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Forages Improve Livelihoods Of Smallholder Farmers With Beef Cattle In South Central Coastal Vietnam, Ba Xuan Nguyen, Peter A. Lane, David Parsons, Huu Van Nguyen, Phi Khanh Ho Le, Jeff P. Corfield, Tri Tuan Duong

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

In South Central Coastal Vietnam, on-farm research and farmer experience demonstrated the benefits of growing improved forages as a means of improving the year round quantity and quality of feed available for beef cattle. In Binh Dinh, Phu Yen and Ninh Thuan provinces, five new forage species (Panicum maximum, cv. TD58, Brachiaria hybrid cv. Mulato II, Pennisetum purpureum cv.VA06, Paspalum atratum cv. Terenos and Stylosanthes guianensis cv. CIAT 184) were evaluated for yield and crude protein concentration. There was not a consistent yield difference between locations for the forage grasses, but in Binh Dinh province P. maximum TD58 …

In Situ Digestibility Of Gliricidia Sepium Combined With Brachiaria Decumbens In A Silvopastoral System, Suellen B. De Miranda Costa, Alexandre C. L. De Mello, José C. B. Dubeux Jr., Mércia V. F. Dos Santos, Mario De Andrade Lira, Janerson J. Coêlho, João T. C. Oliveira

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Silvopastoral system (SPS) are characterized by a combination of trees, pasture and herbivores animals, in the same physical area, in order to obtain diversified products. A promising legume tree that has been studied and used in SPS in tropical areas is gliricidia [Gliricidia sepium (Jacq.) Steud]. Advantages of gliricidia use in SPS include N inputs via biological fixation, improvement of soil properties, nutrient cycling and also a source of feed to grazing animals (Cubillos-Hinojosa et al., 2011). Gliricidia has high crude protein concentration in its leaves, which complements the usual N-poor diet of ruminants grazing warm-season grasses. The …

Role Of Shrubs In Rangeland Based Livestock Production System In Western Rajasthan, India, J. P. Singh, V. S. Rathore, B. K. Mathur

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Rangeland covers ~ 51% of the terrestrial surface of the Earth, and supports half of the world‟s livestock. More than 80 % of forage consumed by domestic livestock is supplied by rangelands in Africa and Asia. Hot arid regions of India cover an area of 31.7 million hectares and out of which Rajasthan state constitutes ~ 61.8 % of the entire area. The crop production in this area is low, unstable and risky. Livestock sustains arid farming systems by virtue of their potential to reduce risk, alleviate poverty, important providers of nutrients and traction for growing crops in smallholder systems …

Utilisation Of Conserved Forage To Improve Livestock Production On Smallholder Farms In Asia And Africa, Marsetyo, Muhammad Shoaib Tufail, Samuel Mbuku, Mupenzi Mutimura, Xusheng Guo, John Piltz

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Ruminant livestock are essential to the livelihoods of smallholder farmers in many developing countries. Livestock production on these farms is characterised by low milk production, low live weight gain and poor reproductive performance because of poor nutrition. Access to high quality forage has been identified as key to improving livestock health and productivity. Conservation of surplus forage as hay or silage provides the opportunity to ensure livestock have access to high quality forage year-round. This paper reports on forage conservation in select countries in Asia and Africa.

Grazing Behaviour Of Dairy Cows When Grazing Forage Rape In A Pasture-Based Automatic Milking System, Ajantha Horadagoda, Cameron E. F. Clark, Kendra L. Kerrisk, Mohammed R. Islam, Ravneet Kaur, Sergio C. Garcia

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Forage rape (Brassica napus L.) is a high producing, high nutritive value forage that has been successfully introduced as a grazable forage in conventional, intensified pasture-based dairy systems to fill autumn-winter feed gaps (Garcia et al. 2008). However, incorporation of forage rape as a grazing forage option for automatic milking systems (AMS), in which cows enter and exit grazing areas voluntarily, has not been investigated yet. We conducted an observational study to investigate the suitability of using forage rape in AMS and gain understanding of cow’s foraging behaviour when grazing this forage. The outcomes of this piece of …

