scholarly journals The Effect of Drought on Lignin Content and Digestibility of Tifton-85 and Coastal Bermudagrass (<i>Cynodon dactylon</i> L.) Hays Produced in Georgia

Author(s):  
Uttam Saha
2017 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
pp. 45-53 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dana Sullivan ◽  
Jing Zhang ◽  
Alexander R. Kowalewski ◽  
Jason B. Peake ◽  
William F. Anderson ◽  
...  

Quantitative spectral reflectance data have the potential to improve the evaluation of turfgrasses in variety trials when management practices are factors in the testing of turf aesthetics and functionality. However, the practical application of this methodology has not been well developed. The objectives of this research were 1) to establish a relationship between spectral reflectance and turfgrass quality (TQ) and percent green cover (PGC) using selected reference plots; 2) to compare aesthetic performance (TQ, PGC, and vegetation indices) and functional performance (surface firmness); and 3) to evaluate lignin content as an alternate means to predict surface firmness in turfgrass variety trials of hybrid bermudagrass [Cynodon dactylon × C. transvaalensis]. A field study was conducted on mature stands of three varieties (‘TifTuf’, ‘TifSport’, and ‘Tifway’) and two experimental lines (04-47 and 04-76) at two mowing heights (0.5 and 1.5 inch) and trinexapac-ethyl application (0.15 kg·ha−1 and nontreated control) treatments. Aesthetic performance was estimated by vegetation indices, spectral reflectance, visual TQ, and PGC. The functional performance of each variety/line was measured through surface firmness and fiber analysis. Regression analyses were similar when using only reference plots or all the plots to determine the relationship between individual aesthetic characteristics. Experimental line 04-47 had lower density in Apr. 2010, whereas varieties ‘TifTuf’, ‘TifSport’, and ‘Tifway’ were in the top statistical group for aesthetic performance when differences were found. ‘TifSport’ and ‘Tifway’ produced the firmest surfaces, followed by ‘TifTuf’, and finally 04-76 and 04-47, which provided the least firm surface. Results of leaf fiber analysis were not correlated with turf surface firmness. This study indicates that incorporating quantitative measures of spectral reflectance could reduce time and improve precision of data collection as long as reference plots with adequate range of green cover are present in the trials.


2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 877-884
Author(s):  
Ashley N Wolford ◽  
Josie A Coverdale ◽  
Jessica L Leatherwood ◽  
William E Pinchak ◽  
Robin C Anderson ◽  
...  

Abstract Eight previously cecally cannulated Quarter Horse geldings were utilized in a crossover design with two 28-d periods with a 21-d washout period between to evaluate the influence of housing on the cecal environment and dry matter intake (DMI). Horses were adapted to diet and housing from day 1 to 19, DMI was determined from day 20 to 24, and cecal fluid was collected on day 28. Horses were paired by age and body weight (BW) and randomly assigned to treatment. Treatments consisted of housing horses individually in stalls or group housed in a pen. Regardless of treatment, all horses were individually fed a pelleted concentrate at 1% BW (as fed) offered twice daily 12 h apart. All horses had ad libitum access to coastal bermudagrass hay (Cynodon dactylon). Hay was offered to stalled horses initially at 2% BW (as fed) and then adjusted based on 120% of a previous 3-d average of voluntary intake. A dual marker system was used to estimate forage consumption in all horses, using titanium dioxide (TiO2) as the external marker and acid detergent insoluble ash (ADIA) as the internal marker. TiO2 was offered at 10 g/d for 10 d with fecal samples collected on the final 4 d at 12-h intervals advancing by 3 h each day to account for diurnal variation. Cecal samples were collected on day 28, 4 h after the morning meal and immediately analyzed for pH, total anaerobic and lactic acid bacteria populations, methane and ammonia concentrations, as well as volatile fatty acid (VFA) concentrations. Data were analyzed using the PROC GLM procedure of SAS with the model containing effects for horse, period, and treatment. Cecal pH was affected by housing (P = 0.02) with group-housed horses having lower cecal pH values compared with stalled horses (6.52 vs. 6.69, respectively). There was no influence of housing on populations of total anaerobic or lactic acid bacteria. Furthermore, housing did not influence cecal concentrations of VFA or methane and ammonia concentrations. Estimates of voluntary forage DMI were greater for group-housed horses (P = 0.04) than stalled (8.47 and 5.17 ± 0.89 kg DM/d, respectively). In conclusion, confinement housing did not, with the exception of pH, alter cecal environment of a horse when similar diets were offered but did affect forage consumption.


