Doğal florada yetişen sarıçiçekli gazal boynuzu (Lotus corniculatus L.) ve dar yapraklı gazal boynuzunun (Lotus tenuis Waldst. & Kit.) toprak tercihleri, komşu bitkileri ve yem değerleri

In this study, soil preferences of wild birdsfoot trefoil (Lotus corniculatus L.) and narrowleaf birdsfoot trefoil (L tenuis Waldst. & Kit.) species growing in natural flora of the Black Sea Region (Turkey) and the plant species which they interact with, as well as their feed values were investigated. Dominant forage species that interact with L. corniculatus and L. tenuis were determined by the visual estimation method at 126 and 86 locations, respectively, and also seed and soil samples from each location were collected. L. corniculatus preferred soils having higher lime (90.9 vs. 66.4 g kg-1, P=0.003), pH (7.41 vs. 7.14, P=0.001) and containing lower organic matter (20.0 vs. 26.8 g kg-1, P=0.001) compared to L. tenuis. L. corniculatus was neighbor to 89 different species (20.2% legume, 22.5% grass and 57.3% others), whereas L. tenuis was neighbor to 61 different species (41.0% legume, 19.7% grass and 39.3% others). The difference between two species in terms of the frequencies of neighbor plant families was significant (2=10.814, P=0.004). Dominant plant species growing in interaction with these Lotus species were Medicago lupulina, Trifolium pratense, Trifolium repens, Cynodon dactylon, Lolium perenne and Plantago lanceolata. Dactylis glomerata was also neighbor with high frequency to L. corniculatus. L. tenuis had high phosphorus, metabolizable energy and relative feed value, and lower acid and neutral detergent fiber contents. As a result, in the artificial pasture establishments or the improvement of natural rangelands, the aforementioned species growing in harmony in natural environment and exhibiting positive interaction with Lotus species studied should be preferred

Ecotype Traits of the Natural Populations of the Birdsfoot Trefoil (Lotus corniculatus) in Association with the Geographical Parameters of the Sampling Sites

Birdsfoot trefoil, which is native to Turkish flora, is the most valuable and common Lotus species in Turkey. However, existing information on the ecology, distribution, and plant traits of the Birdsfoot trefoil is scant for the natural flora of Turkey. Therefore, seeds from 126 wild birdsfoot trefoil (WBT) populations were collected from plants spontaneously occurring in natural pasture and rangelands located (altitudes ranged from 5 to 2193 m a.s.l.) in the Black Sea Region of Turkey. These populations were grown under the same ecological conditions in 2010 and 2011 to determine the ecotype traits of the WBT and the relationships between these traits and the geographical features of the locations. The WBT was present (1-25% of botanical composition) in all ranges of altitude, although there was an increase in the presence and frequency of WBT with increasing altitude until 1000 m a.s.l. There were negative correlations between some traits (dry matter and seed yields, morphologic, and also root and crown-rot resistant traits) and altitude at which the seeds were collected. The data revealed that there was evidence of considerable inherent variations in all traits and thus there was a huge genetic diversity in the region. When populations were compared for agronomic and morphologic traits, the best populations were between altitudes of 251 and 500 m. It was observed that all populations had a spreading growth habit, except for 05TA01, 05TA02, and 60ER01 (semi-erect) and 60TU02 (semi-spreading). The results suggested that new grazing, forage types, and disease resistant WBT varieties may be bred from the studied populations

Geographical variation in nutrient composition of Lotus tenuis (Waldst. &Kit.) populations from seeds collected from different locations

To investigate the effect of seed origin on the nutritive value of narrowleaf birdsfoot trefoil (NBT, Lotus tenuis Waldst.&Kit.), seeds of 86 NBT populations were collected from plants spontaneously occurring in natural pastures and rangelands located at different geographical gradients of the Black Sea Region, Turkey. Some nutrient contents of these populations regrown under the same conditions were determined. Minimum and maximum values with regard to the crude protein (CP), acid detergent fiber (ADF), neutral detergent fiber (NDF), Ca, P, Mg, K and condensed tannin contents, relative feed value, Ca P-1 and K (Ca+Mg)-1 ratios were found as 176.83 and 238.87, 201.00 and 351.61, 307.19 and 435.48, 15.01 and 21.60, 2.18 and 3.77, 3.03 and 4.02, 8.43 and 16.69, 20.00 and 31.50 g kg-1 dry matter, 189.70 and 263.41, 4.73 and 9.57, 0.35 and 0.88, respectively. The effects of seed genotype from different altitudes (Ca P-1), latitudes (digestible dry matter and ADF) and longitudes (CP and Mg) on some nutrient contents and feed values were found significant (P<0.05). The correlations between altitude and NDF, P and Mg or between latitude and P and Mg contents of populations were significant. There were no specific trends in chemical composition and the nutritive value of tested NBT populations due to geographical variation. Thus, the results suggested that all studied geographical populations can be selected to obtain the nutritionally superior forage

