Abstract
In pastures subjected to stockpiling, the tiller population goes through an intense process of self-thinning, hindering the recruitment of new tillers in the subsequent season. We evaluated different pasture management strategies in late winter in an attempt to modify tiller recruitment during spring. Urochloa brizantha cv. Marandu was maintained at 4 different levels (heights) of stockpiled pasture at the end of winter: short (15.1 cm), medium (23.2 cm), tall (31.4 cm) and tall/mown (31.3 cm, mown to 8 cm). In October (early spring), the short and tall/mown pastures had a tiller appearance rate (TAR) and a population stability index (PSI) superior (P<0.05) to that of the tall pasture. During the remainder of the growing season, these characteristics (TAR and PSI) were similar for all pastures. Tiller survival rate (TSR) was also highest (P<0.05) in short pasture in early spring. TAR values were highest in early spring and these tillers persisted throughout the growing season. When stockpiling Marandu palisadegrass pasture during spring it is important to have it short at the end of winter to ensure early and intense tillering in spring. If pasture is tall at the end of winter mowing at this time before spelling is advantageous.
Highlights
Stockpiling of pasture has been widely adopted in many countries such as Canada, USA and Brazil (Santos et al 2009; Añez-Osuna et al 2015; Nave et al 2016; Silva et al 2016) as a pasture management strategy in an endeavor to ensure forage is available for fall or winter grazing and to reduce winter feeding costs (Añez-Osuna et al 2015)
The stability of the tiller population can be assessed by the population stability index (PSI), used for the first time by Bahmani et al (2003) in perennial ryegrass populations
This index is calculated based on an integrated analysis between survival rates (TSR) and appearance (TAR) of tillers and when its value is equal to 1, the tiller population is in balance and remains stable
Summary
Stockpiling of pasture has been widely adopted in many countries such as Canada, USA and Brazil (Santos et al 2009; Añez-Osuna et al 2015; Nave et al 2016; Silva et al 2016) as a pasture management strategy in an endeavor to ensure forage is available for fall or winter grazing and to reduce winter feeding costs (Añez-Osuna et al 2015). Stockpiled pastures with shorter heights (10 and 20 cm) at the beginning of the stockpiling period produced more new tillers in spring than those stockpiled at a greater height (30 and 40 cm) The authors attributed this response pattern to lower forage mass at the end of winter in the 10 and 20 cm stockpiled pastures compared with those stockpiled at 30 and 40 cm. Basilisk maintained at 15 cm average height in winter and 25 cm in spring produced more new tillers than pasture managed at constant height (25 cm) throughout the year According to these authors, pastures kept short in winter senesce less, reducing the amount of dead forage and the degree of shading at the base of the plants, resulting in a microclimate more favorable to tillering in the spring
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