Weed Science ◽  
1979 ◽  
Vol 27 (4) ◽  
pp. 361-366 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. E. Meyer ◽  
J. R. Baur

Smutgrass [Sporobolus poiretii(R. & S.) Hitchc.] in native grass and ‘Coastal’ bermudagrass [Cynodon dactylon(L.) Pers.] pastures near Caldwell, Texas, was sprayed with herbicides in 1975 and 1976. Atrazine [2-chloro-4-(ethylamino)-6-(isopropylamino)-s-triazine] at 4.5 kg/ha; dalapon (2,2-dichloropropionic acid) at 5.6 kg/ha; glyphosate [N-(phosphonomethyl)glycine] at 0.6 and 2.2 kg/ha; and bromacil (5-bromo-3-sec-butyl-6-methyluracil), tebuthiuron {N-[5-(1,1-dimethylethyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl]-N,N′-dimethylurea}, and hexazinone [3-cyclohexyl-6-(dimethylamino)-1-methyl-1,3,5-triazine-2,4(1H,3H)-dione] at 1.1 and 2.2 kg/ha reduced smutgrass foliar cover, particularly if applied from July to November. Dalapon, tebuthiuron, and hexazinone were the most effective herbicides for reducing smutgrass foliar cover. Other grasses generally replaced smutgrass controlled with hexazinone or tebuthiuron, while broadleaf species mostly replaced smutgrass in plots controlled with dalapon or glyphosate. Dalapon, glyphosate, bromacil, hexazinone, and tebuthiuron caused some injury to Coastal bermudagrass for 3 or 4 months following treatment. By fall of the year after treatment Coastal bermudagrass cover in treated plots was equal to or greater than that in untreated plots.


1966 ◽  
Vol 58 (1) ◽  
pp. 80-82
Author(s):  
Anthony A. Adegbola ◽  
Cyrus M. McKell ◽  
Robert B. Casady

Animals ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (12) ◽  
pp. 1148
Author(s):  
Tayler L. Hansen ◽  
Elisabeth L. Chizek ◽  
Olivia K. Zugay ◽  
Jessica M. Miller ◽  
Jill M. Bobel ◽  
...  

Bermudagrass (Cynodon dactylon) and other warm-season grasses are known for their increased fiber concentrations and reduced digestibility relative to cool-season grasses and legumes. This study investigated the digestive characteristics and passage kinetics of three maturities of Coastal bermudagrass hay. A 5 × 5 Latin square design experiment was used to compare the digestion of five hays: alfalfa (Medicago sativa, ALF), orchardgrass (Dactylis glomerata, ORCH), and Coastal bermudagrass harvested at 4 (CB 4), 6 (CB 6), and 8 weeks of regrowth (CB 8). Horses were fed cobalt-ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (Co-EDTA) and ytterbium (Yb) labeled neutral detergent fiber (NDF) before an 84-h total fecal collection to determine digesta retention time. Dry matter digestibility was greatest for ALF (62.1%) and least for CB 6 (36.0%) and CB 8 diets (36.8%, SEM = 2.1; p < 0.05). Mean retention time was longer (p < 0.05) for Coastal bermudagrass (particulate 31.3 h, liquid 25.3 h) compared with ORCH and ALF (28.0 h, SEM = 0.88 h; 20.7 h, SEM = 0.70 h). Further evaluation of digesta passage kinetics through mathematical modeling indicated ALF had distinct parameters compared to the other diets. Differences in digestive variables between forage types are likely a consequence of fiber physiochemical properties, warranting further investigation on forage fiber and digestive health.


