Tagasaste silvopastures in steep-hill country. 1. Tagasaste edible dry-matter production and nutritive value
Katherine Tozer
A * , Grant Douglas B , Emma Noakes C , Rose Greenfield A and Catherine Cameron A
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations
A AgResearch, Private Bag 3123, Hamilton 3240, New Zealand.
B GBDScience, Church Street, Palmerston North 4410, New Zealand.
C AgResearch, Private Bag 11008, Palmerston North 4410, New Zealand.
Crop & Pasture Science 74(9) 871-887 https://doi.org/10.1071/CP22221
Submitted: 27 June 2022 Accepted: 7 January 2023 Published: 7 March 2023
© 2023 The Author(s) (or their employer(s)). Published by CSIRO Publishing. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC-ND)
Abstract
Context: Tagasaste (Cytisus proliferus) has potential to supplement pasture production in steep-hill country and increase pasture resilience.
Aims: To (1) quantify production of edible dry matter (EDM) of pruned 2-year-old tagasaste shrubs and branches from unpruned 10-year-old tagasaste trees, and (2) determine the effect of proximity of the 10-year-old tagasaste trees on selected pasture species established as spaced transplants.
Methods: A site was established on the eastern coast of the North Island of New Zealand on steep-hill country (>20° slope). Tagasaste and pasture species production was measured over 3 years.
Results: Tagasaste shrubs produced an average of 2.7 kg EDM shrub−1 year−1 and a tree branch produced 129 g EDM year−1. The metabolisable energy content of tagasaste branches averaged 10.0 MJ kg EDM−1, the crude protein content ranged from 18% to 27% and neutral detergent fibre content averaged 39%. Branch diameter and length were poor predictors of EDM branch−1. There was no effect of increasing proximity to tagasaste on DM production of the resident pasture. Effects of increasing proximity to tagasaste on the growth and survival of selected pasture species are reported in a companion paper.
Conclusions: Edible-DM production was much greater from shrubs than tree branches and it was not possible to predict branch EDM from branch diameter or length.
Implications: A tagasaste silvopasture is likely to be more productive if tagasaste is managed for grazing in situ than if using mature trees for harvesting of branches for browse.
Keywords: browse feed, forage shrubs, forage trees, hill country, pasture–tree system, tagasaste silvopasture, tree lucerne, woody forages.
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