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Effects of cultivars of tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea Schreb.) on the botanical composition of mixed swards |
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| Authors: | S SUGIYAMA H NAKASHIMA |
| Institution: | Faculty of Agriculture, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan |
| Abstract: | The effect of five cultivars of Festuca arundinacea on the botanical composition of mixed swards (with Dactylis glomerata and Trifolium repens singly and combined) at two soil fertility levels (moderate fertilizer application and no application) were examined. Shoot and root morphological characteristics of seedlings in each cultivar were also examined under pot conditions. Although there was little difference in the total biomass of the three mixed swards between cultivars, the cultivars showed significant differences in their relative contribution to total biomass. The relative order of competitive ability between cultivars was maintained over the different soil fertility levels and different species associations. Of the two yield components of a grass sward, tiller number and tiller size, number of tillers showed a larger response to the presence of neighbour species than mean tiller size, and thus success of F. arundinacea cultivars in mixed swards depended on the extent of reduction of number of tillers caused by the neighbour species of mixtures. The least competitive cultivar had the smallest seeds and shortest roots. |
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