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Animal And Pasture Responses To Grazing Management Of Chemically Suppressed Tall Fescue In Mixed Pastures, Jessica A. Williamson

Theses and Dissertations--Plant and Soil Sciences

Treatment of endophyte-infected tall fescue [Lolium arundinaceum (Schreb.) Darbysh] with the broad leaf herbicide Chaparral® can mitigate fescue toxicosis and enhance forage quality by suppressing seedhead emergence. Applying the herbicide to fescue pastures also reduces forage mass and promotes severe spot grazing when pastures are continuously grazed. A grazing experiment was conducted with steers (2013) and heifers (2014) to evaluate animal and plant responses in fescue-bluegrass (Poa pratensis L.) mixtures treated with Chaparral to determine the effects of grazing management on pasture carrying capacity, nutritive values, botanical composition, and animal performance. Continuous and rotational (i.e., four subdivisions to …