Two-cut system suggested for tall wheatgrass to balance herbage yield and quality in the coastal saline–alkaline land around the Bohai Sea

Background

Tall 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.

Methods

Seven 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.

Results

The 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.

Conclusions

The two-cut treatment at the end of May and October may be suitable for tall wheatgrass in the “Coastal Grass Belt” targeted area.