Micro-mineral profile in different grassland species

The aim was to investigate the micro-mineral profile of herbage as affected by grassland species, cutting time and seasonality and in relation to dairy cow requirements. The different grassland species were grown and harvested in mixtures with one grass and one legume for two growing seasons. The species turned out to have very individual mineral profiles, not influenced by year. Among the legumes red clover (Trifolium pratense) had high concentrations of Co, Cu and Zn, white clover (Trifolium repens) of Mn and Fe, lucerne (Medicago sativa) of Se and lotus (Lotus corniculatus) of Co, Mn, Zn and Fe. Among the grasses perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne) generally had the highest concentrations of all the micro-minerals. Hybrid ryegrass (Lolium hybridum) had slightly lower concentrations than perennial ryegrass for all minerals. Meadow fescue (Festuca pratensis) had lower concentrations still, and timothy (Phleum pratense) had, with the exception of Zn, the lowest concentrations. In general, the mineral concentrations were higher in summer than in spring growth. During the growth Cu, Zn and Fe concentrations decreased, whereas Co, Se and Mg were unaffected. It was concluded that a mixture of red clover and perennial ryegrass had the best profile of micro-minerals for cattle feeding

Vitamin and mineral content and feeding value of different legumes and grass species grown in seven legume-grass mixtures

The aim was to examine if including a range of grassland species could help to balance the diet on organic dairy farms compared with traditional mixtures. Four different grass species and four legume species were grown and harvested in mixtures with one grass and one legume for two growing seasons. The species turned out to have very individual mineral, vitamin and fiber profiles and organic matter digestibility, not influenced by year. Among the legumes red clover (Trifolium pratense) and white clover (Trifolium repens) had the highest feeding value and red clover had further a high content of Co, Cu and Zn. Lucerne (Medicago sativa) had as red clover a high growth potential in mixture but had in general a low content of macro and micro minerals with exception of Se. Lotus (Lotus corniculatus) had a low competitive strength, and the effect of the whole herbage was therefore limited even that the content of the vitamins were high. Among the grasses perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne) generally had the highest feeding value, and a higher content of the macro and micro minerals and of vitamins as well than the other grasses (hybrid ryegrass (Lolium hybridum), meadow fescue (Festuca pratensis) and timothy (Phleum pratense)). The only exception was meadow fescue, which had a higher content of alfa-tocopherol

Performance and parasitosis in heifers grazing mixed with sows

The aim of the study was to investigate the effect of mixed grazing with first season heifers and pregnant sows on animal performance, gastro-intestinal helminths, pasture quality and sward structure during three grazing seasons. This presentation will focus on results from 1999, primarily regarding performance and parasitosis in heifers. There have been no earlier reports on such mixed grazing systems. Three grazing systems were studied in replicate: 1) Heifers grazing alone; 2) sows grazing alone; 3) heifers grazing together with sows. The heifers were inoculated with low doses of infective O.ostertagi larvae at turn-out. Continuous grazing was practised in paddocks regulated in size according to herbage allowance. Individual weight gain, faecal egg output and serum pepsinogen concentrations - as indicator of O.ostertagi infection - were measured fortnightly. The sward structure and quality were greatly influenced by the applied grazing system. The average daily gain of the heifers was significantly higher (P=0.0006) when grazing together with sows (1,121±45 g/day, n=16) than when grazing alone (869±48 g/day, n=14). The mean pepsinogen concentrations were elevated in the heifers grazing alone. It is concluded, that weight gains were significantly better and infection levels with O.ostertagi were significantly reduced in heifers grazing together with sows

Dyrkning af kløvergræs

Vitaminer, mineraler og foderværdi i forskellige græsmarksarter samt bælgplanternes N-dynamik samt kløvertræthe