Improvement of degraded hayfelds in the forest-steppe of the Priobye region

Abstract

The authors presented the results of research in 2012-2016 on the improvement of degraded hayfields with the sowing of perennial legume grass mixture at different methods of turf cultivation. The work aims to determine the most effective methods of cultivation of the turf of degraded hayfields, contributing to higher yields and quality of the resulting fodder. The highest content of perennial legumes in the herbage was noted in the variant with radical improvement of degraded hayfield (ploughing + discing) - 88 %, in the variant with milling - 80, discing - 70 %. The variant with radical improvement of the degraded hayfield (ploughing + discing) obtained the highest yield - 17.3 green and 3.64 t/ha - dry mass, which exceeds the yield of the control variant by 3.6 times. When carrying out radical improvement of degraded hayfields yield of fodder units was 1740, the number of digestible proteins per 1 fodder unit 140 g. These indicators during turf disking were 1550 fodder unit and 135 g, respectively. During strip seeding of perennial leguminous grasses (meadow clover + alfalfa) the variant with a width of the cultivated strip of 60 cm was selected. The yield of fodder units was 1610, the amount of digestible protein per 1 fodder unit - 120 g. In the control variant the yield of fodder units was 380, the amount of digestible protein per 1 fodder unit - 85 g. Strip-seeding of perennial leguminous grasses was the most cost-effective method of improving degraded hayfields in the Priobye forest-steppe. Net income in variants with strip-seeding of perennial leguminous grasses was 3751-4278 rubles/ha, profitability level - 71- 87%. In the variant with radical improvement of the degraded hayfield (ploughing + discing) these indicators are lower - 3959 rubles/ha and 57 % accordingly.