Plant Biology Commons^™

Tall Fescue: Forage And Seed Production Economics, M. Anowarul Islam

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Irrigated grass pastures are essential components of western U.S. agriculture, especially on cattle ranches of the intermountain region. Unfortunately, the yield and quality of these grasslands are relatively low compared to the national average because of current management practices (Jacobs et al., 1993). Attempts have been made to increase forage yields of these pastures by fertilization and applying or controlling irrigations but these efforts have resulted in minimum success (Jacobs et al., 1993). The price increase of fertilizer, energy, and fuel has made improvement of these natural grasslands more difficult and thus threatens the profitability and sustainability of …

Profitability Of Early Weaning Of Beef Cows At Northern Sonora, Mexico: A Rancher Experience, Salomón M. Moreno, Fernando Ibarra-Flores, Martha Martin Rivera, Maria Del Socorro Antunez Navarro, Rafael Retes Lopez, Jesus Fimbres Preciado, Agustín Cabral Martell

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Amount and distribution of precipitation is normally inadequate and uncertain in arid and semiarid Sonoran Desert rangelands. Low precipitation reduces forage quality and quantity and it can negatively influence livestock yield reducing milk production and calf gains. Early removal of the calf from its dam reduces forage needs of the cow-calf enterprise and has been found to improve body weight gain and pregnancy rates in the cow herd (Mulliniks et al., 2013). Additionally, weaning calves early can result in improved animal performance by increasing pregnancy rates, cow body condition scores and increased steer carcass quality while reducing forage needs …

Innovative Technologies For Enhanced Availability Of Bajra-Napier Hybrid Rooted Slips, D. R. Malaviya, D. Vijay, Chandan Kumar Gupta

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Livestock occupies a crucial position in Indian agriculture and directly contributing 4.1% of total GDP of the country. India, with 2.29% of the world land area, is maintaining about 10.71% of the world’s livestock population. To sustain the present milk growth rate of 4.04% and for further expansion to meet the demands of ever growing human population, livestock needs sustainable supply of feed material. The area under fodder cultivation is estimated to be about 4% of the gross cropped area which remained static for the last four decades.The traditional grazing lands are gradually diminishing because of urbanization, expansion of cultivable …

Management Of Storage Pest And Pathogens Of Oat Seeds Using Low Input And Ecofriendly Methods, D. Bahukhandi, D. Vijay, Vikas Kumar, Harsh Vardhan Singh

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Indigenous Traditional knowledge (ITK) is the local knowledge unique to a given culture or society. It is the basis for local-level decision making in agriculture, health care, food preparation, natural-resource management and a host of other activities in rural communities. Storage structures and locally available plant products were used to store seeds and to ward off seed pests and pathogens. In different parts of India, different types of containers are used locally to store different crop seeds, according to the availability and climatic conditions. Sundaramari et. al. (2011) advocated the importance of indigenous storage structures for safe storage of grains …

Synthetic Polymer Based Coating Of Fodder Cowpea Seeds Enhances Germination And Vigour, Aniruddha Maity, D. Vijay, Chandan Kumar Gupta

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

In Indian arid and semi-arid conditions, comparatively less fertile lands are allotted to forage crops. In addition, erratic weather condition makes the situation more complex where proper seedling emergence and establishment of pastures with economic use of input remains a big question. Our view is that crop seedling production from seed sown into arid or semiarid environments could be significantly enhanced by the use of simple seed coating technologies. Such approaches would make use of newly synthesised seed coat-applied polymers that could be used to hold the desired supplements like powerful germination enhancement chemicals and plant protectants with seed to …

Rangeland Ecosystem Services: Improving Decisions With A Systematic Approach, Joel R. Brown, Neil D. Macleod, Simone Maynard

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Delivering ecosystem services from rangelands represents a unique challenge. While social, ecological and economic complexity and diversity often lend stability to rangeland systems, the broad array of services, users and connections makes the process of identifying what services to manage for, which management practices are most effective and how to deliver them challenging. In addition, lag times between management changes and responses, climatic variability and changes in demand can further complicate decision-making. We propose a structured process that includes: (1) inventory of existing conditions; (2) identification of relevant scenarios; (3) stakeholder involvement; and (4) monitoring for verification based on the …

Greenhouse Sheds For Increasing Livestock Bodyweight In Taipusi, Inner Mongolia, Yang Zheng, Taro Takahashi, David R. Kemp

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Grasslands in many developing countries around the world are suffering from degradation, principally as a result of greater grazing pressure from increasing livestock numbers (Kemp and Michalk 2007). In Taipusi County (41°35′ to 42°10′N; 114°51′ to 115°49′ E) of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, traditional winter grazing on pastures with virtually no herbage mass is thought to be exacerbating the grassland condition, as well as being counter-productive to animal production (Zheng et al. 2010). This paper describes a feasibility study of utilizing existing sheds to house sheep during the winter.