Herbage Yield, Quality And Nutrients Composition Of Bajra Napier (Bn) Hybrid Grass Varieties Under Central Gujarat Condition, Digvijay Singh, A. K. Garg

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Among various perennial grasses, BN hybrid grass (Pennisetum glaucum x Pennisetum purpureum) is most popular in irrigated areas of India including Gujarat state due to several factors like wide spread agro-climatic adaptability, high yield potential, nutritional quality, low cost of cultivation, insect-pest-disease resistances, tolerance to grazing/damages by wild animals, vegetative propagation and high response towards manure, fertilizer and irrigations. In Central Gujarat region, farmers are mainly cultivating CO 3 and APBN 1 varieties, which have been supplied to them by agriculture institutes. These two popular varieties were considered as local checks (LC) in trial. Three very old varieties …

Effect Of Sugar Promoters On Biomass Yield And Sugar Content Of Napier Bajra Hybrids, Rajiv K. Agrawal, G. Prabhu, K. K. Singh, Sultan Singh, M. M. Das, Satendra Kumar

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

In India deficiency of green fodder is estimated to the tune of 35.7% and this difference is likely to increase in coming period due to possible decrease in acreage under fodder crops as the cultivated land is being utilized for urbanization and other industrial uses. In tropical countries like India, crop residues from cultivated crops and grasses (mainly monsoon grasses) constitute the basal diet of livestock. But the nutritive value of these grasses is low (protein and digestibility) than the fodder crops and even in green stage is able only to meet the maintenance requirement of animals. A conservative estimate …

Influence Of Cutting Interval On Yield And Quality Of Purple Guinea Grass (Panicum Maximum Td58) Under Irrigation, Witthaya Sumamal, Pornchai Lowilai

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Most of dairy farmers in the northeast of Thailand are smallholders. They have limited pasture area led to lack of good quality roughage throughout the year, especially during the dry season. Farmers usually fed their cattle with agricultural by products, which have low quality and supplemented with commercial concentrate feed. It leads to high milk production cost and more problems of cattle performance. It is necessary to develop and improve the feed quality and quantity, especially pasture, the cheapest and major source of cattle feed. Due to the limited pasture area, intensive pasture system is recommended. They need a suitable …

Effect Of Cutting Intervals On Yield And Nutritive Value Of Stylosanthes Seabrana, Nandini Nimbkar, Sharad Choudhari, Ketaki Kanbargi

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

In India natural pastures do not meet the nutritional needs of grazing ruminants, and supplementary feeding of crop residues and concentrates is necessary for profitable animal production (Phaikaew et al., 2004). Stylo has a long history of research and development in India and has been used in many production systems including as a fodder crop, in ley farming and intercropping in agroforestry and silvipasture and for wasteland development and soil conservation (Ramesh et al., 1997).

Recent developments in the commercial utilization of stylo as a fodder crop have mostly been in the peninsular Indian states of Maharashtra, Karnataka, …

Agronomic And Nutritional Characteristics Of Selected Brachiaria Hybrids And Varieties Harvested At Three Stages Of Growth, Mupenzi Mutimura, Cyprian Ebong, Idupulapati M. Rao, Ignatius V. Nsahlai

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Shortage of quality feed is a persistent livestock productivity constraint and it is accentuated by climate variability and increased unpredictability of precipitation in many areas in Sub-Saharan Africa. Improved Brachiaria genotypes are some of the interventions that can improve feed security and contribute to the global climate change mitigation efforts.