Geographical Variation in Nutrient Composition of Lotus tenuis (Waldst.&Kit.) Populations from Seeds Collected from

To investigate the effect of seed origin on the nutritive value of narrowleaf birdsfoot trefoil (NBT, Lotus tenuis Waldst.&amp;Kit.), seeds of 86 NBT populations were collected from plants spontaneously occurring in natural pastures and rangelands located at different geographical gradients of the Black Sea Region, Turkey. Some nutrient contents of these populations regrown under the same conditions were determined. Minimum and maximum values with regard to the crude protein (CP), acid detergent fiber (ADF), neutral detergent fiber (NDF), Ca, P, Mg, K and condensed tannin contents, relative feed value, Ca P-1 and K (Ca+Mg)-1 ratios were found as 176.83 and 238.87, 201.00 and 351.61, 307.19 and 435.48, 15.01 and 21.60, 2.18 and 3.77, 3.03 and 4.02, 8.43 and 16.69, 20.00 and 31.50 g kg-1 dry matter, 189.70 and 263.41, 4.73 and 9.57, 0.35 and 0.88, respectively. The effects of seed genotype from different altitudes (Ca P-1), latitudes (digestible dry matter and ADF) and longitudes (CP and Mg) on some nutrient contents and feed values were found significant (<0.05). The correlations between altitude and NDF, P and Mg or between latitude and P and Mg contents of populations were significant. There were no specific trends in chemical composition and the nutritive value of tested NBT populations due to geographical variation. Thus, the results suggested that all studied geographical populations can be selected to obtain the nutritionally superior forageTo investigate the effect of seed origin on the nutritive value of narrowleaf birdsfoot trefoil (NBT, Lotus tenuis Waldst.&amp;Kit.), seeds of 86 NBT populations were collected from plants spontaneously occurring in natural pastures and rangelands located at different geographical gradients of the Black Sea Region, Turkey. Some nutrient contents of these populations regrown under the same conditions were determined. Minimum and maximum values with regard to the crude protein (CP), acid detergent fiber (ADF), neutral detergent fiber (NDF), Ca, P, Mg, K and condensed tannin contents, relative feed value, Ca P-1 and K (Ca+Mg)-1 ratios were found as 176.83 and 238.87, 201.00 and 351.61, 307.19 and 435.48, 15.01 and 21.60, 2.18 and 3.77, 3.03 and 4.02, 8.43 and 16.69, 20.00 and 31.50 g kg-1 dry matter, 189.70 and 263.41, 4.73 and 9.57, 0.35 and 0.88, respectively. The effects of seed genotype from different altitudes (Ca P-1), latitudes (digestible dry matter and ADF) and longitudes (CP and Mg) on some nutrient contents and feed values were found significant (<0.05). The correlations between altitude and NDF, P and Mg or between latitude and P and Mg contents of populations were significant. There were no specific trends in chemical composition and the nutritive value of tested NBT populations due to geographical variation. Thus, the results suggested that all studied geographical populations can be selected to obtain the nutritionally superior forag

Ecotype traits of the natural populations of the birdsfoot trefoil (lotus corniculatus) in association with the geographical parameters of the sampling sites

Birdsfoot trefoil, which is native to Turkish flora, is the most valuable and common Lotus species in Turkey. However, existing information on the ecology, distribution, and plant traits of the Birdsfoot trefoil is scant for the natural flora of Turkey. Therefore, seeds from 126 wild birdsfoot trefoil (WBT) populations were collected from plants spontaneously occurring in natural pasture and rangelands located (altitudes ranged from 5 to 2193 m a.s.l.) in the Black Sea Region of Turkey. These populations were grown under the same ecological conditions in 2010 and 2011 to determine the ecotype traits of the WBT and the relationships between these traits and the geographical features of the locations. The WBT was present (1-25% of botanical composition) in all ranges of altitude, although there was an increase in the presence and frequency of WBT with increasing altitude until 1000 m a.s.l. There were negative correlations between some traits (dry matter and seed yields, morphologic, and also root and crown-rot resistant traits) and altitude at which the seeds were collected. The data revealed that there was evidence of considerable inherent variations in all traits and thus there was a huge genetic diversity in the region. When populations were compared for agronomic and morphologic traits, the best populations were between altitudes of 251 and 500 m. It was observed that all populations had a spreading growth habit, except for 05TA01, 05TA02, and 60ER01 (semi-erect) and 60TU02 (semi-spreading). The results suggested that new grazing, forage types, and disease resistant WBT varieties may be bred from the studied populations

