of false break events were examined over discrete time periods. The period of greatest risk was predicted to occur during early autumn (early March to mid April). Seed softening is virtually complete in subterranean clover at this point. The seed bank strategy of this species is, therefore, not well adapted to withstand the effects of false breaks. This might largely explain the poor persistence of subterranean clover in the annual pasture communities in the Mediterranean region of Western Australia. The legume content of these pastures might be improved by selecting species with late dormancy release strategies that will give better protection from false breaks.

Replacement of cv. Yarloop in swards by new genotypes of Trifolium subterraneum L. subsp. yanninicum and the effects of defoliation

1976 ◽  
Vol 27 (2) ◽  
pp. 217
Author(s):  
GJ Burch ◽  
P Andrews
Keyword(s):  
Binary Mixture ◽  
Seed Production ◽  
Western Australia ◽  
Growth Habit ◽  
Trifolium Subterraneum ◽  
Relative Performance ◽  
Seed Number ◽  
Vegetative Phase ◽  
Vigorous Growth

Yarloop is a waterlogging-tolerant cultivar of Trifolium subterraneum subsp. yanninicum; it is highly oestrogenic. It is known to be a strong competitor and is widely grown in south-western Australia. Three new low-oestrogenic, waterlogging-tolerant genotypes of subsp. yanninicum were grown in monoculture, and in binary mixture in competition with cv. Yarloop, in large boxes in a glasshouse. Of the three, Y111 and Y136 gave satisfactory growth relative to Yarloop, and exhibited similar flowering and seed production; cv. Larisa, a late-maturing type, performed well until flowering and had a lower seed number than Yarloop. A second experiment examined the effects of defoliation during the vegetative phase on the relative performance of cv. Yarloop and cv. Larisa growing in mixtures of varying proportions. Two overall densities were used. The dominance of Yarloop over Larisa in uncut swards, due to its more vigorous growth habit, was nullified by regular cutting. The agronomic implications of the results are discussed.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document