The Grasscutter: An Untapped Resource Of Africa’S Grasslands, E. K. Adu, A. Asafu-Adjaye, B. A. Hagan

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

The grasscutter (or Greater cane rat – Thryonomys swinderianus) is a common rodent in Africa, south of the Sahara. Its distribution ranges from The Gambia to southern Sudan, across the continent down to south Namibia and South Africa (Fritzinger 1995). The grasscutter grows to > 0.5 m in length and weighs ~8 kg. It has characteristic rounded ears, a short nose, coarse bristly hair, and forefeet smaller than its hind feet. Grasscutters are herbivores and their natural diet is mainly grasses and cane, but they also eat bark, fallen fruits, nuts and many different kinds of cultivated crops. Grasscutters get …

Grass-Based Health, Peter Ballerstedt

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

A true discussion of sustainability must focus on improving the condition of humanity. Too often, however, such a discussion is a "dialogue of values that defies consensual definition" (Ratner 2004), with participants implicitly accepting as true numerous foundational beliefs that are factually incorrect or unproven. Dietary policies recommending carbohydrate-based diets are one example. Falsehoods persist despite decades of contradictory re-search results and clinical findings, contaminating a variety of diverse disciplines and discussions. A rational, objective discussion of sustainability in grassland agriculture must confront the issue of public health policy, consider our physical health, the fiscal health of our communities, and …

Increased Photosynthesis Contributes Towards Improved Ovule-To-Seed Ratio In Iaa Treated Range Grasses, Chandan Kumar Gupta, Badre Alam, D. Vijay, M. Srivastava, D. R. Malaviya

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Poor ovule-to-seed ratio is one of the major constraints in quality seed production in range grasses. Plant hormones per se or in the influence of external cues were known regulate the seed setting and their subsequent maturation in many crops. External application of hormones on the standing crops has shown very promising results but the physiological and biochemical phenomenon underlying such changes are not studied in detail. Exogenous application of different chemicals particularly during anthesis and post anthesis phases has increased the seed set in a number of species. Improved seed germination in Panicum maximum after foliar spray of indole …

The Effects Of Associated Pod Quality On Seed Recovery And Germination Of Dichrostachys Cinerea And Acacia Tortilis Fed Ruminants, Piet Monegi, Julius Ttjelele, Khanyisile Mbatha

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Pods of different plant species form an important part of the diet of livestock during the dry season due to their high nutritional value compared to grasses. Therefore, herbivores browsing pods of certain woody plants may disperse intact seeds that can potentially germinate. The quality of associated diet such as pod chemistry (i.e. protein and tannin concentration) is one of the most important determinants of success of livestock faecal seed dispersal (Tjelele et al., 2012: Tjelele et al., 2014). The objective of this study was to determine the effects of associated pods quality (i.e. nutrients and tannins …

A Case Study Of Evaluation, Demonstration And Adoption Of Improved Forages For A Cut-And-Carry System In Eritrea, Eskender Tesfay, Bruce Cook, Myles Parker

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Eritrea, a largely arid or semi-arid country in north-east Africa, lies on the western side of the Red Sea between about 12 and 18°N, and has an altitude ranging from -75m to 3018 m ASL. Soils range from shallow, often infertile stony soils in steeper areas to fertile clays and clay loams on the flats. Soil pH ranges from slightly acid to moderately alkaline. About 80% of the population is engaged in subsistence mixed farming, livestock being used for meat, milk, draft and fibre, as well as serving as a financial reserve. Average farm size in the most intensively populated …

Factors Affecting Rangeland Utilization By Ranchers In The Golestan Rangelands, Iran, Reza Tamartash, Mohammadreza Tatian, Maedeh Yousefian, Fatemeh Montazeri, Hamid Mostafalou

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

In Iran, rangelands produce most of the forage resources for livestock. There are various types of traditional grazing systems for the utilization of rangelands, including the consultative, collective and operational multiplayer systems. In the consultative type, certain people are selected by the ranchers and they determine the utilization method and manage grazing. In the collective system, all ranchers use rangeland in common. In the operational multiplayer system, rangelands are used in common but the ranchers share rangelands by rancher-rancher negotiation. This research was undertaken to investigate the human factors as rancher's effect on rangeland utilization in different systems above mentioned.

