Several abiotic and biotic factors were investigated as possible predictors of local species richness in two sub-alpine grasslands of Jenna and Belles Mountains in Northern Greece.For species richness modelling a hier...Several abiotic and biotic factors were investigated as possible predictors of local species richness in two sub-alpine grasslands of Jenna and Belles Mountains in Northern Greece.For species richness modelling a hierarchical modelling framework based on generalized additive models was adopted.The two sub-alpine grasslands differed in aspect,altitude and soil parent material(volcanic origin,mostly trachyte,and andesite(TA) for Jenna and metamorphic rocks,mostly gneiss(G) for Belles).12 fenced squared plots,16 m2 each,were used per grassland,where soil properties,herbage production,species presence and cover of grasses,legumes and forbs were estimated.Mean herbage production was significantly affected by slope and altitude,soil K content and floristic composition as expressed by an ordination axis.Soil p H,floristic composition and average herbage production were significant predictors of forbs and total species richness.For the former,soil N content and for the latter the occurrence of Agrostis capillaris,were also included as significant terms in the predictive model.Thepredictors for grasses species richness were N content,having a positive effect,and average herbage production.In all cases higher species richness was predicted for intermediate values of average herbage production.Differential responses were found between forbs and grasses.The predictors of their species richness were different while for the case of the common predictor(N) the responses of the two groups were also different(grasses species numbers increase and forbs species numbers decreased with increasing N).Maximum species richness of grasses was observed at relatively low production levels while forbs species richness maximized at relatively high production levels.展开更多
Weed control is a crucial factor for maintaining establishment and herbage production in dwarf variety of late-heading type （DL） napiergrass （Pennisetum purpureum Schumach） in southern Kyushu, Japan. This study wa...Weed control is a crucial factor for maintaining establishment and herbage production in dwarf variety of late-heading type （DL） napiergrass （Pennisetum purpureum Schumach） in southern Kyushu, Japan. This study was aimed to verify the weeding-effect on dry matter （DM） production in the farm level and to examine the effect of several weed control, i.e. mixed sowing of annual setaria （abbreviated as S）, which has no regrowth ability after stem-elongation, paper-mulching （as P） and hand-weeding （as ＋W）, compared with no-weeding （as -W） on DM yield and quality of DL napiergrass in two years. Weed control practices significantly （P 〈 0.05） promoted several plant growth attributes in DL napiergrass, compared with no-weeding both in the farm and experimental levels. Paper-mulchidng （P-W or P＋S-W） had highest yields among several practices in both years. Setaria-sowing ha a partially mitigating effect of weed damage on DM production of DL napiergrass, while additive DM gain from setaria could compensate the yield decrease in DL napiergrass and reduce herbicide cost. Neither digestibility nor crude protein was affected by any weed control in either year. Thus, paper-mulching and annual setaria-sowing could be effective alternative practices for weed control of this species.展开更多
Italian ray grass and oat are two grass species characterized by their ability to adjust tropical climate conditions. This study proposed to assess forage productivities to allow an appropriate mowing period determina...Italian ray grass and oat are two grass species characterized by their ability to adjust tropical climate conditions. This study proposed to assess forage productivities to allow an appropriate mowing period determination in their use as dairy female feed in Madagascar. A test on small plots has been set up in the southern part of the capital city Antananarivo during one dry period （4 months）. Live observations followed by laboratory proximate analyses have been performed for forage productivity and feeding value determination. Cultivated on tanety （hill）, irrigated in counter season, results show that： （I） oat higher height （H = 96.7 cm） than Italian ray grass （H= 69.4 cm） at 99 days of age; （2） similar biomass productivity; （3） dry matter yields significantly different （p = 0.05）; （4） certain similarity between dry matter yields and FMU （fodder milk unit） score evolution; （5） leafy stage of Italian ray grasses at 99 days of age; （6） mid-flowering stage for oats during the same period. Cell wall content, crude fiber and dry matter contents increased with age （p = 0.05）. Crude proteins and minerals evolved in opposite directions. Gross energy content did not present precise variation with age. This study allowed that for an acceptable quantitative and qualitative production during dry seasons, good mowing period for Italian ray grass could start at 76 days age, while oat could start being harvested at 68 days.展开更多
The Yabello rangeland is a semi-arid area in Borana, Ethiopia that is facing great degradation challenges. Increasing infestation of vegetation cover, over grazing and high seasonal variation have significantly affect...The Yabello rangeland is a semi-arid area in Borana, Ethiopia that is facing great degradation challenges. Increasing infestation of vegetation cover, over grazing and high seasonal variation have significantly affected the herbage composition and biomass in the Yabello rangeland. This study focused on assessing the effect of vegetation cover, grazing and season on both herbage composition and biomass in the Yabello rangeland. An experiment was conducted using randomized plots of 1m×1m. Sites were selected based on vegetation cover type and grazing variation, and seasonal impacts were also assessed. Data on herbage composition, height and mass with respect to those parameters were analyzed using SAS statistical software version 9.1(SAS Institute, 2001) and Microsoft Excel. A total of 26 grass species were recorded and Chloris roxburghiana Chrysopogon aucheri and Chrysopogon aucheri grass species showed the highest average single species cover height and biomass production, for all the sites among all parameters. As a result, those grass species are highly recommended for the rehabilitation of degraded rangeland in the study area. This study also showed that vegetation cover type grazing and seasonal variation were the key factors in determining herbage species composition, height and biomass production. Finally, we recommended that sustainable management which controls bush vegetation cover and balances grazing levels is essential for sustainable herbage production and biodiversity conservation in the area.展开更多