Some Properties of Rangelands in Bartın Province

This study was conducted to determine some vegetation characters of 15 village rangelands in Bartın province in 2016. In the study, modified wheel point method with loop was used. Totally 128 plant species were determined in studied rangelands. This plant species were also divided into 3 different successional groups: i) 18 species were decreases, ii) 10 species were increasers, 100 species were invaders (89 species were herbaceous and 11 species were shrubs-trees). In the experiment rangelands, plant coverage rate was 93.57%. Considering the different successional groups, which had influential effect to pasture quality, decreasers, increasers, and invaders had 15.52%, 15.59% and 68.89%, respectively. The results from the present study indicated that 1, 1, 6 and 7 rangelands are “Very good”, Good”, “Fair” and “Poor” conditions based on the rangeland condition classes, respectively. On the other hand, 14 and 1 rangelands were found as “Healthy” and “Unhealthy” in health categories. There were significant correlations between plant cover and soil depth (r=0.553*) and grazing level and soil compaction (r=0.587*) in studied rangelands. According to these results half of the rangelands must be used carefully, while other half are need improving immediately

Genetic potential of wild birdsfoot trefoil (Lotus corniculatus L.) seeds collected from different geographical locations regarding to nutrient composition and nutritive value

To investigate the effects of seed origin on the nutrient content and nutritive value of birdsfoot trefoil (Lotus corniculatus L.), seeds of wild birdsfoot trefoil (WBT) communities were collected from plants spontaneously occurring in pasture, rangelands and silvopastoral areas located at four altitudes, two latitudes and eight longitudes ranges of the Black Sea Region, Turkey. The relative feed value (RFV) and metabolizable energy (ME), crude protein (CP), neutral detergent fiber (NDF), acid detergent fiber (ADF), calcium (Ca), phosphorus (P), magnesium (Mg), potassium (K) and condensed tannins (CT) contents, K/(Ca ? Mg) and Ca/P ratios of 126 populations from these seeds collected from different locations and grown under the same climatic conditions were determined. Altitude was significantly correlated with the abundance of WBT (r2 = 0.71). The abundance of population (percentage of WBT populations) in the silvopastoral areas (58.4 %) was higher than that in upland (5.6 %), pasture (16.7 %) and rangeland (19.3 %). The ME, RFV and ADF, NDF, P, K and CT contents of populations were not influenced by altitudinal and geographical gradients. There were obvious effects of altitude on Ca and Mg, of latitude on Ca and of longitude on CP, Ca and Mg, and also on Ca/P and K/(Ca ? Mg) ratios. This study provided information on genetic potentials of WBT populations in terms of nutritional properties. The results indicated that seeds selected from the populations that have high feed value can be used to improve the studied areas or artificial pasture and agroforest landscapes

