Soil loss through wind and water erosion is an ongoing problem in semiarid regions. A thin layer of top soil loss over a hectare of cropland could be corresponding to tons of productive soil loss per hectare. The objectives of this study were to evaluate the influence of beef feedlot manure, tillage and legume grass mixtures on changes in soil quality and nutrient components. The study was init...

One member of each of three pairs of monozygous twin dairy cows was fed freshly cut Glycine javanica and kikuyu-grass pasture ad libitum while the co-twins were fed lucerne hay ad libitum and a concentrate mixture. The mean daily digestible organic matter and digestible crude protein intakes for the cows fed pasture were 7.0 kg and 1.35 kg, and for the cows fed hay and concentrates were 10.2 kg...

Grass pea (Lathyrus sativus L.) has great agronomic potential as grain and forage legume, and presently is considered as a model crop for sustainable agriculture. However, the development into an important food legume has been hindered by the presence of the neurotoxic amino acid β-N-Oxalyl-α, β-diaminopropionic acid (β-ODAP). Recent studies reported that homoarginine (Har) can counteract this ...

Soil food webs comprise a multitude of trophic interactions that can affect the composition and productivity of plant communities. Belowground predators feeding on microbial grazers like Collembola could decelerate nutrient mineralization by reducing microbial turnover in the soil, which in turn could negatively influence plant growth. However, empirical evidences for the ecological significanc...

Grass and legume mixtures work well, but there are no data on the mixed planting of desho grass (Pennisetum glaucifolium) Vicia species. A study was conducted to investigate whether forage dry matter yield (DMY) quality can be improved by growing species in with grass. The experimental layout followed a randomized complete block design four replications, where treatments consisted pure stands t...

Interseeding legumes into grass-dominated stands can benefit pasture and hay producers by increasing the yield and quality of forage they produce and reducing their need for inputs of nitrogen fertilizer. The challenge is to get the legumes established given the competition from existing vegetation. This study confirmed that suppressing the grasses with glyphosate prior to seeding results in th...

A nineteen year trial at Lake Tekapo compared the longer term trends of over-drilling legume and grasses into either previous undeveloped tussock country or following a previous legume phase. Tall oat grass (from summer sowing) and cocksfoot (from spring sowing) were the most successful of the sown grasses. They remained a low proportion of the swards but greater with prior herbicide treatment,...

Soil contamination by petroleum hydrocarbons is a global problem. Phytoremediation by plants and their associated microorganisms is a cost-effective strategy to degrade soil contaminants. In boreal regions the cool climate limits the efficiency of phytoremediation. The planting of oil-tolerant perennial crops, especially legumes, in oil-contaminated soil holds promise for great economic benefit...

Mixed-species grassland containing legumes were suggested to increase yield compared monocultures. Furthermore, some be able sustain growth, even under drought conditions. The first aim of the current study was measure if multispecies with is also more productive when their N input due symbiotic N2 fixation taken into account. Our second determine benefit grass–legume mixtures in terms dry matt...