Abstract
Keynote paper presented at the International Leucaena Conference, 1‒3 November 2018, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia.A study was conducted during 2013–2017 to evaluate the potential of 5 cultivars/experimental lines of leucaena (Leucaena leucocephala) at 2 sites in Northern Inland NSW. In this frost-prone, summer-dominant rainfall region, all cultivars/lines established well and survival was >70% at Bingara and >95% at Manilla. Cultivars Wondergraze and Cunningham were the most productive, producing up to approximately 2.4 t DM/ha y 1.9 t DM/ha per growing season at Bingara and Manilla, respectively. Tropical grass establishment in the alleys was poor with plant productivity inversely related to leucaena productivity. Although this study has confirmed the persistence and productive potential of leucaena, the challenges around tropical grass establishment and persistence as well as the weed potential of leucaena in this region need to be addressed before broad-scale use could be recommended in Northern Inland NSW.
Highlights
Northern Inland New South Wales (NSW) is a subhumid summer rainfall zone (Tweedie and Robinson 1963) with approximately 60% of annual rainfall falling between October and March, commonly in high-intensity thunderstorms
The average period of frost occurrence is 145 days with approximately 50 frosts received per year (Hobbs and Jackson 1977), while summer rainfall tends to be relatively ineffective as high summer temperatures lead to high evapotranspiration (Murphy et al 2004)
In the Northern Inland mixed farming zone of NSW sown grass pastures were traditionally based on temperate species (e.g. Archer 1989; Lodge and Orchard 2000; Harris and Culvenor 2004); they have largely been replaced by tropical grasses (Harris et al 2014)
Summary
Northern Inland New South Wales (NSW) is a subhumid summer rainfall zone (Tweedie and Robinson 1963) with approximately 60% of annual rainfall falling between October and March, commonly in high-intensity thunderstorms. In the Northern Inland mixed farming zone of NSW sown grass pastures were traditionally based on temperate species (e.g. Archer 1989; Lodge and Orchard 2000; Harris and Culvenor 2004); they have largely been replaced by tropical grasses (Harris et al 2014). To maintain the productivity of tropical pastures, soil nutrients, in particular nitrogen, are required (Boschma et al 2014), which can be applied as inorganic sources and by addition of a companion legume. Research has been conducted in Northern Inland NSW to expand the range of legume options available as a companion to the tropical perennial grass-based pastures.
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