Abstract
The objective of this research is to evaluate differences in growth characteristics and productivity between Kowinearly and Florida 80 Italian ryegrass varieties in regions with severely cold winters. This research was carried out in Suwon (in central South Korea) and Yonchun (in northern South Korea) during the 2002-2006 growing seasons. Kowinearly is a diploid variety with green leaf colour and a semi-prostrate growth habit in autumn and a semi-erect one in spring. There were differences among the varieties in terms of cold tolerance, heading date, and forage yield in Yonchun. The winter field survival of Kowinearly was 85%, while that of Florida 80 was 43%. The dry matter yield of Kowinearly in Yonchun was 9,662 kg/ha, which was 31% more than that of Florida 80. In Suwon, the heading date of Kowinearly was May 7, which was 2 days later than that of Florida 80. In Yonchun, Kowinearly’s heading date was May 12, 1 day earlier than that of Florida 80. These results indicate that Kowinearly has good cold tolerance, and that in spring, it starts growth earlier than Florida 80, because of its higher cold tolerance. Key words: Italian ryegrass, Kowinearly, cold tolerance, new variety, forage crop
Highlights
Italian ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum Lam.) is an important crop that is cultivated for the production of high-quality forage in temperate regions around the world
In Yonchun, Kowinearly’s heading date was May 12, 1 day earlier than that of Florida 80. These results indicate that Kowinearly has good cold tolerance, and that in spring, it starts growth earlier than Florida 80, because of its higher cold tolerance
The cold tolerance of Italian ryegrass varies according to polyploidy and species (Park et al, 1987) It has been reported that some species have higher cold tolerance than the others (Blount et al, 2005)
Summary
Italian ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum Lam.) is an important crop that is cultivated for the production of high-quality forage in temperate regions around the world. Thanks to winter cropping on drained rice paddy fields, Italian ryegrass can be cultivated for high-quality forage while maintaining rice production (Chae et al, 1993; Yang 1992). The Italian ryegrass species developed in Korea are medium-late flowering varieties with heading dates around May 20, and winter cropping of these species on drained rice paddy fields does not correspond well with the rice harvesting seasons in the middle and mid-northern regions of South Korea. This study was conducted to evaluate the growth characteristics and productivity of Kowinearly, an Italian ryegrass species with high cold tolerance, an early heading date, quick maturity, and compatibility with winter cropping on drained rice paddy fields in the midnorthern regions of South Korea
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