Introduction Conclusions References

1. To study the potential for complementarity in nitrogen acquisition from different soil depths, we injected an isotope tracer ( 15 NH 4 Cl) at 5 and 20 cm depths in plant communities containing Achillea millefolium L. and Festuca ovina L. or Phleum pratense L. and Trifolium pratense L. in monocultures and two-species mixtures. 2. In monoculture, Festuca and Phleum took up tracer at 5 and 20 c...

Legume species promote productivity and increase the digestibility of herbage in grasslands. Considerable experimental data also indicate that communities with legumes produce more above-ground biomass than is expected from monocultures. While it has been attributed to N facilitation, evidence to identify the mechanisms involved is still lacking and the role of complementarity in soil water acq...

Little is known about phosphorus metabolism in plants suffering from moisture stress. Several metabolic processes, which are completely dependent upon phosphorylated intermediates, are noticeably affected by moisture stress conditions. Photosynthetic rate decreases markedly in severely stressed plants (13). Rate of fixation of CO2 in the dark decreases (12). Above a diffusion pressure deficit (...

Groups of six to nine Merino Summary lambs were weaned in September (May drop) and December (September drop) on to three types of irrigated perennial pastureperennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne), Ladino white clover (Trifolium repens) and lucerne (Medicago sativa), and one irrigated annual pasture-subterranean clover ( Trifolium subterraneum) . The weight gain of the weaners on white clover was s...

In 12 experiments in which white (Trifolium repens), red (Trifolium pratense) or Persian (Trifolium resupinatum) clovers, either with or without maize (Zea mays) silage, were fed to lactating dairy cows in northern Victoria, maize silage was shown to significantly (P < 0.01) reduce the incidence of bloat; 126 cases of bloat were recorded where the clovers were fed alone and only 3 cases were ob...