Graze to grain—measuring and modelling the effects of grazed pasture leys on soil nitrogen and sorghum yield on a Vertosol soil in the Australian subtropics
A. M. Whitbread A C and R. L. Clem BA CSIRO Sustainable Ecosystems/APSRU, 306 Carmody Road, St Lucia, Qld 4067, Australia.
B Queensland Department of Primary Industries, Gympie, Qld 4570, Australia.
C Corresponding author. Email: anthony.whitbread@csiro.au
Australian Journal of Agricultural Research 57(5) 489-500 https://doi.org/10.1071/AR05189
Submitted: 27 May 2005 Accepted: 3 January 2006 Published: 17 May 2006
Abstract
Highly productive sown pasture systems can result in high growth rates of beef cattle and lead to increases in soil nitrogen and the production of subsequent crops. The nitrogen dynamics and growth of grain sorghum following grazed annual legume leys or a grass pasture were investigated in a no-till system in the South Burnett district of Queensland. Two years of the tropical legumes Macrotyloma daltonii and Vigna trilobata (both self regenerating annual legumes) and Lablab purpureus (a resown annual legume) resulted in soil nitrate N (0–0.9 m depth), at sorghum sowing, ranging from 35 to 86 kg/ha compared with 4 kg/ha after pure grass pastures. Average grain sorghum production in the 4 cropping seasons following the grazed legume leys ranged from 2651 to 4012 kg/ha. Following the grass pasture, grain sorghum production in the first and second year was <1900 kg/ha and by the third year grain yield was comparable to the legume systems. Simulation studies utilising the farming systems model APSIM indicated that the soil N and water dynamics following 2-year ley phases could be closely represented over 4 years and the prediction of sorghum growth during this time was reasonable. In simulated unfertilised sorghum crops grown from 1954 to 2004, grain yield did not exceed 1500 kg/ha in 50% of seasons following a grass pasture, while following 2-year legume leys, grain exceeded 3000 kg/ha in 80% of seasons. It was concluded that mixed farming systems that utilise short term legume-based pastures for beef production in rotation with crop production enterprises can be highly productive.
Additional keywords: ley legumes, APSIM, modelling, simulation, mixed farming systems.
Acknowledgments
The financial support of ACIAR Project AS2/96/149 ‘Tropical Forage and Ley Legume Technology for Sustainable Grazing and Cropping Systems in Southern Africa’ and the support of the project leader Dr Bruce Pengelly is gratefully acknowledged. Mrs Cristine Hall, Mr John Lawrence, and Mr Lachlan Blair are thanked for their professional technical assistance. Dr Merv Probert’s suggestions on earlier drafts of the paper were gratefully received.
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