Affiliation:
1. Key Laboratory of Seed Innovation, Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology Chinese Academy of Sciences Beijing China
2. College of Agriculture Yangtze University Jingzhou Hubei China
3. School of Agricultural Sciences Jiangxi Agricultural University Nanchang Jiangxi China
4. Dongying Modern Agricultural Demonstration Zone Management Center Dongying Shandong China
Abstract
AbstractBackgroundTall wheatgrass is a perennial salt‐tolerant bunchgrass, which is a promising candidate for establishing a “Coastal Grass Belt” in China, particularly in the coastal saline–alkaline soils surrounding the Bohai Sea.MethodsSeven harvesting treatments were performed to explore the optimal harvesting time and frequency for tall wheatgrass in coastal area. The dry matter yield (DMY) and forage nutritional values were investigated for each cut. The correlation between harvesting time and frequency thereof among the investigated traits was also determined.ResultsThe results showed that the two‐cut on June 18 and October 29 produced the highest DMY. Another two‐cut on May 26 and October 29 produced a relatively high crude protein (CP) yield. The DMY, contents of neutral detergent fiber (NDF), acid detergent fiber (ADF), and crude cellulose (CC) as well as CP yield were positively correlated to plant height, while the CP content and the relative feed value (RFV) were negatively correlated to plant height. The accumulating growing degree days, accumulated precipitation, and sunshine duration were positively correlated with plant height, DMY, contents of NDF, ADF, and CC as well as CP yield, but negatively correlated with CP content and RFV for the first cut.ConclusionsThe two‐cut treatment at the end of May and October may be suitable for tall wheatgrass in the “Coastal Grass Belt” targeted area.