Research On The Most Sustainable Livestock Carrying Capacity In Grassland Management, Li Yang, Suying Li

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Although the concept of livestock carrying capacity is highly controversial (Gillson and Hoffman 2007; Roe 1997), it is still used as the key index for grassland management, especially in China. ‘X city’ which has enacted a Lives-tock and Forage Balance Policy (LFBP) since the beginning of this century as part of a trial to test the effectiveness of the policy. The LFBP Implementing Rule in ‘X city’ (Trial Implementation) developed in 2002 was designed with the purpose of trying to adjust the utilization of grassland based on a predetermined livestock carrying capacity (LCC). We collected information on the LCC adopted …

Endozoochorus Seed Dispersal By Jalauni Sheep In Tropical Climate: Recovery And Germinability Under Natural Pasture Grazing, Nityanada Das, S. B. Maity

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Herbivores can play an important role in seed dispersal. Climate, available vegetation for grazing, pasture situation can determine the seed dispersal trends by the grazing animals. Tropical climate of India with wide climatic variation leads to fluctuating herbage quality and available biomass. Ruminants spread plants through fecal pellets after grazing at one place and fecal voiding at another. Herbivores can play an important role in seed dispersal. Climate, available vegetation for grazing, pasture situation can determine the seed dispersal trends by the grazing animals. Tropical climate of India with wide climatic variation leads to fluctuating herbage quality and available biomass. …

Seed Yield Of Herbaceous Crops Under Agroforestry System, Sarmite Rancane, Dagnija Lazdina, Peteris Berzina, Vija Stesele

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Agroforestry is a perspective way of biomass production which combines simultaneous growing of woody plants with agricultural crops on the same area for different purposes (Reisner et al., 2007). Agroforestry like multifunctional agriculture has the objective of promoting economically, socially, and environmentally sustainable rural development (Leakey, 2012). It is more sustainable than the monocultures of forestry or agriculture separately. Agroforestry can be an appropriate technology in the areas with fragile ecosystems and subsistence farming.

The main advantage of this technology is improved efficiency of resource utilization and smaller competition of plants for nutrients (Bardule et al., 2013). Agroforestry has the …

Seasonal Influence On Seed Yield And Quality Of Anjan Grass (Cenchrus Ciliaris L.) Genotypes, R. P. Nagar, S. S. Meena

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Cenchrus species are important perennial pasture component of Dichanthium-Cenchrus-Lasiurus grass cover of India associated with arid and semi-arid regions of tropical and sub tropical climate. It is adapted in wide range of environments due to its drought tolerance, deep roots, rapid response to summer rains, high biomass, resistance to overgrazing, palatable with crude protein 8-10% and 60-70% digestibility (Sawal et al., 2009). After well establishment these grasses give 8-10 t/ha dry fodder out of 3-4 cuts in a year and 100-250 kg/ha seed yield. There is a wide gap between demand and supply of Cenchrus grass seeds resulted about …

The Effect Of Fertilizer On Seed Production Of Melilotoides Ruthenica, Zhaolan Wang, Jiancai Du, Yanyan Zhang, Qingfeng Li, Juan Wang, Jun Li

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

M. ruthenica is very important legume forage, which has drought resistance, winter-hardness and high protein characteristics, and is thus adaptable wide environmental range, but low seed yield limited its widely extension and utilization. Fertilizer is the necessary nutrition for plant growth and production, Alfalfa production positively correlated with soil content of P and K (Attoe and Troug, 1950), and its seed yield can be increased 20.87%～31.37% by splashing B and Mo during the florescence (Haby and Keonaro, 1998). This study discussed the effect of fertilizer of N, P, K and microelements Mo, B, Cu, Zn on the seed production of …