基金The Greek Ministry of Agriculture is gratefully acknowledged for their support
文摘Several abiotic and biotic factors were investigated as possible predictors of local species richness in two sub-alpine grasslands of Jenna and Belles Mountains in Northern Greece.For species richness modelling a hierarchical modelling framework based on generalized additive models was adopted.The two sub-alpine grasslands differed in aspect,altitude and soil parent material(volcanic origin,mostly trachyte,and andesite(TA) for Jenna and metamorphic rocks,mostly gneiss(G) for Belles).12 fenced squared plots,16 m2 each,were used per grassland,where soil properties,herbage production,species presence and cover of grasses,legumes and forbs were estimated.Mean herbage production was significantly affected by slope and altitude,soil K content and floristic composition as expressed by an ordination axis.Soil p H,floristic composition and average herbage production were significant predictors of forbs and total species richness.For the former,soil N content and for the latter the occurrence of Agrostis capillaris,were also included as significant terms in the predictive model.Thepredictors for grasses species richness were N content,having a positive effect,and average herbage production.In all cases higher species richness was predicted for intermediate values of average herbage production.Differential responses were found between forbs and grasses.The predictors of their species richness were different while for the case of the common predictor(N) the responses of the two groups were also different(grasses species numbers increase and forbs species numbers decreased with increasing N).Maximum species richness of grasses was observed at relatively low production levels while forbs species richness maximized at relatively high production levels.
文摘Weed control is a crucial factor for maintaining establishment and herbage production in dwarf variety of late-heading type （DL） napiergrass （Pennisetum purpureum Schumach） in southern Kyushu, Japan. This study was aimed to verify the weeding-effect on dry matter （DM） production in the farm level and to examine the effect of several weed control, i.e. mixed sowing of annual setaria （abbreviated as S）, which has no regrowth ability after stem-elongation, paper-mulching （as P） and hand-weeding （as ＋W）, compared with no-weeding （as -W） on DM yield and quality of DL napiergrass in two years. Weed control practices significantly （P 〈 0.05） promoted several plant growth attributes in DL napiergrass, compared with no-weeding both in the farm and experimental levels. Paper-mulchidng （P-W or P＋S-W） had highest yields among several practices in both years. Setaria-sowing ha a partially mitigating effect of weed damage on DM production of DL napiergrass, while additive DM gain from setaria could compensate the yield decrease in DL napiergrass and reduce herbicide cost. Neither digestibility nor crude protein was affected by any weed control in either year. Thus, paper-mulching and annual setaria-sowing could be effective alternative practices for weed control of this species.
文摘Italian ray grass and oat are two grass species characterized by their ability to adjust tropical climate conditions. This study proposed to assess forage productivities to allow an appropriate mowing period determination in their use as dairy female feed in Madagascar. A test on small plots has been set up in the southern part of the capital city Antananarivo during one dry period （4 months）. Live observations followed by laboratory proximate analyses have been performed for forage productivity and feeding value determination. Cultivated on tanety （hill）, irrigated in counter season, results show that： （I） oat higher height （H = 96.7 cm） than Italian ray grass （H= 69.4 cm） at 99 days of age; （2） similar biomass productivity; （3） dry matter yields significantly different （p = 0.05）; （4） certain similarity between dry matter yields and FMU （fodder milk unit） score evolution; （5） leafy stage of Italian ray grasses at 99 days of age; （6） mid-flowering stage for oats during the same period. Cell wall content, crude fiber and dry matter contents increased with age （p = 0.05）. Crude proteins and minerals evolved in opposite directions. Gross energy content did not present precise variation with age. This study allowed that for an acceptable quantitative and qualitative production during dry seasons, good mowing period for Italian ray grass could start at 76 days age, while oat could start being harvested at 68 days.
基金The Funding Source Science and Technology Partnership Program,Ministry of Science and Technology of China(KY201702010)The China-Africa Joint Research Center Project of the Chines Academy of Science(SAJC201610).
文摘The Yabello rangeland is a semi-arid area in Borana, Ethiopia that is facing great degradation challenges. Increasing infestation of vegetation cover, over grazing and high seasonal variation have significantly affected the herbage composition and biomass in the Yabello rangeland. This study focused on assessing the effect of vegetation cover, grazing and season on both herbage composition and biomass in the Yabello rangeland. An experiment was conducted using randomized plots of 1m×1m. Sites were selected based on vegetation cover type and grazing variation, and seasonal impacts were also assessed. Data on herbage composition, height and mass with respect to those parameters were analyzed using SAS statistical software version 9.1(SAS Institute, 2001) and Microsoft Excel. A total of 26 grass species were recorded and Chloris roxburghiana Chrysopogon aucheri and Chrysopogon aucheri grass species showed the highest average single species cover height and biomass production, for all the sites among all parameters. As a result, those grass species are highly recommended for the rehabilitation of degraded rangeland in the study area. This study also showed that vegetation cover type grazing and seasonal variation were the key factors in determining herbage species composition, height and biomass production. Finally, we recommended that sustainable management which controls bush vegetation cover and balances grazing levels is essential for sustainable herbage production and biodiversity conservation in the area.