Enhancing Productivity Of Guinea Grass Variety Jhgg-08-1 Through Agro-Techniques In Southern Dry Zone Of Karnataka, B. G. Shekara, H. C. Lohithaswa, M. R. Krishnappa, N. M. Chikkarugi, N. Manasa

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Guinea grass (Panicum maximum) is a major pan tropical grass used throughout the tropics for pasture, cut-and-carry, silage and hay. It is a fast growing and leafy grass, which is palatable to livestock with a good nutritional value. However, it is generally recommended to supplement it with sources of protein in order to meet nutritional requirements or improve animal performance. It grows well on a wide variety of well drained soils of good fertility and it is a good vegetative barrier. It can survive quick moving fires which does not harm the underground roots and drought because of …

Performance Of Dual Purpose Pearl Millet Genotypes As Influenced By Cutting Management And Nitrogen Levels, B. G. Shekara, M. R. Krishnappa, H. C. Lohithaswa, N. M. Chikkarugi, N. Manasa

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Pearl millet (Pennisetum glaucum L.) is important minor millets cultivated both for food and fodder. The dual purpose nature of pearl millet has recently identified due to its profused tillering, repeated harvesting and absence of anti nutritional factor. In fodder crops, the production potential can be manipulated by fertilizer management and time of harvest. In this regard, peal millet no exception, scientific study on cutting and nitrogen management on green fodder yield, quality and grain yield is meagre. Therefore, the present investigation was under taken to study the influence of cutting management and nitrogen levels on green forage and …

Forage Production Potential And Nitrate Nitrogen In Napier Bajra Hybrid As Influenced By Nitrogen Dose Under Shaded And Un-Shaded Environments, U. S. Tiwana, Sukhpreet Singh, Meenakshi Goyal, P. K. Kingra, Awtar Singh

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Dairy farming is an important and prevalent subsidiary occupation along with agriculture in the state of Punjab. But because of declining land holding, the pressure on land is so high that there is little scope of expanding the area under forage crops. Crop intensification either in space (intercropping) or in time (sequential cropping) or both is the feasible option left to the farmers for enhancing the fodder production. The green fodder is deficit by about 25% in the state and there is around 65,000 ha area under Agroforestry. There is a need to explore possibility of growing fodder crops under …

Effect Of Fertilization Level And Cutting Pattern On Species Diversity Of Meadow Stand, Pavel Knot, Josef Raus, Michal Kvasnovský, Jiri Skladanka, Frantisek Hrabe

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

The distribution of grasslands and their floristic composition is related to the climate at the largest scale. Particular grassland is affected by bedrock, soil, water regime, altitude, nutrient status, local climate, disturbance etc (Gibson, 2009). Grasslands provide not only production functions but also large scale of ecosystem services such as nutrient cycling, sequestration of carbon dioxide, prevention of soil loss and many others. Ability of grasslands to afford both production and ecosystem functions depends among others on the floristic composition (Chytry, 2007). Semi-natural permanent meadows, as a result of the concurrence of many factors, represent a great reservoir of biodiversity. …

Increasing Feed Conversion Efficiency In Automatic Milking Systems: The Impact Of Grain-Based Concentrate Allocation And Kikuyu (Pennisetum Clandestinum) Pasture State On Kikuyu Pasture Digestibility, Cameron E. F. Clark, Mohammed R. Islam, Ajantha Horadagoda, Ravneet Kaur, Helen Golder, Sergio C. Garcia, Kendra L. Kerrisk

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Automatic milking system (AMS) farms, rely upon voluntary cow traffic (the voluntary movement of cattle around a farm) for milk harvesting and feed consumption. Dairy cows on a pasture-based AMS farm typically move from depleted to fresh allocations of pasture in small groups, or individually, at differing times. The first cows moving to an allocation of fresh pasture get access to rapidly fermentable, ad libitum, high quality pasture in contrast to those cows accessing the same allocation towards the end of the access period. At the same time, grain-based concentrate (GBC) is allocated independent of the pasture state that …

The Production Potential Of Festuca Spp., Lolium Spp. And Festulolium Hybrids In The Southern Cape Of South Africa, Janke Van Der Colf, Philip R. Botha

