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Variation in seasonal stocking rate and the dynamics of Lotononis bainesii in Digitaria decumbens pastures

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 March 2009

H. Fujita  and
L. R. Humphreys
H. Fujita
Affiliation:
Department of Agriculture, University of Queensland, St Lucia, Australia
L. R. Humphreys
Affiliation:
Department of Agriculture, University of Queensland, St Lucia, Australia
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Summary

Pastures of Digitaria decumbens (pangola grass) previously oversown with Lotononis bainesii at Mount Cotton, south-east Queensland, Australia, were grazed by sheep for 3 years (1985–87), using a factorial combination of seasonal variations in stocking rate.

Lotononis behaved as a short-lived plant with a mean half-life of 4·2 months (range 1·6–10·3); rate of mortality was positively related to initial seedling density. The proportion of lotononis remained very low for the first 2 years of the experiment, when conditions were unsuitable for large-scale seedling regeneration, which was also limited by the hardness of the seed reserves. Subsequently, lotononis regenerated well in treatments which combined the following features: (i) light grazing (5 sheep/ha) during the main flowering period of spring-early summer, (ii) heavy short-duration grazing in mid-summer to create a ‘gap’ and (iii) medium or heavy (18 or 27 sheep/ha) grazing during late summer-autumn to reduce competition from pangola grass.

The ecological niche of lotononis and the possible use of complementary pastures are discussed.

Type
Crops and Soils
Information
The Journal of Agricultural Science , Volume 118 , Issue 1 , February 1992 , pp. 47 - 53
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1992

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