Sward structural characteristics and herbage accumulation of Panicum maximum cv. Mombaça subjected to rotational stocking managements

Grazing strategies promote changes in sward structure that can affect patterns of herbage accumulation and sward flexibility to management. This experiment evaluated sward structural characteristics and herbage accumulation of Mombaça guinea grass (Panicum maximum Jacq. cv. Mombaça) subjected to rot...

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Published in:Scientia agricola 2009-01, Vol.66 (1), p.8-19
Main Authors: Silva, Sila Carneiro da(USP ESALQ Depto. de Zootecnia), Bueno, Adriana Amaral de Oliveira(USP ESALQ Depto. de Zootecnia), Carnevalli, Roberta Aparecida(USP ESALQ Depto. de Zootecnia), Uebele, Marina Castro(USP ESALQ Depto. de Zootecnia), Bueno, Fernando Oliveira(UFSCAR), Hodgson, John(Massey University), Matthew, Cory(Massey University), Arnold, Greg C.(Massey University), Morais, Jozivaldo Prudêncio Gomes de(UFSCAR)
Format: Article
Language:eng ; por
Subjects:
AGRICULTURE, MULTIDISCIPLINARY
altura do dossel
grazing management
interceptação luminosa
leaf area index
leaf canopy height
light interception
manejo do pastejo
índice de área foliar
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Summary:Grazing strategies promote changes in sward structure that can affect patterns of herbage accumulation and sward flexibility to management. This experiment evaluated sward structural characteristics and herbage accumulation of Mombaça guinea grass (Panicum maximum Jacq. cv. Mombaça) subjected to rotational stocking managements. Treatments involved grazing when swards reached either 95 or 100% interception of the incident light (LI), to post-grazing heights of 30 and 50 cm, and were allocated to 2,000 m² paddocks according to a randomised complete block design in a 2 × 2 factorial arrangement with four replications, from January 2001 to February 2002. Sward canopy changed from a vertical to a more horizontal orientation as the light interception area index and height increased from post to pre-grazing. Leaf canopy height pre-grazing was stable throughout the year and around 90 and 115 cm for the 95% and 100% LI treatments respectively, indicating a potential for development and use of target-based grazing management practices. Herbage mass pre and post-grazing was lower for the 95% than the 100% LI treatments, but with higher proportion of leaf and lower proportions of stem and dead material. Treatment effects on herbage accumulation were cumulative and became more evident as the experiment progressed, with up to 6 t ha-1 DM advantage to the 95/30 treatment. Although based on a single year experiment, grazing management should aim for low herbage mass during the transition period from winter to spring in order to allow fast recovery of swards and favour herbage accumulation during the following growing season. Estratégias de pastejo promovem alterações na estrutura do dossel, afetando os padrões de acúmulo de forragem e flexibilidade ao manejo. O objetivo deste experimento foi avaliar as características estruturais do dossel e o acúmulo de forragem em pastos de capim-mombaça (Panicum maxium Jacq. cv. Mombaça) submetidos a estratégias de pastejo rotativo. Os tratamentos corresponderam a pastejos realizados quando os pastos atingiam 95 ou 100% de interceptação da luz incidente (IL) até alturas de resíduo de 30 e 50 cm, e foram alocados às unidades experimentais (piquetes de 2000 m²) segundo um delineamento de blocos completos casualizados e arranjo fatorial 2 × 2, com quatro repetições, de janeiro de 2001 a fevereiro de 2002. O dossel passou de vertical para uma orientação mais horizontal à medida que o índice de área da folhagem e altura dos pastos
ISSN:0103-9016
1678-992X
1678-992X
0103-9016
DOI:10.1590/S0103-90162009000100002