Abstract
There is little information on the impact of grazing intensity on productivity and sustainability of intensively managed pastures in the humid, short-season parkland of the Canadian prairies. Our hypothesis was that above-ground productivity of dry matter, carbon, nitrogen, and in vitro digestible organic matter would be reduced proportionately with increasing grazing intensity. The study was conducted on a Typic Haplustoll at Lacombe, Alberta. Paddocks of meadow bromegrass (Bromus riparius Rhem.), replicated 4 times, were subjected to heavy, medium and light grazing intensities. Measurements and analyses were carried out for 3 years. Yields of dry matter, carbon, nitrogen, and in vitro digestible organic matter before and after grazing were determined and seasonal pools of above ground production, disappearance and residual were calculated. Concentrations of acid and neutral detergent fiber and lignin were also determined before and after grazing. Increasing grazing intensity tended to increase nitrogen and decrease fiber concentrations for available and residual forage. Heavy and medium grazing intensities produced 83 and 90% as much above ground dry matter and 87 and 90% above ground carbon as the light intensity. All disappearance pools were similar among grazing intensities except in vitro digestible organic matter, where heavy was 116% of light. Heavy grazing reduced the contribution of vegetative dry matter, in vitro digestible organic matter, carbon and nitrogen to the residual to 41, 50, 36, and 52% of that for light grazing. Adding estimated fecal-carbon to the residual significantly increased total residual carbon. Estimated fecal-carbon represented 68, 51, and 42% of all carbon inputs to litter for heavy, medium and light grazing, respectively. Grazing intensity did not affect estimated pools of excreted nitrogen, but increased estimated precent of nitrogen excreted as urine.
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Claims 18
Claim · model-written summary
Increasing grazing intensity tended to increase forage nitrogen concentration.
Verbatim
e0“Increasing grazing intensity tended to increase nitrogen and decrease fiber concentrations for available and residual forage.”
t0“Grazing intensity impacts on pasture carbon and nitrogen flow”
e1“Paddocks of meadow bromegrass (Bromus riparius Rhem.), replicated 4 times, were subjected to heavy, medium and light grazing intensities.”
Claim · model-written summary
Increasing grazing intensity tended to decrease forage fiber concentration.
Verbatim
e0“Increasing grazing intensity tended to increase nitrogen and decrease fiber concentrations for available and residual forage.”
t0“Grazing intensity impacts on pasture carbon and nitrogen flow”
e1“Paddocks of meadow bromegrass (Bromus riparius Rhem.), replicated 4 times, were subjected to heavy, medium and light grazing intensities.”
Claim · model-written summary
Heavy grazing yielded 83% as much above-ground dry matter as light grazing.
Verbatim
e0“Heavy and medium grazing intensities produced 83 and 90% as much above ground dry matter and 87 and 90% above ground carbon as the light intensity.”
t0“Grazing intensity impacts on pasture carbon and nitrogen flow”
e1“Paddocks of meadow bromegrass (Bromus riparius Rhem.), replicated 4 times, were subjected to heavy, medium and light grazing intensities.”
Claim · model-written summary
Medium grazing yielded 90% as much above-ground dry matter as light grazing.
Verbatim
e0“Heavy and medium grazing intensities produced 83 and 90% as much above ground dry matter and 87 and 90% above ground carbon as the light intensity.”
t0“Grazing intensity impacts on pasture carbon and nitrogen flow”
e1“Paddocks of meadow bromegrass (Bromus riparius Rhem.), replicated 4 times, were subjected to heavy, medium and light grazing intensities.”
Claim · model-written summary
Heavy grazing yielded 87% as much above-ground carbon as light grazing.
Verbatim
e0“Heavy and medium grazing intensities produced 83 and 90% as much above ground dry matter and 87 and 90% above ground carbon as the light intensity.”
t0“Grazing intensity impacts on pasture carbon and nitrogen flow”
e1“Paddocks of meadow bromegrass (Bromus riparius Rhem.), replicated 4 times, were subjected to heavy, medium and light grazing intensities.”
Claim · model-written summary
Medium grazing yielded 90% as much above-ground carbon as light grazing.
Verbatim
e0“Heavy and medium grazing intensities produced 83 and 90% as much above ground dry matter and 87 and 90% above ground carbon as the light intensity.”
t0“Grazing intensity impacts on pasture carbon and nitrogen flow”
e1“Paddocks of meadow bromegrass (Bromus riparius Rhem.), replicated 4 times, were subjected to heavy, medium and light grazing intensities.”
Claim · model-written summary
Disappearance pools were similar across grazing intensities except for digestible organic matter.
Verbatim
e0“All disappearance pools were similar among grazing intensities except in vitro digestible organic matter”
t0“Grazing intensity impacts on pasture carbon and nitrogen flow”
e1“Paddocks of meadow bromegrass (Bromus riparius Rhem.), replicated 4 times, were subjected to heavy, medium and light grazing intensities.”
Claim · model-written summary
Heavy grazing produced 116% of the light-grazing disappearance pool of digestible organic matter.