2012 ◽  
Vol 28 (2) ◽  
pp. 160-172 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alan J. Franzluebbers ◽  
John A. Stuedemann ◽  
Dwight H. Seman

AbstractStocker performance and production from mixed cool- and warm-season perennial pastures are important determinants of agricultural sustainability that can be influenced by management. We evaluated the factorial combination of three sources of nutrient application (inorganic only, organic+inorganic combination, and organic only) and two forage utilization regimes [low grazing pressure (LGP) and high grazing pressure (HGP)] on steer stocking density and rate, performance and production during 7 years of pasture management {tall fescue [Lolium arundinaceum (Schreb.) Darbysh.] overseeded into existing Coastal bermudagrass [Cynodon dactylon (L.) Pers.] sod} on a Typic Kanhapludult in Georgia, USA. Nutrient source had few major impacts on responses, except for lower animal performance with organic fertilization (broiler litter) than with organic+inorganic and inorganic only fertilization, especially with LGP. Seasonal changes in stocking weight and rate occurred, not only as expected due to environmental conditions and dominant forage species present, but that also counteracted expected differences imposed by grazing pressure; signaling negative feedback of HGP on forage productivity. Steer performance was greatest in spring and summer under both grazing pressures, but was significantly reduced with increasing grazing pressure in the autumn and winter due to low forage availability. Across years, steer gainha−1 (863kgha−1) was not different between grazing pressures, but gainha−1 declined with time under HGP and was stable with time under LGP. Reducing grazing pressure to a moderate level can lead to equivalent steer production as HGP, and would likely contribute to a more sustainable balance among production, socio-economic and environmental goals. These multi-year results will help cattle producers in warm, moist climates design and implement more sustainable grazing systems.


2020 ◽  
Vol 98 (Supplement_4) ◽  
pp. 85-86
Author(s):  
Mattea L Much ◽  
Jessica L Leatherwood ◽  
Rafael E Martinez ◽  
Brittany L Silvers ◽  
Casey Basta ◽  
...  

Abstract Twenty stock-type horses (589 ± 126 kg BW; 13 ± 8 yr) were utilized in a completely randomized design for a 28-d trial to evaluate a joint supplement on gait kinematics, inflammation and cartilage metabolism. Horses were stratified by age, sex, body weight (BW), and initial lameness score and were randomly assigned to 1 of 2 dietary treatments consisting of either a 100 g placebo top-dressed daily to 0.6% BW (as-fed) commercial concentrate (CON; n = 10), or an oral joint supplement (SmartPak Equine LLC) containing glucosamine, chondroitin sulfate, hyaluronic acid, methylsulfonylmethane, turmeric, resveratrol, collagen, silica, and boron (TRT; n = 10). Horses had ad libitum access to coastal bermudagrass hay (Cynodon dactylon) and exercised progressively 4 d/wk, for 45 min/d. On d 13 and 27, blood was harvested following a 19.3 km exercise stressor. Every 14 d, blood was collected for plasma prostaglandin E2 (PGE2), and serum collagenase cleavage neopeptide (C2C), carboxypropeptide of type II collagen (CPII), and chondroitin sulfate 846 epitope (CS846). Gait kinematics were analyzed every 14 d (Kinovea v.0.8.15) to determine stride length (SL) and range of motion (ROM) of the knee and hock at the walk and trot. Data were analyzed using PROC MIXED of SAS. Hock ROM increased in TRT (P ≤ 0.02) at the walk and tended to increase at the trot (P = 0.09). At the walk, SL and knee ROM increased (P ≤ 0.01) in all horses. C2C and CPII increased over time (P ≤ 0.05) and no effect was observed for CS846 or PGE2 (P &gt; 0.12). In response to the exercise stressor, CPII and PGE2 decreased (P ≤ 0.05) from d 13 to 14, and CS846 and PGE2 tended to decrease (P ≤ 0.10) from d 27 to 28, independent of diet. In conclusion, hock ROM at the walk and trot was the most sensitive to TRT, but biomarker concentration of collagen metabolites and systemic inflammation was not altered in 28 d.


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