Agronomy Journal 92:1291-1293 (2000)
© 2000 American Society of Agronomy
NOTES & UNIQUE PHENOMENA
Establishment of Irrigated Timothy for Forage Production in Saskatchewan
Paul G. Jeffersona,
Bruce E. Coulmanb and
G.Andrew Kiellyc
a Semiarid Prairie Agric. Res. Cent., Agric. and Agri-Food Canada, P.O. Box 1030, Swift Current, SK, Canada S9H 3X2
b Saskatoon Res. Cent., Agric. and Agri-Food Canada, 107 Sci. Place, Saskatoon, SK, Canada S7N 0X2
c 525 2nd Ave. NE, Swift Current, SK, Canada S9H 2E5
jeffersonp{at}em.agr.ca
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ABSTRACT
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Irrigated timothy (Phleum pratense L.) hay from Saskatchewan could fill export demand for compressed hay, but basic agronomic information is lacking under Saskatchewan conditions. The objective of this research was to compare the establishment of irrigated timothy seedlings under wheat (Triticum aestivum L.), barley (Hordeum vulgare L.), and Italian ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum Lam.) companion crops at two seeding rates. The ryegrass companion crop reduced timothy ground cover and tiller density in the year after establishment, with a greater reduction in ground cover at 10 kg ha-1 compared with a seeding rate of 5 kg ha-1 for the ryegrass. The ryegrass companion crop reduced timothy first harvest and total annual dry matter (DM) production for forage by 41% compared with the control (no companion crop) while timothy that was established with cereal companion crops did not differ from the control. Irrigated forage producers should not use annual ryegrass as a companion crop for irrigated timothy establishment in Saskatchewan.
Abbreviations: DM, dry matter
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INTRODUCTION
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DEMAND FOR CANADIAN TIMOTHY HAY is projected to increase due to imports of densified bales by Japan (Canadian Hay Assoc., 1999). Saskatchewan producers with access to irrigation can grow timothy for the export market. However, agronomic information on the best methods for establishing timothy stands with irrigation is lacking.
Companion crops are not recommended in the drier regions of Saskatchewan because of the significant reductions in subsequent forage yield (Kilcher and Heinrichs, 1960). However, cereal companion crops have been used in the moister regions of the province with minimal reductions in subsequent forage yield (Waddington and Bittman, 1983). Irrigation increased the forage seedling growth when seeded with barley and wheat companion crops (Janson and Knight, 1973). Companion crops under irrigation in the prairie region of Canada provided a greater economic return than direct-seeded forages in the year of forage establishment (Jefferson and Zentner, 1994; Smith et al., 1997).
Italian ryegrass was used as a companion crop to establish alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) stands in the north-central USA and was equal to or superior to an oat (Avena sativa L.) companion crop (Sulc et al., 1993). Under irrigation, Italian ryegrass may be able to produce a hay crop during the establishment year in Saskatchewan.
Timothy can be a difficult species to establish under competition from a barley companion crop (Lemieux et al., 1987) because of its small seed size and seedlings (Arnott, 1975). A reduced seeding rate (35–40 kg ha-1) of wheat or barley companion crops can reduce the competition effects on other forage species (Saskatchewan Agric. and Food, 1999), so even lower rates may be necessary for timothy establishment. A seeding rate of 7 kg ha-1 of annual ryegrass with alfalfa produced an alfalfa plant density and subsequent alfalfa yield similar to an oat hay companion crop (Sulc et al., 1993).
The purpose of this study was to assess the establishment of timothy under barley and wheat companion crops seeded at one-half and one-quarter of the monoculture cereal seeding rates and under an annual ryegrass companion crop seeded at two seeding rates above and below those reported in the literature.
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Materials and methods
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This experiment was established at the Saskatchewan Irrigation Development Centre in Outlook, SK on 25 May 1994 and 26 May 1995. The soil at the site is a typic Udoll, a fine sandy loam to loam soil with 15% clay and 45% sand (Ellis et al., 1968). The site was prepared for seeding by cultivation followed by packing. Timothy (cv. Climax) was seeded at 5 kg ha-1 to a 1.25-cm depth in rows spaced 30 cm apart. The companion crops were also seeded in rows 30 cm apart but perpendicular to the forage seed rows, and seed was placed at 2.5-cm depth. The following companion crop and seeding-rate treatment combinations were used: (i) no companion crop, (ii) Italian ryegrass (cv. Aubade, Westerwolds type) at 5 kg ha-1, (iii) barley (cv. Brier) at 20 kg ha-1, (iv) wheat (cv. Neepawa) at 20 kg ha-1, (v) annual ryegrass at 10 kg ha-1, (vi) barley at 40 kg ha-1, and (vii) wheat at 40 kg ha-1. The experimental design was a randomized complete block with four replications.
An application of 2,4-D [(2,4-dichlorophenoxy)acetic acid] at 450 g ha-1 was used each year to control broadleaf weeds. Precipitation at the site was 216, 272, and 298 mm in 1994, 1995, and 1996, respectively. An irrigation application was made when plants exhibited visible water stress symptoms and totaled 150, 225, and 108 mm in 1994, 1995, and 1996, respectively. Fertilizer was applied during each fall season at rates of 100 kg N ha-1 and 45 kg P2O5 ha-1.