Impact Of Grazing On Soil Seed Bank Replenishment Under The Mediterranean Climate Of Northern Syria, Abdoul Aziz Niane, P. C. Struik, Murari Singh, Zewdie Bishaw

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Rangelands represent 70% of the semi-arid and arid Mediterranean land mass. It is a habitat for millions of people whose livelihood depends on animal husbandry. The revolutionary developments in the animal husbandry and veterinary medicines resulted in exponential increases in livestock and human populations living on and from dry lands. To respond to population growth, expansion on urbanization, transportation and road networks, land reform and rural development policies forced nomads to adopt sedentary lifestyles. The demographic changes coupled with national and international border crossing restrictions escalated opportunistic cultivation, and excessive exploitation of the scarce and slowly renewable vegetation cover of …

Anthesis Dynamics, Pollen Availability And Enhancement Of Seed To Ovule Ratio In Chrysopogon Fulvus, Dunna Vijay, Chandan Kumar Gupta, D. R. Malaviya, Aniruddha Maity

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Under the present scenario of severe green fodder shortage (64%) in India, grassland offers an opportunity to enhance fodder availability. To revitalize the existing denuded grasslands, seed is the best propagating material. Availability of quality seed in forage grasses is less than 20% of actual requirement/ demand. Hence, there is a need to enhance the production and productivity of grass seeds. Even the available grass seeds have very low germination percentage, which is mainly due to the absence of a caryopsis inside the fluffy seed material. Chrysopogon fulvus, commonly known as Guria grass or red false beard grass, is …

Effect Of Pretreatments On Seed Dormancy And Seedling Growth In Anjan Grass (Cenchrus Ciliaris), R. P. Nagar, S. S. Meena

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Anjan grass (Cenchrus ciliaris L.) is native to tropical, sub-tropical Asia and Africa. It can grow on wide range of soils varying from sandy to harder heavy textured soils with annual rainfall of 350- 800 mm and up to an altitude of 1000 m. Among different rangeland grasses, it is considered palatable and nutritious grass for all kinds of grazing animals. It contains high percentage of protein (8-10%). One of the reasons for low production of pasture is poor plant density which might be due to low seed germination. The seed dormancy in range grasses hampers in establishment of …

Seed Hardening And Moisture Conservation Practices To Mitigate Water Stress In Cowpea, Syama S. Menon, K. E. Savithri

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Cowpea is an important protein catering feed/fodder for cattle. Being a non-season bound crop, it can be grown throughout the year and performs well during summer season under irrigation but water scarcity limits its area under cultivation. It necessitates the development of alternate management technologies to overcome the water stress period for the sustainable growth and yield of the crop. Seed hardening, soil moisture conservation measures like mulching and antitranspirant sprays are the techniques which helps the plant to survive under drought. So the present study was undertaken to evaluate the efficacy of various seed primers, antitranspirants and mulches for …

Soil Seed Bank Study On Abandoned Fields And Semi-Arid Grassland, South Africa, P. J. Malan, T. Myburg, Hennie A. Snyman

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Up to the 1980’s marginal soils in the central grasslands of South Africa were successfully ploughed for crop production, but unfortunately those soils soon proved to be uneconomical. Due to high input costs, low maize prices, and unreliable rainfall, the Department of Agriculture soon implemented the “soil conversion scheme” to promote the conversion of those ploughed marginal soils to permanent pastures. Regardless of the implementation the soil conversion scheme, many farmers unfortunately just abandoned some of these marginal fields, not establishing permanent pastures. This led to many hectares of unproductive previously cultivated fields, referred to as abandoned fields. It was …

The Effects Of Seed Ingestion By Livestock, Dung Fertilization, Trampling, Grass Competition And Fire On Seedling Establishment Of Two Woody Plant Species, Julius Ttjelele, David Ward, Luthando Dziba

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

The increasing rate of woody plant encroachment in grasslands or savannas remains a challenge to livestock farmers. The causes and control measures of woody plant encroachment are of common interest, especially where it negatively affects the objectives of an agricultural enterprise. The objectives of this study were to determine the effects of gut passage (goats, cattle), dung (nutrients), fire, grass competition and trampling on establishment of A. nilotica (Fabaceae) and D. cinerea (Fabaceae sub family Mimosoideae) seedlings. Germination trials were subjected to: 1) seed passage through the gut of cattle and goats and unpassed/ untreated seeds (i.e. not …