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Researchers are continuously searching for species that can improve the productivity and sustainability of pasture systems under adverse environmental conditions such as drought and extreme temperatures. Plant breeders have bred hybrids between ryegrass (Lolium spp.) and Fescue (Festuca spp.) in an attempt to combine the high forage quality of the former with the stress tolerance of the latter (Kopecky et al., 2008; Akgun et al., 2008). The resultant hybrids are commonly referred to as Festulolium spp. These species include Festulolium pabulare which is a cross between Tall Fescue (F. arundinacea) and Italian ryegrass …

Enhancement In Milk Production Through Improved Production Technique Of Green Fodder, Rajiv Kumar Singh, B. S. Kirar

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Unavailability of sufficient quantity of fodder is identified as one of the major constraints in achieving desired level of livestock productivity. The available fodder can meet the demand of only 47% of total livestock population. Since green fodder cultivation is not under farmers practice in Panna district of Madhya Pradesh, maximum animals due to unavailability of sufficient quantity of green fodder, fight to prevent their life. Due to lack of knowledge about improved variety of berseem and their suitable package and practices, the farmers not capable to produce the quantity required per day basis. In view of this, KVK Panna …

Sustainable Quality Fodder Production Under Temperate Mountain Agriculture In Kashmir, Mushtaq Ahmad, Gul-Zaffar, Intikhab Aalum Jehangir, S. M. Razvi

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Inadequate supply of quality feed and fodder is the primary cause of lower productivity of milch animals in India. Oats (Avena sativa L.) is an important fodder crop in J&K. Jammu and Kashmir state the fodder requirement is about 4.31 million tonnes against the available 3.26 million tonnes (Anonymous, 2008). Kashmir valley experiences a long lean period of winter, resulting in scarcity of green and quality fodder which results in drastic decrease in milk production. Therefore, to meet the need of animal products, there is a great importance of fodder cultivation to compensate fodder scarcity during lean period ( …

Forage Options For Dairy Cows, Mohammed R. Islam, Sergio C. Garcia

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

To remain competitive internationally, the Australian dairy industry will need to increase milk production per unit of land by producing and utilising more from home-grown feed. In the context of decreasing land availability but increasing feed cost per unit of land, increasing production and utilisation of home-grown feed is crucial to increase milk production in pasture-based dairy farms (Fariña et al., 2011). Pure pasture-based systems can achieve a maximum of ~20 t dry matter (DM)/ha/yr, although in practice top commercial farmers hardly exceed 15-16 t DM/ha. A strategy to increase productivity of forages is to select adequate combinations of …

System Fitness Of Grazeable Forages For Large Herds In Automatic Milking Systems, Mohammed R. Islam, Sergio C. Garcia, Cameron E. F. Clark, Kendra L. Kerrisk

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Automatic milking rotary (AMR) systems have the capacity to milk 800 cows. To maintain a pasture-based system whereby > 50% of the total diet is pasture (Garcia and Fulkerson, 2005), large herds milked by AMR will be required to walk significant distances. Walking distances of greater than 1-km are associated with an increased incidence of undesirably long milking intervals and reduced milk yield (Lyons N, unpubl. data). The aim of this study was to investigate the total land area required and associated walking distance for large automatic milking system (AMS) herds when incorporating complementary forage rotations (CFR; Garcia et al., …

Effect Of Nitrogen And Phosphorus Application On Productivity, Nutrient Uptake And Quality Of Teosinte (Zea Mexicana L.) Fodder, Magan Singh, A. S. Harika, P. S. Oberoi, Rakesh Kumar

