Vicia sativa as a grazed forage for lactating ewes in a temperate grassland production system

Overall, this research provides new insights into how common vetch has the potential to provide a home-produced winter-grown protein feed for the sustainable development of ovine production systems in temperate grasslands. AbstractHere, we present research to overcome a current limitation of temperate grassland systems to provide home-grown, early season protein for lactating ewes —a period of high protein demand in these systems. Traditionally used as a forage crop, there is renewed interest in common vetch (Vicia sativa) due to its ability to grow during low temperatures over-winter compared to other legumes. We hypothesised that vetch would support the sustainable development of lamb production by reducing reliance on purchased protein typically used in grass-only systems. A grazing study determined the performance of early lactation ewes and their twin lambs grazing either an Italian ryegrass (IRG) sward or a vetch/IRG (V/IRG) mix over a six-week period. The experiment comprised replicate plots of two treatments, with 8 ewes, each rearing twin lambs, grazing each plot. Plots were divided into sub-plots using electric fencing and rotationally grazed. Findings showed i) ewes selectively grazed vetch as evidenced by a drop in vetch percentage by, on average, 10% units between the start and end of grazing; ii) vetch re-grew when rotationally grazed with a 21 – 28-d rest period, with vetch percentage of the sward increasing 10% units; and iii) grazing lactating ewes on V/I...
Source: Food and Energy Security - Category: Food Science Authors: Tags: ORIGINAL ARTICLE Source Type: research