Beef production from pasture and forage oats on the Northern Tablelands of New South Wales

Abstract

To overcome a winter-sp nes, New South Wales forage oats were sown into forty-five per cent of improved pasture (mainly Phalaris tuberosa and Trifolium repens) areas and the liveweight gains of weaner cattle grazing these areas from March to October were compared with those grazing pasture only. Three methods for managing the grazing of the forage oats were compared in 1971, and in 1972 the effect of an oat grain supplement on liveweight gain of cattle grazing either pasture only or pasture and forage oats was measured. Weaners did not reach 270 kg by October, the objective mean liveweight, in any of the treatments or years. Neither did forage oats significantly increase beef production from pasture, but when properly managed did reduce the need for hay supplements to maintain weaner liveweight during winter. Although the stocking rate of 2.82 weaners ha-1 from March to October was apparently too high in 1971 to allow adequate liveweight gains, the forage oats and pasture were best utilized by allowing weaners to graze freely between paddocks. Oat grain supplements in 1972 did improve weaners' liveweights (at intakes of 1 .O-2.0 per cent liveweight) but reduced the relative economic return from either the pasture or pasture and forage oat areas. We concluded from the study that forage oats sown into improved pasture areas did not increase feed availability in the latter part of the feed-gap nor reliably increase beef production from pasture at the stocking rate studied.