Grazing trials on the Wallum of south-eastern Queensland. 1. A comparison of four pastures

Abstract

Four pastures, based respectively on Paspalm dilatatum, P. commersonii, P. plicatulum, and Digitaria decumbens, were grazed by beef cattle at Beerwah from 1959 to 1965. Mean annual liveweight gain was 244 lb an acre, and the best pastures produced 262 lb an acre. The pattern of liveweight change was of gain in summer and early autumn (mean 0.99 !b a head a day), no change in late autumn and winter, and a higher rate of gain in spring and early summer (mean 1.55 lb a day). This pattern was related partly to the changing condition of the pasture and partly to animal factors. Only on the Paspalum plicatulum pasture was there a weight loss in winter. The legume content of the pastures was low, only 13 per cent, and this had a major influence on the results. The main legumes were Desmodium uncinatum, Lotononis bainesii, and Trifolium repens. Nitrogen content of the pastures was below 1 per cent in autumn and winter, and at these seasons the quantity of digestible crude protein was probably insufficient to maintain animals in positive nitrogen balance. Quality improved in spring, and, although the total available dry matter was low, animals thrived at that time. It seems clear that the measurements made on these pastures did not fully reflect the diet of the grazing animals.