Abstract
Brazil is one the largest soybean and cattle producer worldwide and degrade pasture is one of the major problem in the Cerrado region. Integrated crop-livestock system is a key to increase grower income, to reduce crop yield loss by water deficit during growing season and to reclaim degraded pasture. However, forage production and its quality is important to evaluate under integrated crop-livestock system. The objective of this study was to evaluate forage production and the bromatological composition of different forage species in monoculture and in intercropping with soybean in an oversowing system. A completely randomized block design with four replications in a 5 × 2 + 1 factorial scheme, with five forage species (Urochloa brizantha cv. Marandu; U. ruziziensis; P. maximus cv. Mombaça; P. infestans cv. Massai and P. americanum) and two cropping systems (monoculture and a consortium with soybeans) and a standard treatment (P. americanum in succession with soybeans). The forage productivity and the bromatological composition of the forages were evaluated. The species U. ruziziensis, U. brizantha, M. maximum and P. infestans presented higher forage production capacity, when cultivated in consortium with soybeans and in monoculture, in relation to P. americanum. The cultivation of the forages U. ruziziensis, U. brizantha, M. maximum and P. americanum in monoculture produced higher productivity than that in consortium with soybeans. The forages U. ruziziensis and U. brizantha intercropped with soybean presented a better nutritional value over the autumn-winter period.
Highlights
Pasture degradation with time has been one of the biggest problems for the development of agricultural activity in Brazil
Integrated crop-livestock system (ICLS) associated with grain crops in a no-tillage system has been recognised as an alternative for the recovery of degraded areas, increasing the efficiency in the use of inputs and labour, and allowing intensive use of the area with the possibility of economic gains throughout the year (Alves et al, 2017; Franzluebbers et al, 2014; Moraes et al, 2014)
Integrated crop-livestock system has presented better sustainability than modern monocultural production systems, which in general rely on the use of large quantities of agricultural inputs (Lemaire et al, 2015; Bonaudo et al, 2014)
Summary
Pasture degradation with time has been one of the biggest problems for the development of agricultural activity in Brazil. Integrated crop-livestock system has presented better sustainability than modern monocultural production systems, which in general rely on the use of large quantities of agricultural inputs (Lemaire et al, 2015; Bonaudo et al, 2014). This system assumes the diversification of crops under no-tillage, jas.ccsenet.org
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