The Yield, Intake and Animal Production of Four Tropical Grass Species Grown at Ibadan

Abstract

The yield, intake and animal production of four grass species namely: Cynodon nlemfuensis var. robustus, Pennisetum purpureum Schum; Cynodon nlemfuensis var nlemfuensis (Ib8) and Panicum Maximum Jacq., designated as treatments M, N, P, and respectively, were studied over a period of 1,226 days. Each treatment was grazed at three stages of growth - at four, six and eight week intervals. Total dry matter yields for the experimental period ranged from approximately 22 tons for treatment N grazed at intervals of four weeks to 65 tons for treatment Q grazed at eight week intervals. The mean daily dry matter yield varied between approximately 18 kg for treatment N to 53 kg for treatment Q grazed at four and eight week intervals respectively. With the exception of treatment N, dry matter intake by sheep per kg of metabolic size per day decreased with increased maturity and ranged from 43 kg in treatment N to 86 kg in treatment P grazed every four weeks. Treatment means of liveweight increases of grazing White Fulani (Zebu) steers were 392 g, 360 g, 337 g and 226 g per head per day for treatments Q, N,P and M respectively. Though the protein content of the pastures was high enough even in the dry season to maintain the grazing animals, dry matter production and intake were usually very low.