Project Overview
Annual Reports
Commodities
- Animal Products: dairy
Practices
- Animal Production: pasture fertility, grazing - rotational, winter forage
- Crop Production: irrigation, no-till, nutrient cycling
- Education and Training: decision support system, demonstration, on-farm/ranch research, workshop
- Production Systems: agroecosystems, holistic management, integrated crop and livestock systems
Proposal abstract:
Grazing dairies utilize 53% less energy than conventional dairies but still rely on non-renewable resources for nitrogen fertilization and irrigation. Reliance on irrigation and nitrogen fertilizers can be overcome through irrigation scheduling and selection of forage species which complement existing pastures. Thus, the objectives of this proposal are to screen warm and cool-season annual and perennial pasture species for seasonal forage productivity under grazing conditions, determine moisture release curves and monitor soil moisture content from irrigation practices during periods of negative water balance, establish a nitrogen “budget” to determine precisely when, and by how much, the dairies are deficient in nitrogen supply from pasture legumes, and develop educational and outreach information for training producers and related industries as to the merits and needs of grazing dairies. Warm and cool season forage grasses and legumes will be established in replicated trials on the farms harvested for yield. Forage quality and N will be measured to establish when the forages complement the existing forage program. Electronic soil moisture sensors will be placed into fields and interfaced with computers controlling irrigation systems. Water application will be quantified and compared with irrigation systems managed by producers to determine the water/energy conserved through use of moisture sensors. N inputs (feed, manure, fertilizer, legume) will be compared to losses (milk, urea volatilization, leaching) for each month to determine when, and by how much, nitrogen is deficient. Information will be disseminated through agent/producer training and field days, and web-based delivery.
Project objectives from proposal:
1. Screen warm and cool-season annual and perennial pasture species for seasonal forage productivity under grazing conditions
2. Determine moisture release curves for the major soil types found on cooperating grazing dairies and monitor soil moisture content from irrigation practices during periods of negative water balance
3. Create a nitrogen “budget” to determine precisely when, and by how much, the dairies are deficient in nitrogen supply from pasture legumes
4. Develop educational and outreach information for training producers and related industries as to the merits and needs of grazing dairies.