Production, Crude Protein, and Use of 11 Irrigated Grasses and Alfalfa-Grass Combinations on Clay Soils in Western South Dakota

Abstract

Livestock production in western South Dakota and other portions of the Northern Great Plains is a primary source of agricultural income. Maximum sustained livestock numbers are directly related to adequate forage production. Prior to recent advances in agricultural technology and application, maintenance of livestock numbers was difficult in periods of drought or heavy snow f all. With the advent of mechanized farming equipment, increased acreages of irrigated land, improved forage varieties, and better management practices, much has been done to increase and stabilize forage production, thereby stabilizing livestock production. Some portions of the region, including the Belle Fourche Irrigation Project, have great potential f or producing sustained abundant forage as hay , silage, and/or summer pasture. Although an estimated two-thirds of the irrigable land on the Project currently is devoted to forage production, little information is available concerning introduced grass yields, persistence, quality , and regrow the characteristics on irrigated Pierre Clay soils. This lack of information prompted a study to evaluate several characteristics of 11 common grasses grow n without nitrogen, with commercial nitrogen, and with alfalfa