Impact of Surface Improvement Measures on Low-yielding Summer Pastures on Pasture Productivity and Forage Quality

Cultivation of soil on the slopes of mountainous areas leads to a decrease in organic matter and nutrients in the soil and severe soil erosion. Grazing is one of the main reasons for the degradation of pastures and natural landscape, which increases the sensitivity of the soil to erosion. Soil erosion, in turn, pollutes water by increasing its turbidity and sometimes causes atrophy due to leakage of phosphorus and nitrogen. An average of 30.6 quintals of green mass or 7.8 quintals of dry grass per hectare was produced in the variant of grass seed sowing (without fertilizer), compared to the control variant, in the variant of grass seed sowing + N60P60K40 this indicator averaged 39.9 centners/ha of green mass. or more than 15.0%, resulting in the production of 10.0 quintals of dry or 14.7% more dry grass. Experimental field studies to improve pastures have shown that the fodder produced in each of the tested variants; green mass and dry grass supply and their nutritional value were higher than control.

Dimethoate insecticide application seldom reduces silvertop incidence in grass seed fields on the Canadian Prairies

Many arthropods have been reported (but none confirmed) as causal agents of sterile seed heads in perennial grass seed fields, known as silvertop or white head. Field studies to identify the arthropods that cause silvertop were conducted in five perennial grass species at seven sites in Saskatchewan, Canada over several years. The effect timing of insecticide application in spring – early, mid or late – and of post-harvest residue management – mowing, close mowing with straw removed (scalping), and burning – on subsequent arthropod populations, silvertop incidence and seed yield were assessed. Samples of grass tillers and sweep net collections were taken regularly, and the arthropods collected were identified to family level and counted. Arthropod populations from sweep samples varied among sites and dates in number and taxon composition, but no arthropod assemblage was consistently associated with silvertop in any grass species. Thrips were the most numerous arthropods on tillers at all sites. Insecticide application often temporarily reduced arthropod populations, but reduced silvertop incidence at only 1 of 15 site-years, and increased seed yield at only 1 of 17 site-years. Scalping or burning did not reduce silvertop incidence but often increased healthy seed head numbers and seed yield relative to mowing, the standard treatment. The majority of Kentucky bluegrass fields had extremely low seed yields unrelated to silvertop or arthropod levels. This extensive study, across a range of grass species and management regimes, provides strong support for the conclusion based on previous work that arthropod pests are not the sole cause of silvertop.

Potensi Murraya keonigii sebagai Herbisida Alami

Various kinds of agricultural products are needed to support organic farms to produce superior quality products, one of it was natural herbicides. Some plants have the potential to become natural herbicides by producing chemical compounds, namely allelopathy which can inhibit the growth of surrounding plants and Murraya keonigii is one of it. This study aims to see the potential of M. keonigii to become a natural herbicide. Grass seeds were given M keonigii’s extract at a dose of 0 gr / l (control / M0), 50 gr / lt (M1), 60 gr / lt (M2), and 70 gr / lt (M3). The results showed that the aromatic or allelopathic compounds in M ​​keonigii affected the germination. Germination was slower at doses of 60 gr / l (M2) and 70 gr / lt (M3) compared to controls (M0) and 50 gr / lt (M1). Radicle length did not increase rapidly in M2 and M3 treatment. Germination power of grass seeds in control and M0 had a value of 100% or all germinated, while M1 and M2 had 67% germination. The higher the dose of M keonigii extract, the slower the process of grass seed germination.

Quality assessment of Urochloa (syn. Brachiaria) seeds produced in Cameroon

Urochloa (syn. Brachiaria) is the most popular fodder of livestock farmers in Cameroon for hay and seed productions. Farmers in Cameroon have been producing Brachiaria seeds for decades for own uses and surplus are sold to neighbours, and to traders from Cameroon and neighbouring countries. However, there is no information available about qualities of these seeds. Fifteen Urochloa seeds samples were collected from farmers and/or government stations in five regions (Adamaoua, East, North, North West, and West) and analysed for major seed quality parameters along with seeds of improved Urochloa cultivar Basilisk imported from Brazil as a check. Study showed significant differences among treatments for various seed quality parameters tested (P < 0.0001). The highest thousand grains weight was recorded in Basilisk (5.685 g), followed by W12 (3.555 g), A05 (3.153 g) and N01 (2.655 g). Caryopsis number and caryopsis weight were highest in Basilisk followed by E09, A06, and W12. Of three conditions tested for seed germination, mean germination was the highest in greenhouse (7.39%) where Basilisk had the highest germination (25.5%) followed by N01 (18.50%), A05 (14.50%) and W12 (12.75%). The seed viability ranged from 18% (E09) to 81% (N01), and there were a positive and highly significant relationships between seed germination and viability traits (r = 0.883; P < 0.0001). This study showed a marked difference in seed quality parameters of Urochloa grass seeds produced in Cameroon, and the potential of developing Urochloa grass seed business in the Northern, Adamaoua and Western regions of Cameroon.

Effects of Fertilisation on Grass and Forb Gamic Reproduction in Semi-natural Grasslands

Studying the effects of fertilisation on the seed production of grassland species can help understand the vegetation changes and biodiversity losses due to soil eutrophication. On a temperate hay-meadow, the seed production of fifteen grasses and seventeen forbs was studied under three fertilisation treatments: 0-0-0, 0-54-108 and 192-108-216 kg N, P2O5 and K2O respectively, per year. Fertile shoots collected at the seed maturation stage were analysed for all main traits of the gamic reproduction. On average, forbs produced more ovules and viable seeds per shoot (199 and 65, respectively) than grasses (112 and 35, respectively). Fertilisation increased the number of inflorescences per shoot in both grasses and forbs and had a limited but variable effect on germinability and viability in the two functional groups: viability increased in grasses but often decreased in forbs. This pattern resulted in 55% and 11% increases in viable seed production in grasses and forbs, respectively. At the higher level of fertilisation, shoot density was positively related to the number of viable seeds per shoot in grasses and to the seed size in forbs. Higher grass seed dormancy likely allowed for later grass seed germination in autumn when vegetation cover was low, contributing to the dominance of a few light-seeded nutrient-demanding grasses and poor forb number in fertilised meadows.