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Teosinte (Zea mexicana L.) is popularly known as Makchari being a close relative of maize. It provides succulent, palatable and nutritive fodder during Kharif season for feeding the animals as green fodder or conserved fodder in the form of silage. Teosinte is an excellent multicut fodder which gives high yield of nutritious green lush fodder in 65-70 days with less inputs as compared to maize. Nitrogen is an essential component of proteins, nucleic acid, enzymes, coenzymes, chlorophyll and cell wall. Phosphorus plays a vital role in crop production as it is involved in CO₂ fixation, sugar metabolism, energy …

Improved Modelling Of Lucerne (Medicago Sativa L.) Production For Grazing Livestock, Andrew Smith

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Lucerne (or alfalfa; Medicago sativa L.)-based pastures play an important role in livestock and mixed farms (croplivestock) in Australia. If lucerne is to be more widely adopted, it will be important that landholders are able to plan to maximize its benefits to their livestock enterprises (usually as a part of a diverse feed base), as well as assess the benefits and minimizing the costs of lucerne phases to subsequent crops. However, the ability to accurately model lucerne plant physiology across the full spectrum of environments, genotypes and cultivars remains elusive. This study aimed to review and revise the description of …

Gaps And Variability In Pasture Utilisation In Australian Pasture-Based Dairy Systems, Sergio C. Garcia, Cameron E. F. Clark, Kendra L. Kerrisk, Mohammed R. Islam, S. R. Fariña, J. Evans

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

We used commercial farm data from 4 states of Australia and 9 subsets of data from 4 whole farm system studies conducted in Australia and New Zealand to: (1) explore the relationship between pasture utilisation and farm profitability; (2) identify gaps and causes of both between and within-farm variability in pasture utilisation; and (3) discuss possibilities to reduce these gaps through the application of technology-based solutions. Results confirm that the amount of pasture utilised per ha is a key driver of profitability of Australian pasture-based systems. In spite of this, the gap between potential (research) and commercial reality is huge. …

The Role Of Botanical Garden Of Pbai In Bydgoszcz In Promoting The Crop And Usage Of Perennial C4 Grasses In Poland, Włodzimierz Majtkowski, Gabriela Majtkowska, Bartosz Tomaszewski

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Among the over 300 grass species known from Poland, there are about 160 species well established in the flora (~130 native with C3 photosynthesis pathway and ~30 aliens), and nearly 150 ephemerophytes, occasional escapers from cultivation or cultivated species (Mirek and Piękoś-Mirkowa 2002). Grasses from other climatic zones have been introduced to our country in recent years, especially as ornamental plants and as a source of biomass for energy purposes. The studies conducted since the 1990s in Botanical Garden of PBAI in Bydgoszcz, where the National Grass Collection is located, have contributed considerably to the popularization of C4 grasses in …

Little Effect Of Species Richness And Vegetation Composition On Herbage Production And Quality In A Permanent Temperate Grassland, Johannes Isselstein, Tatiana From, Ute Petersen, Nicole Wrage-Mönnig

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Phytodiversity of grasslands has been shown to support production and other ecosystem services (e.g.Weigel et al. 2009, Tilman et al. 2012). However, in many of these studies, species richness was controlled by sowing and weeding and it was questionable to what extent the findings would also be applicable to permanent 'real world' grasslands where the species number is dependent on site and management conditions. In addition there is uncertainty about the effect of diversity on the herbage value for ruminants (Wrage et al. 2011). In a new approach to biodiversity experiments, we combined experimental and observational measures …

Yak Rearing On High Altitude Pastures Of Northeastern Himalaya Of India: Their Utilization Strategies And Rejuvenation, Vijay Paul, Sanjit Maiti, G. Krishnan, D. Medhi, S. M. Deb

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Yak rearing on alpine pastures is the main occupation of the highland pastoral nomads (Brokpa and Dokpas) of north-east (NE) India. These pastoral nomads living in the remote mountains solely rely on high altitude pastures for their nutritional and livelihood security because of virtual existence of agricultural activities in this area. They rear yaks under transhumance and utilize various pastures while migrating from low land winter pastures to high altitude alpine pastures during summer. Therefore, the temperate and alpine pastures are the major feed resources for the yaks. The indiscriminate use of pastures and impending climate change results …

