Nutrient Uptake of Hybrid and Common Bermudagrass Fertilized with Broiler Litter

Abstract

Among forage crops utilized in the southeastern USA, bermudagrass [Cynodon dactylon (L.) Pers.] has the greatest potential to recover nutrients from soil routinely fertilized with broiler litter due to its yield potential and wide adaptation. Our objective was to determine differences in N and P uptake among diverse bermudagrass cultivars fertilized with broiler litter. ‘Alicia’, ‘Brazos’, ‘Coastal’, ‘Russell’, ‘Tifton 44’, and ‘Tifton 85’ hybrid bermudagrass and common bermudagrass were grown on a Savannah fine sandy loam (fine‐loamy, siliceous, semiactive, thermic Typic Fragiudult) and fertilized with 11.8 Mg litter dry matter (DM) ha−1 yr−1 (15.75 Mg as‐is basis) to provide 540 kg total N ha−1 yr−1 and 330 kg total P ha−1 yr−1 (mean of 4 yr). Alicia, Coastal, and Russell had similar annual yield in 3 of 4 yr, but yield differences among other hybrids were not consistent. Although annual N and P uptake of common bermudagrass was equivalent to Alicia, Coastal, and Tifton 44 during 2 yr due primarily to greater herbage N and P concentration, reduced uptake in years of below‐normal precipitation indicates it is not an acceptable alternative to a hybrid. No differences in N uptake existed among a majority of hybrids when precipitation was near normal, and Alicia, Coastal, and Russell had equivalent N uptake all 4 yr. Nitrogen and P uptake of Tifton 85 increased each year and, by the final year of the study, exceeded that of all cultivars. Among all the hybrids, only Russell exhibited consistent superior P uptake relative to Coastal.