Morphofunctional Diversity Of Diaspores Of Some Range Grasses Of Punjab (India), Amarjit Singh Soodan, Sushant Sharma, Ashok Kumar, Rajdavinder Kaur

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Grasslands occupy almost half of the terrestrial expanse of India ranging from coastal to alpine regions. Whyte (1958) defined ‘grassland as the land on which graminaceous species represent the dominance if not the exclusive vegetation’. Grasslands comprise the main source of fodder for the 500 million cattle population in the country besides providing habitat to several plant and animal species. But the grasslands are shrinking due to the pressure of intensive agriculture and urbanization not only in expanse but also in their biodiversity. In this context there is an urgent need to develop not only a policy towards a sustainable …

Seed Shedding Of Lolium Multiflorum In Dependency On Application Of Preparations Controlling Plant Ripening Process, Barbara Golińska, Piotr Goliński

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

The seed shedding susceptibility is specific biological feature of grasses (Hampton and Fairey, 1997; Simon et al., 1997), which occurs particularly in the species of Lolium-Festuca complex. Lolium multiflorum is a grass distinguished by highest susceptibility of seed shedding (Golińska, 2009). It is the main reason of up to 60% of seed yield losses during harvest of seed plantations of this grass (Coolbear et al., 1997). In order to prevent seed losses by shedding the investigations are necessary to improve the efficiency of grass seed production. One of the possibilities is using of preparations which physically or physiologically …

Enhancing Seed Set And Seed Yield Of Sewan Grass (Lasiurus Sindicus) Through Physiological Approaches, Maharaj Singh, K. Venkatesan, Uday Burman

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Western part of Rajasthan, the Thar desert, is the most thickly populated desert of the World, possessing more than 55 million population each of human and livestock. Aberrant weather conditions and poor soil fertility pose major threats to arable crops cultivation. Livestock rearing is directly dependent on fodder availability but due to harsh agro-climatic conditions there is severe fodder scarcity. Lasiurus sindicus, perennial grass grown in hot and warm grassland climate thrives well under moisture stress on sandy plains, low dunes and hummocks of this region, receiving annual rainfall below 200 mm. For decades, these grasslands in turn supported …

Effect Of Different Seeding Rate On Seed Production Of The Rye Variety “Gogu” In Korea, Joung-Kyong Lee, Young-Il Cho, Ouk-Kyu Han, Jong-Duk Kim

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

The rye (Secale cereale L.) has been used as an excellent green manure crop and good forage crop in Korea. The rye is usually recommended as a winter crop for forage and green manure after either maize or rice in Korea (Heo et al., 2009). But most of its seeds are being imported from foreign countries because the seed productions have difficulty with latematuring and the heavy raining season in the ripening stage in Korea. Therefore, a new rye variety “Gogu” with an earlymaturing and high performance was bred by National Institute of Crop Science (NICS), Suwon, Korea in …

Seed Standards And Seed Testing Protocols For Forage Legume Seeds, Vinod Kumar, K. Sridhar

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Seed is the basic agricultural input and its quality is extremely important. In the absence of seeds of assured quality, the expenditure of the farmers on the other inputs may become of little use. It was in this context, seed legislation is in force in majority of the crops cultivated across the country to ensure the availability of high quality seeds to the farmers. The seed quality parameters (known as Indian Minimum Seed Certification Standards, IMSCS) of a notified variety of various crops (viz., forages, cereals, millets, pulses etc.) have been published through Gazette notifications by the Government …

Seed Production Of Brachiaria Ruziziensis In India--Seed Collection Methods And Feed Opportunities, Edna Antony, K. Sridar, D. T. Pal, Vinod Kumar

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Brachiaria ruziziensis is an important fodder crop suitable for high rainfall areas and soils with low nutrient supply. Though the area under B. ruziziensis cultivation in India is not properly documented, it is widely grown in Kerala (Stür et al. 1996) and in parts of Karnataka and Goa. By virtue of its shade tolerance and adaptability, B. ruziziensis have wide scope for adoption in other parts of India. In India, Brachiaria is mainly planted through root slips as availability of good quality filled seeds is very less. It is known that the proportion of filled to unfilled seeds depends …