Barley and wheat crops were harvested for grain on 22 Sept. 1994 and 24 Aug. 1995. Grain yield was determined at approximately 12% water content after air-drying, so data were expressed as kg ha-1 without adjusting for grain moisture content. Cereal crop straw was removed from the plots immediately after the determination of grain yield. Forage harvest of the ryegrass was taken when it was headed on 3 Aug. 1994 and 24 Aug. 1995. The timothy that was seeded without a companion crop was harvested on 3 Aug. 1994 but not in 1995 because it was judged to be inadequately established. A second forage harvest of the annual ryegrass was taken on 6 Sept. 1994. The two harvests were combined for this report. Timothy plant density (0.09 m2 area; two or three counts per plot) was recorded on 29 Sept. 1994 and 29 Aug. 1995 after companion-crop removal. Tiller density (0.06 m2 area; two counts per plot) was determined on 26 May 1995 and 21 May 1996. Visual ground cover (%) was recorded on 18 May 1995 and 1996.
Timothy hay yields were taken on 11 July and 24 Aug. 1995 from the 1994-established trial and on 4 July and 21 Aug. 1996 from the 1995-established trial. Forage yield was determined by clipping and weighing the fresh forage from a 0.91- by 4.0-m area within each plot. A 500-g subsample of forage was weighed, dried in a forced-air oven at 50°C, and reweighed. The DM percentage from this sample was used to calculate Mg DM ha-1 forage yield data.
Data were combined over the two trials for the results of the establishment year and first year after establishment. Trials were the main-plot effect, and companion-crop treatments were subplots in a split-plot design that were ANOVA-calculated with the GLM procedure of SAS (SAS Inst., 1990). The critical value for a significant F-test was
. Companion-crop treatment effects were compared by contrasts when the F-test for treatments was significant. Pearson correlation coefficients were calculated on individual plot data with the CORR procedure of SAS (SAS Inst., 1990). Ground-cover data were found to exhibit heteroscedasticity, so this variable was transformed by the arc-sine/square-root transformation
before ANOVA calculation (Steel and Torrie, 1980). The standard error from the original variable and back-transformed means were used for presentation.
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Results and discussion
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Timothy seedling density was not affected by companion-crop treatments in the establishment year (Table 1)
. Italian ryegrass produced 3.60 Mg ha-1 more forage than the direct-seeded timothy control in 1994 (data not shown). There was no significant impact of Italian ryegrass seeding rate on forage yield in the establishment year. Barley produced significantly more grain yield than wheat (3.36 vs. 1.740 Mg ha-1, P < 0.01). The cereal crops produced more grain at the higher seeding rate (2.81 vs. 2.29 Mg ha-1, P < 0.01). The relatively low grain yield of the wheat companion crop may be due to the limited yield potential of Neepawa hard-red spring wheat grown on irrigation (DePauw, personal communication, 1994).
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Table 1 Companion-crop effects on timothy stand seedling count in the establishment year and ground cover, tiller density, first harvest, and total irrigated forage yield in the year after establishment averaged over two trials at Outlook, SK. Ground cover means were back-transformed after statistical analysis on the arc-sine/square-root transformed data scale. The standard error for ground cover was taken from the ANOVA of the original scale variable
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The Italian ryegrass companion crop reduced timothy ground cover, tiller density, first-harvest forage yield, and total annual forage yield in the spring of the year after establishment (Table 1). The barley and wheat companion crops did not reduce timothy seedling establishment or forage yield when compared with the control (contrasts not shown). The ryegrass companion crop reduced timothy forage yield at first harvest by 41% compared with timothy established without a companion crop. It reduced timothy total annual yields in the first year after establishment by 31%. The duration of competition between the companion crop and the establishing forage seedling was important to the subsequent productivity of alfalfa grown on irrigation (Janson and Knight, 1973). Yield reductions were largest when competitive effects on the alfalfa seedlings occurred for the entire growing season. Italian ryegrass competition continued for the entire growing season in our trials, as is evident by the two harvests taken in the 1994-seeded trial. The cereal crops would be less competitive after leaf senescence (Janson and Knight, 1973), so they allowed more timothy growth for approximately 1 of 2 mo before winter while ryegrass plants competed with timothy seedlings for the entire growing season.
Italian ryegrass reduced timothy ground cover at a seeding rate of 10 kg ha-1 compared with the 5 kg ha-1 seeding rate, but there was no significant effect of ryegrass seeding rate on tiller density or DM yield. Seeding rate of barley and wheat companion crops did not effect establishment or yield of timothy (contrasts not shown). While annual ryegrass may be a suitable companion crop to establish alfalfa in the north-central USA at a seeding rate of 7 kg ha-1 (Sulc et al., 1993), it was too competitive with timothy seedlings at seeding rates of either 5 or 10 kg ha-1 to be grown on irrigation in Saskatchewan. Wheat or barley at the recommended seeding rate will permit acceptable timothy establishment. This result is consistent with previous results for other forage species grown on irrigation (Jefferson and Zentner, 1994; Smith et al., 1997) and at moister sites in Saskatchewan (Waddington and Bittman, 1983).
