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1.
The use of grazing-time records for the estimation of grass species consumption was investigated in the context of two small-plot grazing trials. It was found that sampling errors were significantly lower than those involved in the cutting techniques used and that a high level of repeatability of results could be obtained.
The overall correlations between fresh-weight yield estimates from sample cuts and grazing records for individual plots were found to be 0·57*** and 0·72*** in the two trials. The bias that was introduced into some of the estimates of species yield appeared to be corrected through the use of palatability data.
It is concluded that the use of grazing-time records for yield estimation amongst species of broadly similar growth habit may have a definite potential in tropical Africa, but that the method requires further testing before being widely adopted.  相似文献   

2.
Over a period of 20 months twenty continuous, 24-hour, observations were made on the grazing behaviour of Border Leicester × Merino sheep. Distinct seasonal changes were found in the pattern of grazing. Grazing usually began during the dawn period and decreased at dusk. In spring and summer there were two peaks of grazing, but there was only one peak in autumn and winter. The percentage of grazing taking place between 6 a.m. and 6 p.m. varied with season, and was highest in spring and early summer. These seasonal changes in the pattern of grazing appeared to be independent of grazing pressure, or of the nutritional requirements of the sheep.
The mean grazing time, for all observations, was 8·2 hours with a standard deviation of 0·97. Decreasing pasture availability increased grazing time, as shown by an increased intensity of grazing.
Ruminating times were found to be considerably lower than have been reported for cattle. There was a significant negative correlation between ruminating time and the nitrogen content of available pasture.
There was no clear evidence that the number of lambs carried before parturition, or suckled after parturition, had any effect on grazing time.
There was no evidence that the behaviour of one sheep influenced that of another, even of a twin, grazing nearby.
Consistent differences between sheep were found for ruminating time. The variation in grazing time between sheep, at any one time, was considerably greater than previously reported and differences between sheep were not consistent.
Variation in grazing time appeared to be less in flocks of less than 6 sheep than in flocks of 6 to 12 sheep.  相似文献   

3.
The effect of stocking density on the productivity of yearling female sheep was studied over the 1960 grazing season. The cumulative effect on pasture productivity of previous differences in grazing pressure was eliminated by re-randomization of the pasture after each grazing cycle. Stocking densities from 12 to 30 sheep/acre/unit of time were imposed from March to September, followed by 7 months on a common treatment to measure subsequent effects on animal fertility. Correlations were found between stocking density and (a) liveweight gains, (b) loss of weight in fasting, (c) quality and quantity of herbage residues at the end of the last grazing cycle. Subsequent animal fertility was not measurably affected.  相似文献   

4.
SOME ESTIMATES OF THE AREAS OF PASTURE FOULED BY THE EXCRETA OF DAIRY COWS   总被引：2，自引：0，他引：2  
Observations were made of the areas of herbage receiving the faeces of grazing dairy cattle and of the areas and relative palatability of herbage whose growth was affected by faeces and urine. The average area covered by faeces was 7·3 sq. ft./cow/day. Faeces dropped during grazing had a negligible affect on the utilization of herbage at that grazing, but each dung-pat probably affected the growth and palatability of an area of herbage about six times as great at the next grazing. The area of herbage whose growth was affected by urine was equal to that affected by faeces, but unlike faeces, urine improved the palatability of the herbage to dairy cows. The data were used to calculate approximate areas of herbage likely to be affected by excreta at different levels of stocking, and it appeared that excreta return plant nutrients to a given pasture acreage more quickly than some other estimates suggest.  相似文献   

5.
A technique for the automatic recording of the grazing behaviour of dairy cows was investigated, using ‘Vibracorders’ which transmit grazing movement via a pendulum and stylus to a 24 h recording chart. The total labour input was 2 h/day for 6 cows, which gave 144 h of results. In 2 months, 3312 h of recording were obtained. Total grazing time per cow in 24 h was 559 min. on a rigid rotational system of grazing and 638 min. on a system of set stocking. Grazing time was significantly and negatively related to the yield of available herbage DM. It is concluded that if the Vibracorders are sealed and fitted correctly, they are simple, reliable and accurate instruments for automatically measuring the grazing behaviour of dairy cows.  相似文献   

6.
Results are reported from a 10-month trial, using 50 oxen, in which growth rates of groups receiving restricted and normal night grazing were compared. The resiriction of night grazing was found to lead to a significant decline of 30% in live-weight gain. This difference was largely attributed to periods of moderate grass shortage (i.e. marginal day grazing) when those animals with the longer grazing period were able to select a diet of superior quality and quantity. Under good, or very bad, grazing conditions the availability of night grazing did not appear to be critical.  相似文献   

7.
A leafy strain of timothy and of perennial ryegrass showed no significant reductions in seed yields following grazing at different dates from October to January, when extra nitrogen was applied.
Spring and winter + spring grazing, together with extra nitrogen, significantly reduced the seed yield of S50 timothy for three successive harvest years.
Perennial ryegrass S101 showed no reduction after spring or winter + spring grazing when defoliation was made not later than mid-April, but when grazing was delayed until May and drought occurred there was a significant reduction in seed yield.  相似文献   

8.
An experiment was carried out in two parts to investigate lack of persistency of white clover in a meadow fescue/white clover sward when grazed by poultry. It was found that poultry manure was responsible for a considerable part of this depressing effect. Grazing by poultry in the autumn and winter was nearly as effective in reducing the clover conlent of the sward as grazing for the whole year, autumn grazing being particularly harmful. Autumn and winter grazing alone increased the number of sown grass tillers and reduced Poa tririalis tillers in comparison wilh all-the-year-round grazing. Range and fold grazing at a high stocking rate (312 per acre in the first winter) both had the same effect on the sward. The effects of drought and continual close mowing on white clover persistence are discussed. Fertilizers containing calcium, potassium and phosphorus might counteract the depressing effect of poultry grazing and manure on white clover.  相似文献   

9.
A rumen-fistulated steer was used for the manual collection of samples of freshly swallowed herbage, in a grazing-management experiment on a perennial ryegrass sward. Diurnal and seasonal changes in the in vitro digestibility of the herbage selected by the grazing animal were studied under both strip- and continuous-grazing methods of management.
There was no appreciable change in digestibility as the sward was grazed down from upper to lower layers under strip-grazing management in April and May. In June to October a within-day fall in digestibility was found, much of which was attributable to an increase in the amount of old dead herbage grazed from the lower regions of the sward. Dead herbage taken in by the grazing steer was considerably lower in digestibility in August than in May. The in vitro digestibility of herbage samples, cut to ground level before and after grazing in a strip-grazed treatment, fell markedly as the proportion of dead herbage in the sample increased, giving a high negative correlation.
In a continuous-grazing management there was no pattern of diurnal variation, and the seasonal variation in digestibility of the ingested herbage was less than in strip grazing. The implications of these results are discussed in relation to indirect methods of digestibility determination (faecal-index technique), the measurement of herbage intake, and to some aspects of grazing management.  相似文献   

10.
Individual tillers of S23 ryegrass, in three paddocks set-stocked with sheep at widely differing grazing pressures, were marked and studied from 11 July to 19 August, 1966, and observations were made on the frequency and severity of grazing.
The uprooting of tillers, and the destruction of others, were major sources of loss of records. It was found that an acceptable measure of the frequency of defoliation could be made by recording three times a week. In a subsidiary experiment it was shown that repeated handling did not affect the DM yield, the number of tillers or the length of green leaf (G.L.L.) of single plants.
Despite the extreme differences in grazing pressure, there were no significant differences between paddocks in the daily increase in the G.L.L. of tillers which were not grazed during a short period of intensive recording. In all three paddocks the sheep tended to graze the tillers with the greatest G.L.L. at any one time, and there was evidence of patchy grazing only at the lowest grazing pressure.
An increase in grazing pressure resulted in increases in both the frequency and severity of defoliation. Comparisons were made between the product of the frequency X severity of defoliation of individual tillers, and the stocking rate, grazing pressure and herbage consumption on the three paddocks.  相似文献   

11.
Studies were made on two perennial ryegrass–dominant swards of the effects of cutting and grazing systems of herbage production. A motor scythe was used for cutting and sheep in small enclosures for grazing. In both systems, herbage production was measured by a ground-level sampling technique, using sheep shears, and the difference between pre-treatment and post-treatment herbage was expressed as ‘utilized yield’. Correction for soil contamination is ensured by quoting all results on an organic-matter basis. Grazing treatments averaged 14–16% more organic matter and 36–45% more crude protein than cutting treatments in both experiments. These differences were ascribed to recycling of N under grazing. Infrequent defoliation gave higher yields than frequent, and severe defoliation higher yields than lenient under both cutting and grazing systems. The trends shown by cutting and grazing intensities are comparable and can be quantified. There is need to examine closely the relationships between the effects of cutting and grazing techniques on herbage production, since such knowledge would allow a more accurate prediction of the relevance to the grazing situation of results obtained under cutting.  相似文献   

12.
An experiment was started in 1957 that compared the production from dairy cows on daily strip-folding with that from a system of rotational grazing where the cows were given a fresh allocation of pasture about once or twice a week. Management was so arranged that equal areas of pasture were grazed off by the same number of cows in a similar period of time. The experiment was carried out at two rates of stocking, one about 20% greater than the other, the lower rate considered to be equivalent to good close folding practice and the higher rate therefore somewhat restrictive. No supplementary food was given during the grazing season.
At the high rate of stocking, rotational grazing gave an average milk yield of 40 lb./cow/day whilst daily strip-folding yielded 38 lb./cow/day. At the low rate of stocking production was 42 lb./cow/day for both methods.
At the high rate milk yield/acre from the rotational grazing was 1007 and from the strip-folding 977 gals. At the low rate comparable results were 881 and 874 gals.
There was no general trend in yield per cow or per acre in favour of either the rotational grazing or daily strip-folding systems of management. Increasing cow days/acre by 21% decreased yield/cow/day by 7% but significantly increased milk yield/acre, by 13%.  相似文献   

13.
Two successive grazing experiments were conducted over 12 weeks on perennial ryegrass pastures with 50 and 44 young cattle to study the effect of N fertilizer when applied at a daily rate of 1 or 3 kg N/ha. At each level of N two stocking rates differing hy 20% were imposed. At the liigher N level and stocking rate, three frequencies of grazing were imposed. At the stocking rates imposed N tended to reduce the daily liveweight gain per head, but increased the total liveweight gain per ha by from 0.79 to 1.58 kg/kg N. A 20% increase in stocking rate depressed gain per head in both years. In the first year it did not improve gain/ha, hut in the second year gain/ha was increased by 12–17%. There was a tendency for performance per animal and per ha to increase as the grazing cycle was lengthened. In 1969 the highest yield in the whole season was 1880 grazing days and 1260 kg gain/ha. The overall response to N fertilizer was similar to that recorded in other reports, but it is possible that a lack of K had limited pasture growth.  相似文献   

14.
In order to study the interaction between burning and grazing on heather areas, an experiment was set up in which six paddocks were subjected to different systems of controlled grazing. One quarter of each paddock was burned at two-yearly intervals. The effects of burning and grazing on the regeneration of the vegetation are described. The chemical composition of heather is known to change with age and season; in this experiment grazing was shown to have an effect also. The amount and earliness of the growth of the current season's shoots of heather were affected by both age of plants and grazing intensity. This result was thought to be related to temperature gradients near the ground. Sheep did not graze the sub-plots of different age within each paddock evenly; more recently burned sub-plots were preferred, the preference being most marked with the grazing regimes of lower intensity. At the highest grazing intensity the older and younger sub-plots were grazed to a similar extent. It is concluded that, in addition to controlled burning, effective management of heather moors must include some measure of grazing control.  相似文献   

15.
Standing crops on plots of 5- to 11-year-oId heather subjected to six different grazing regimes ranged from 2400–10,000 kg/ha. Stand development of heather was greatly influenced by grazing management. Distribution of DM among the five fractions, flowers, current season's growth, older green material, wood and dead material, was significantly affected by both age and grazing regime and by the interaction of these two factors. Annual DM production ranged from about 1000 to 2000 kg/ha and there was no evidence of any impairment in the productive capacity of the heather plant with the levels of utilization which resulted from the six grazing regimes used. Factors involved in the evaluation of heather as a source of feed for ruminants are discussed briefly, as also are the problems of relating levels of utilization to grazing management.  相似文献   

16.
Studies were made in S.W. Scotland of the effect of winter grazing (October to March) by sheep on subsequent spring and early summer pasture production from a sward in its first harvest year and from a permanent pasture. Averaged over the two swards, DM yields in April, May and June were reduced by 38%, 8% and 5%, respectively, as a result of various times and frequencies of grazing, compared with no grazing. Reductions were greatest after grazings in the January to March period, especially grazings involving the month of March. In a trial in which fertilizer N was used to compensate for March grazing, 50 kg NJha raised DM yields in April to the level of those from no grazing, while only 15 kg NJha were needed to raise June yields to parity. Controlled winter grazing of sheep and the use of fertilizer N to restore production losses after early spring grazing are justified.  相似文献   

17.
Groups of 8 steers weighing 300–400 kg (660–880 Ib) were rotationally grazed on a ryegrass-dominant pasture for 115 days. The systems compared were zero grazing (Z), field grazing conducted at the same stocking rate (FC), and field grazing conducted at a stocking rate varied with the intention of giving the same liveweight gain per uiimal as zero grazing (FV). Mean daily liveweight gains were: Z, 0.98; FC, 0.78; FV, 0.90 kg/animal (2.2, 1.7 and 20 Ib/animal), and liveweight gains/unit area were in the ratio 100:78:85. Organic-matter intake, measured on four occasions, was, on average, Z, 6.54; FC, 6.18; FV, 687 kg/head daily (14.4, 13.6 and 15.1Ib). From these results it appears that a comparison of zero grazing and field grazing made at the same stocking rate is likely to underestimate the potential of field grazing for beef production from grass.  相似文献   

18.
A grazing experiment using four stocking rates of sheep, equivalent to 34, 45, 57 and 68 sheep/ha on an assumed 200-day grazing season, was conducted using a portable grazing corral technique. Plots were subjected to fotir grazing periods between mid May and early September. The effect of stocking rate on herbage yield and quality and the influence of these factors and feed intake on liveweights of the sheep were recorded. The mean daily herbage organic matter available over the trial was 9.6, 5.8, 3.3 and 23% of the total liveweight of the sheep at each of the four stocking rates. The highest grazing pressure led to the production of high-quality herbage, but also led to reduced productivity, low feed intake and liveweight losses. The most lenient grazing pressure failed to provide adequate herbage utilization. Even at the most intensive stocking pressure, only 66% of the herbage available to ground level was utilized in grazings after July. Intake results suggested that sheep of 45 kg liveweight required 1000–1200 g digestible organic matter per day to maintain body weight. Despite the higher in vitro digestibility of herbage on offer at the higher stocking rates, intake was limited through lack of herbage; a high degree of correlation existed between herbage availability and herbage intake over the four stocking rates and at all grazings. It is concluded that the portable corral technique is well suited for grazing studies and the assessment of sward response to varying stocking rates and is particularly useful where facilities for more extensive studies are limited.  相似文献   

19.
Different grazing treatments applied to pastures in which perennial ryegrass was dominant had little influence on DM production during the main reproductive growth period in late spring and early summer. Lax and infrequent grazing at this time did, however, reduce tiller density. During the dry summer period lax infrequent grazing increased production by 20%, while in the vegetative growth period in autumn those pastures which were alternately lax- and hard-grazed outyielded those which were hard grazed by 63%. In all treatments, initial recovery growth resulted almost exclusively from the production of leaf tissue. The rate of leaf growth declined three to five weeks after grazing, depending on treatment and season, and subsequent yield increase was dominated by sheath and stem growth.  相似文献   

20.
《Grass and Forage Science》1964,19(4):376-380
An investigation into the merits of intensive rotational grazing or paddock grazing was started in 1960. The experiment covered 40 acres, half of which was divided into 20 single-acre paddocks and the other half into 2 fields of 9 and 11 acres, respectively. Two groups of carefully paired cows were used to measure the output of milk per acre. Surplus grass was used for drystock and for conservation. The final output was expressed in terms of U.S.E. per acre, which was computed from the records of milk production, livestock maintenance and fattening and grass cut for conservation. The following conclusions seem reasonable: (a) Where the stocking rate is the same under both systems and the grass supply exceeds the animals' appetites, very little difference in terms of milk yield per acre will be found between intensive rotational grazing and lax rotational grazing over the grazing season; (b) Where, because of heavier stocking or a poorer growth of grass, the animals' appetites begin to exceed the grass supply, the intensive system of rotational grazing will be able to carry the stock for a longer period and consequently will give a greater output of milk per acre; (c) Intensive rotational grazing gives greater opportunity for taking off surplus grass for dryslock or for conservation.  相似文献   

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