Verbatim
e0“in vitro digestible organic matter, where heavy was 116% of light.”
t0“Grazing intensity impacts on pasture carbon and nitrogen flow”
e1“Paddocks of meadow bromegrass (Bromus riparius Rhem.), replicated 4 times, were subjected to heavy, medium and light grazing intensities.”
Claim · model-written summary
Under heavy grazing, residual vegetative dry matter was 41% of that under light grazing.
Verbatim
e0“Heavy grazing reduced the contribution of vegetative dry matter, in vitro digestible organic matter, carbon and nitrogen to the residual to 41, 50, 36, and 52% of that for light grazing.”
t0“Grazing intensity impacts on pasture carbon and nitrogen flow”
e1“Paddocks of meadow bromegrass (Bromus riparius Rhem.), replicated 4 times, were subjected to heavy, medium and light grazing intensities.”
Claim · model-written summary
Under heavy grazing, residual digestible organic matter was 50% of that under light grazing.
Verbatim
e0“Heavy grazing reduced the contribution of vegetative dry matter, in vitro digestible organic matter, carbon and nitrogen to the residual to 41, 50, 36, and 52% of that for light grazing.”
t0“Grazing intensity impacts on pasture carbon and nitrogen flow”
e1“Paddocks of meadow bromegrass (Bromus riparius Rhem.), replicated 4 times, were subjected to heavy, medium and light grazing intensities.”
Claim · model-written summary
Under heavy grazing, residual carbon was 36% of that under light grazing.
Verbatim
e0“Heavy grazing reduced the contribution of vegetative dry matter, in vitro digestible organic matter, carbon and nitrogen to the residual to 41, 50, 36, and 52% of that for light grazing.”
t0“Grazing intensity impacts on pasture carbon and nitrogen flow”
e1“Paddocks of meadow bromegrass (Bromus riparius Rhem.), replicated 4 times, were subjected to heavy, medium and light grazing intensities.”
Claim · model-written summary
Under heavy grazing, residual nitrogen was 52% of that under light grazing.
Verbatim
e0“Heavy grazing reduced the contribution of vegetative dry matter, in vitro digestible organic matter, carbon and nitrogen to the residual to 41, 50, 36, and 52% of that for light grazing.”
t0“Grazing intensity impacts on pasture carbon and nitrogen flow”
e1“Paddocks of meadow bromegrass (Bromus riparius Rhem.), replicated 4 times, were subjected to heavy, medium and light grazing intensities.”
Claim · model-written summary
Including fecal carbon significantly increased total residual carbon.
Verbatim
e0“Adding estimated fecal-carbon to the residual significantly increased total residual carbon.”
t0“Grazing intensity impacts on pasture carbon and nitrogen flow”
e1“Paddocks of meadow bromegrass (Bromus riparius Rhem.), replicated 4 times, were subjected to heavy, medium and light grazing intensities.”
Claim · model-written summary
Estimated fecal carbon supplied 68% of litter carbon inputs under heavy grazing.
Verbatim
e0“Estimated fecal-carbon represented 68, 51, and 42% of all carbon inputs to litter for heavy, medium and light grazing, respectively.”
t0“Grazing intensity impacts on pasture carbon and nitrogen flow”
e1“Paddocks of meadow bromegrass (Bromus riparius Rhem.), replicated 4 times, were subjected to heavy, medium and light grazing intensities.”
Claim · model-written summary
Estimated fecal carbon supplied 51% of litter carbon inputs under medium grazing.
Verbatim
e0“Estimated fecal-carbon represented 68, 51, and 42% of all carbon inputs to litter for heavy, medium and light grazing, respectively.”
t0“Grazing intensity impacts on pasture carbon and nitrogen flow”
e1“Paddocks of meadow bromegrass (Bromus riparius Rhem.), replicated 4 times, were subjected to heavy, medium and light grazing intensities.”
Claim · model-written summary
Estimated fecal carbon supplied 42% of litter carbon inputs under light grazing.
Verbatim
e0“Estimated fecal-carbon represented 68, 51, and 42% of all carbon inputs to litter for heavy, medium and light grazing, respectively.”
t0“Grazing intensity impacts on pasture carbon and nitrogen flow”
e1“Paddocks of meadow bromegrass (Bromus riparius Rhem.), replicated 4 times, were subjected to heavy, medium and light grazing intensities.”
Claim · model-written summary
Grazing intensity did not affect estimated excreted nitrogen pools.
Verbatim
e0“Grazing intensity did not affect estimated pools of excreted nitrogen”
t0“Grazing intensity impacts on pasture carbon and nitrogen flow”
e1“Paddocks of meadow bromegrass (Bromus riparius Rhem.), replicated 4 times, were subjected to heavy, medium and light grazing intensities.”
Claim · model-written summary
Grazing intensity increased the estimated percentage of nitrogen excreted as urine.
Verbatim
e0“increased estimated precent of nitrogen excreted as urine.”
t0“Grazing intensity impacts on pasture carbon and nitrogen flow”
e1“Paddocks of meadow bromegrass (Bromus riparius Rhem.), replicated 4 times, were subjected to heavy, medium and light grazing intensities.”