Mera Yabancı Otlarının Kontrolünde Keçilerin Kullanımı

Meraların ekonomik değerlerini azaltan yabancı otlarla mücadele kaçınılmaz bir zorunluluktur. Günümüzde, yabancı ot mücadelesi kapsamında başvurulan herbisit kullanımı ve mekanik mücadele gibi uygulamaların gittikçe artan maliyetleri, uygulamalarında karşılaşılan çeşitli zorluklar ve ekosisteme olan olumsuz etkileri nedeniyle, biyolojik mücadele ajanı olarak keçilerin kullanımı gittikçe daha fazla popülerlik kazanmaktadır. Keçiler, ülkemiz meralarında en fazla problem oluşturan başta Centaurea, Cirsium ve Rumex cinslerine ait otsu türler ile Rubus, Rosa ve Genista cinslerine ait çalılar olmak üzere birçok yabancı ot türleri ile mücadeleyi en ekonomik bir şekilde gerçekleştirebilecek ve hatta bu mücadeleyi ekonomik kazanca dönüştürebilecek çevre dostu canlılardır. Keçiler, otlamadaki farklı bitki tercihleri nedeniyle diğer hayvan türleri ile birlikte aynı merada otlatılmaları durumunda mera vejetasyonlarının yabancı otlara karşı rekabet güçlerini artırmaları yanında meraya da ek bir yük getirmemekte veya çok az yük getirmektedir. Keçilerin, sığırlar ve atlar ile birlikte otlatılmaları sürünün parazit problemlerini azaltıcı etkiye de sahip olabilmektedir. Bozulan meralarımızın bitki kompozisyonlarının istenilen yönde değişmesi ve buna bağlı olarak da meralarımızın üretim güçlerinin artırılmasına olumlu katkılarda bulunabilen keçilerin, bir şekilde mera amenajman planlarında daha fazla yer almaları önemlidir. Bu derlemede, keçilerin otlama davranışları ile mera amenajmanı ve ıslahı çalışmalarındaki etkinliği değerlendirilmiştir

Impacts of Livestock Grazing and Topography on Vegetation Cover and Structure in Natural Rangelands

This study was conducted to determine some vegetation characters of 12 natural rangelands in Kastamonu province in 2014. In the study, modified wheel point method with loop was used. Totally 103 plant species were determined in studied rangelands. This plant species were also divided into 3 different successional groups: i) 13 species were decreases, ii) 14 species were increasers, and 76 species were invaders. In the experiment rangelands, plant coverage rate was 83.34%. Considering the different successional groups, which had influential effect to pasture quality, decreasers, increasers, and invaders had 13.35%, 29.15% and 57.50%, respectively. The results from the present study indicated that 1 rangeland are “Good”, 5 rangelands are “Fair” and 6 rangeland are “Poor” conditions based on the rangeland condition classes. On the other hand, 11 and 1 rangelands were found as “Healthy” and “Risky” in health categories. According to these results half of the rangelands must be used carefully, while other half are need improving immediately. There were significant correlations between grazing level and livestock number (r=0.608*) and soil compaction (r=0.590*) and decreaser+increaser plant ratio (r=-0.624*); between livestock number and plant cover (r=-0.581*) and soil erosion (r=0.582*); between plant cover and soil erosion (r=-0.515, Sign. 0.086); between the altitude and area of rangelands (r=-0.775**); between plant cover and decreaser+increaser plant ratio (r=0.594*)

Mera yabancı otlarının kontrolünde keçilerin kullanımı

Meraların ekonomik değerlerini azaltan yabancı otlarla mücadele kaçınılmaz bir zorunluluktur. Günümüzde, yabancı ot mücadelesi kapsamında başvurulan herbisit kullanımı ve mekanik mücadele gibi uygulamaların gittikçe artan maliyetleri, uygulamalarında karşılaşılan çeşitli zorluklar ve ekosisteme olan olumsuz etkileri nedeniyle, biyolojik mücadele ajanı olarak keçilerin kullanımı gittikçe daha fazla popülerlik kazanmaktadır. Keçiler, ülkemiz meralarında en fazla problem oluşturan başta Centaurea, Cirsium ve Rumex cinslerine ait otsu türler ile Rubus, Rosa ve Genista cinslerine ait çalılar olmak üzere birçok yabancı ot türleri ile mücadeleyi en ekonomik bir şekilde gerçekleştirebilecek ve hatta bu mücadeleyi ekonomik kazanca dönüştürebilecek çevre dostu canlılardır. Keçiler, otlamadaki farklı bitki tercihleri nedeniyle diğer hayvan türleri ile birlikte aynı merada otlatılmaları durumunda mera vejetasyonlarının yabancı otlara karşı rekabet güçlerini artırmaları yanında meraya da ek bir yük getirmemekte veya çok az yük getirmektedir. Keçilerin, sığırlar ve atlar ile birlikte otlatılmaları sürünün parazit problemlerini azaltıcı etkiye de sahip olabilmektedir. Bozulan meralarımızın bitki kompozisyonlarının istenilen yönde değişmesi ve buna bağlı olarak da meralarımızın üretim güçlerinin artırılmasına olumlu katkılarda bulunabilen keçilerin, bir şekilde mera amenajman planlarında daha fazla yer almaları önemlidir. Bu derlemede, keçilerin otlama davranışları ile mera amenajmanı ve ıslahı çalışmalarındaki etkinliği değerlendirilmiştir