Use Of Native Grassland In Small-Scale Dairy Systems In The Highlands Of Central Mexico. A Case Study, P. A. Sainz-Sanchez, Carloss Manuel Arriaga-Jordan, D. Heredia Nava, C. G. Martinez-Garcia, F. Vicente, L. R. Garcia-Winder, A. Martinez-Fernandez

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Small-scale dairy systems in Mexico comprise 78% of specialized dairy farms and provide 37% of national production. They are small farms with herds 3-35 cows plus replacements, and rely on family labour (Posadas-Domínguez et al., 2014).

In the highlands, many farms have native grasslands, grazed during the rainy season, and supplemented with other feeds as maize straw, maize grain and maize ears. Native grasslands have not been studied in this context. This is a case study on the use of native grassland in a small-scale dairy farm. The objective was to determine how native grasslands are integrated in feeding …

Adjusting Corn Nitrogen Management By Including A Mineralizable-Nitrogen Test With The Preplant And Presidedress Nitrate Tests, Jason Clark, Fabian G. Fernandez, Kristen S. Veum, James J. Camberato, Paul R. Carter, Richard B. Ferguson, David W. Franzen, Daniel E. Kaiser, Newell R. Kitchen, Carrie A.M. Laboski, Emerson D. Nafziger, Carl J. Rosen, John E. Sawyer, John F. Shanahan

Agronomy, Horticulture and Plant Science Faculty Publications

The anaerobic potentially mineralizable N (PMN) test combined with the preplant (PPNT) and presidedress (PSNT) nitrate tests may improve corn (Zea mays L.) N fertilization predictions. Forty-nine corn N response experiments (mostly corn following soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.]) were conducted in the U.S. Midwest from 2014–2016 to evaluate the ability of the PPNT and PSNT to predict corn relative yield (RY) and N fertilizer over- and under-application rates when adjusted by PMN. Before planting and N fertilization, PPNT (0–30, 30–60, and 60–90 cm) and PMN (0–30 cm) samples were obtained. In-season soil samples were obtained at the …

Soil Sample Timing, Nitrogen Fertilization, And Incubation Length Influence Anaerobic Potentially Mineralizable Nitrogen, Jason Clark, Kristen S. Veum, Fabian G. Fernandez, Newell R. Kitchen, James J. Camberato, Paul R. Carter, Richard B. Ferguson, David W. Franzen, Daniel E. Kaiser, Carrie A.M. Laboski, Emerson D. Nafziger, Carl J. Rosen, John E. Sawyer, John F. Shanahan

Agronomy, Horticulture and Plant Science Faculty Publications

Understanding the variables that affect the anaerobic potentially mineralizable N (PMNan) test should lead to a standard procedure of sample collection and incubation length, improving PMNan as a tool in corn (Zea mays L.) N management. We evaluated the effect of soil sample timing (preplant and V5 corn development stage [V5]), N fertilization (0 and 180 kg ha−1) and incubation length (7, 14, and 28 d) on PMNan (0–30 cm) across a range of soil properties and weather conditions. Soil sample timing, N fertilization, and incubation length affected PMNan differently based on soil and weather conditions. Preplant vs. V5 PMNan …

A Global Perspective On Sustainable Intensification Research, Kenneth Cassman, Patricio Grassini

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Despite general agreement that meeting food demand without further loss of natural ecosystems requires sustainable intensification, there is little dialogue about the research agenda needed to achieve it. To that end, we evaluate current trajectories towards sustainable intensification, review published research on the topic, identify missing links, and propose a prioritization framework to fill gaps. Although progress towards sustainable intensification is behind schedule, we are optimistic that current trends can get back on course assuming a well-prioritized and adequately funded research portfolio and appropriate policies and institutions to support it.