Pasture quality and animal performance over late spring and summer

B.M. Butler, C.J. Hoogendoorn and M.A Richardson

Agronomy Department Massey University, Palmerston North and Grasslands Division DSIR, Kaikohe

Proceedings of the New Zealand Society of Animal Production. 1987, 47: 31-33

Both the herbage intake and milk production of dairy cows and the liveweight gain of lambs were better related to leaf allowance than to green or total herbage allowance. With lambs, however, there were differences in liveweight gain at similar leaf allowances between experimental periods. These were largely accounted for by the percentage of dead herbage in the pasture.

It is suggested that differences in animal performance over late spring and summer may be influenced by the level of leaf mass and dead matter in pasture but not the level of green grass stem.

Keywords: NZSAPAB; Dairy cows; weaned lambs; herbage intake; milk production; liveweight gain; leaf allowance; pasture quality