Legume-based pasture options for the live cattle trade from the Australian semi-arid tropics

Abstract

The extensive beef industry in the Northern Territory has been based almost exclusively upon native grass pastures for over a century. The recent development of an export trade for live cattle of specific age, weight and type, has increased returns over chilled manufacturing beef exports and has resulted in a demand for improved pastures that can support rapid growth of young cattle. This paper compares the potential of native grass pastures, legume ley pastures and permanent sown grass-legume pastures, in a range of configurations, to meet the market demand. Results of farming systems and sown pasture management experiments conducted at the Katherine Research Station are presented. Data from these experiments and other sources are used to explore options appropriate to the new market. Particular attention has been given to the time required for weaner steers to reach export target weights of 290-300 kg/head and the flexibility of systems to seasonal and animal variability. Permanent sown pastures are sustainable at stocking rates of about 2 steers/ha, but results indicate difficulty in maintaining legume dominance in the ley pastures, particularly if the cropping frequency is reduced. A proposal to use forage crops, rather than grain crops, to deplete soil nitrogen and reduce the incidence of weeds, is discussed. We recommend that ley pastures be retained as part of the management system, despite management difficulties, as they provide higher productivity and greater flexibility for farmers to meet the market requirements.