Winter annual forage mass–nutritive value trade-offs are affected by harvest timing

Authors: Billman, Eric; ALEXANDRE DE SOUZA, IGOR - Universidade Federal Dos Vales Do Jequitinhonha E Mucuri; SMITH, RICHARD - University Of New Hampshire; Soder, Kathy; WARREN, NICHOLAS - University Of New Hampshire; ANDRADE TEIXEIRA, FABIO - Instituto De Zootecnia; BRITO, ANDRE - University Of New Hampshire

Submitted to: Crop, Forage & Turfgrass Management
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 6/7/2021
Publication Date: 6/10/2021
Citation: Billman, E.D., Alexandre De Souza, I., Smith, R.G., Soder, K.J., Warren, N.D., Andrade Teixeira, F., Brito, A.F. 2021. Winter annual forage mass–nutritive value trade-offs are affected by harvest timing. Crop, Forage & Turfgrass Management. Article e20113. https://doi.org/10.1002/cft2.20113.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/cft2.20113

Interpretive Summary: With grass-fed meat and milk products gaining traction among consumers, pasture systems require adjustments to supply high-quality, year-round forage. Traditional perennial cool-season pasture species do not provide sufficient growth in early spring, resulting in farmers feeding more expensive harvested forages such as hay. Winter annual forages may provide high-quality, lower-cost pasture in early spring to offset this forage deficit. An experiment conducted in New Hampshire over 3 years assessed five winter annual forages (cereal rye, barley, triticale, wheat, and hairy vetch) for spring productivity and forage quality in monocultures and in mixtures. Results suggest that barley may have the most potential for supplementing spring pastures with the fewest tradeoffs in terms of maximizing both harvest yield and nutrient value for grazing cattle to reduce feed costs and improve meat and milk production.

Technical Abstract: Annual cool season forage crops could fill gaps in spring forage availability that are typical in perennial pastures in the northeastern US. Despite their potential use, few studies have examined tradeoffs of alternative annual forages grown as monocultures or mixtures. The objectives of this study were to compare five species of winter annual forages grown as monocultures and mixtures for forage mass productivity and nutritive value and determine how these metrics change depending on harvest time. Beginning in fall 2014, plots were planted in monocultures of cereal rye (Secale cereale L.), barley (Hordeum vulgare L.), triticale [×Triticosecale Wittm. ex A. Camus (Secale × Triticum)], wheat (Triticum aestivum L.), and hairy vetch (Vicia villosa Roth). Three additional treatments included a mixture of all five species, a 14-species high diversity mix containing winter and summer annual species, and a fallow check. In late spring, sampling occurred at weekly intervals for three weeks to determine forage mass, nutritive value, and botanical composition. Forage masses of individual species were consistently greater (P < 0.05) in the monoculture treatments, compared to the mixtures. All species except hairy vetch had increased (P < 0.05), forage mass at later harvests. Digestibility parameters were inversely affected by harvest timing (P < 0.05). Barley had greater (P < 0.05) energy, and lower fiber concentrations than the other species. Results of this study suggest that barley may have the most potential for supplementing spring perennial forage production with the fewest tradeoffs in terms of maximizing both forage mass and digestibility.