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Impact of the spatial scale of grass–legume mixtures on sheep grazing behaviour, preference and intake, and subsequent effects on pasture

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  03 April 2012

J. M. Sharp ,
G. R. Edwards  and
M. J. Jeger
J. M. Sharp
Affiliation:
Division of Biology, Imperial College London, Wye Campus, Wye, Ashford, Kent TN25 5AH, UK
G. R. Edwards
Affiliation:
Department of Agricultural Sciences, Lincoln University, PO Box 84, Lincoln 7647, Canterbury, New Zealand
M. J. Jeger
Affiliation:
Division of Biology, Imperial College London, Wye Campus, Wye, Ashford, Kent TN25 5AH, UK
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Abstract

The benefits of using white clover in pastures have been widely recognised for many years. However, clover is perceived as being unreliable because of its typically low content, which is spatially and temporally variable, in mixed pastures. One proposed solution to increase the proportion of clover in the diet of grazing animals and composition in the pasture is to spatially separate clover from grass within the same field. In a field experiment ryegrass and white clover were grown in fine mixtures, and in pure alternating strips of ryegrass and clover of 1.5 m, 3 m or 18 m width within a field. Pastures were grazed for two grazing periods of 9 and 12 weeks, and measurements of sward surface height (SSH), herbage mass and composition and clover morphology were taken. Grazing behaviour was also observed. Results showed that spatial separation in the long term, when compared with a fine mixture, increased clover availability (18% to 30% v. 9%, based on standing dry matter) and was not grazed to extinction. Ewes maintained their preference for clover throughout the experiment (selection coefficient 2 to 5), which resulted in a reduction in the SSH of clover in monocultures to <3 cm and significant changes to the morphology of clover (smaller leaves, shorter petioles and thicker stolon), at the expense of maximising their intake. Spatial separation in the short term may therefore allow grazing animals to select their preferred diet; however, in the long term in continuously grazed pasture, their preference for clover depletes its availability.

Keywords

grazing behaviourpasture legumesplant morphologyselective grazingspatial distribution
Type
Farming systems and environment
Information
animal , Volume 6 , Issue 11 , November 2012 , pp. 1848 - 1856
Copyright
Copyright © The Animal Consortium 2012

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