There were significant correlations between tiller density and first-harvest DM yield or total annual forage DM yield
. Timothy establishment, as measured by ground cover, and the first-cut forage yield in the year after establishment were also positively correlated at Melfort, SK (Malik, 1990). These relationships suggest that management practices that increase the competitive pressure on timothy seedlings, such as incorporating an Italian ryegrass companion crop, will reduce stand establishment, tiller density, and first-year timothy forage production in Saskatchewan.
Market restrictions on the presence of other grass species that are potential hosts to the Hessian fly (Mayetiola destructor) have resulted in a new industry recommendation for timothy establishment. Wheat and barley companion crops are no longer recommended because the presence of their weedy plants will result in the rejection of the product at delivery (Canadian Hay Assoc., 1999). This has resulted in the establishment of irrigated timothy fields in the Outlook, SK region without any companion crops in recent years (Coulman, unpublished data, 2000). Harvesting the cereal companion crop for silage or hay was not evaluated in our study, but it might have the potential to provide higher establishment-year returns than direct-seeding (Smith et al., 1997) while avoiding volunteer cereal crop contamination of the subsequent timothy hay. Oat and canola (Brassica napus L.) are possible companion crops that avoid the restriction on the presence of Hessian-fly host plants in the hay (Canadian Hay Assoc., 1999). However, Waddington and Bittman (1984) reported that grass species differed in their competitive ability with a canola companion crop at moist sites in northeastern Saskatchewan. They reported that volunteer canola was a severe weed problem in the established forages in the second year. Future research should evaluate other companion-crop possibilities from both agronomic and economic perspectives.
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Conclusions
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Establishment of timothy grown on irrigation will not require specialized agronomic management in southern Saskatchewan. Establishment of timothy with barley or wheat companion crops was similar to the control. Italian ryegrass was too competitive with the timothy during the establishment year and reduced its subsequent productivity. It should not be recommended as a companion crop for timothy establishment. Market restrictions on the contamination of timothy hay with volunteer cereals will likely restrict the use of barley and wheat companion crops by irrigation producers.Canadian Hay Association 1999; SAS Institute 1990; Saskatchewan Agriculture and Food. 1999
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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
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The financial support of the Partnership Agreement on Water Based Economic Development (PAWBED) is acknowledged. The assistance of the Saskatchewan Irrigation Development Centre in providing and irrigating the research site is gratefully acknowledged.
Received for publication October 25, 1999.
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REFERENCES
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- Arnott R.A. Quantitative analysis of the endosperm-dependent seedling growth in grasses. Ann. Bot. 1975;39:757-765.[Abstract/Free Full Text]
- Canadian Hay Association. Timothy production handbook. Calgary, AB: Can. Hay Assoc, 1999.
- Ellis J.G., Acton D.F., Moss H.C. The soils of the Rosetown map area (72-O) Saskatchewan. Saskatoon, SK: Saskatchewan Inst. of Pedology Publ. S3. Saskatchewan Inst. of Pedology, 1968.
- Janson C.G., Knight T.L. Establishment of lucerne with cover crops under different soil moisture conditions. N.Z. J. Exp. Agric. 1973;1:243-251.
- Jefferson P.G., Zentner R.P. Effect of an oat companion crop on irrigated alfalfa yield and economic returns in southwestern Saskatchewan. Can. J. Plant Sci. 1994;74:465-470.
- Kilcher M.R., Heinrichs D.H. The use of cereal grains as companion crops in dryland forage crop establishment. Can. J. Plant Sci. 1960;40:81-93.
- Lemieux C., Watson A.K., Dechênes J.-M. Effect of barley, red clover, and weeds on yield and forage quality of timothy during establishment and subsequent production years. Can. J. Plant Sci. 1987;67:1019-1033.
- Malik N. Weed control during establishment and yield response of timothy (Phleum pratense). Weed Technol. 1990;4:598-605.
- SAS Institute. 1990. SAS user's guide. Version 5. 4th ed. SAS Inst., Cary, NC.
- Saskatchewan Agriculture and Food Saskatchewan forage crop production guide. Regina, SK: Gov. of Saskatchewan, 1999.
- Smith E.G., Barbieri J.M., Moyer J.R., Cole D.E. The effect of companion crops on economic returns of alfalfa-bromegrass establishment. Can. J. Plant Sci. 1997;77:231-235.
- Steel R.G.D., Torrie J.H. Principles and procedures of statistics, 2nd ed New York: McGraw–Hill, 1980.
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- Waddington J., Bittman S. Bromegrass and alfalfa establishment with a wheat companion crop in northeastern Saskatchewan. Can. J. Plant Sci. 1983;63:659-668.
- Waddington J., Bittman S. Polish rapeseed as a companion crop for establishing forages in northeastern Saskatchewan. Can. J. Plant Sci. 1984;64:677-682.
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ABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION
