EFFECT OF WATER DEFICITS AND INTENSIVE CUTTINGS ON FORAGE PRODUCTIVITY OF ATRIPLEX NUMMULARIA LINDL AND ITS QUALITY
A. A. KANDIL AND A. E. SHARIEF
Department of Agronomy
Faculty of Agriculture, Mansoura University, Egypt
*(e-mail : shariefali42@gmail.com)
(Received : 24 March 2017; Accepted : 26 May 2017)
SUMMARY
Atriplex shrubs are essential sources of animal feed, predominantly to dry and semi-dry areas. To overawed feeding shortages, particularly in the summer seasons when Savannah growth is imperfect or dormant. In order to study the effect of water defects, treatments i. e. 1.00, 0.50 and 0.25 ET at four levels of grazing i. e. intensities cutting in winter (CW 1) at the November, non-intensities cutting in winter (CW 2) at the November, intensities cutting in summer (CS 1) at the May and non-intensities cutting in summer (CS 2) at the May and their interaction on forage Atriplex productivity. Irrigation at 1.00 ET significantly shaped the highest plants, the highest fresh and dry forage yield/plant, fresh and dry forage yield/ha, percentages of protein, ether extract, crude protein and fiber yield (kg/ha), ether extract, ash, nitrogen free extract yield (kg/ha) as combined analysis. Irrigation at 0.50 ET significantly recorded the highest percentages of crude fiber. Whilst, irrigation at 0.50 ET created the lowest values of the deliberate restrictions. The highest plants were obtained from non-intensities cutting in summer (CS 2) at May and recorded the highest fresh and dry forage yield/plant, fresh and dry forage yield/ha, the highest values of water use efficiency, ether extract percentage, crude protein and fiber, ether extract, ash and free nitrogen extract yield/ha. Intensities cutting in winter (CW 1) at November formed the lowest standards of the studied parameters. It could be suggested that irrigation at 1.00 ET and cutting in summer (CS 2) at May significantly maximized Atriplex forages yield and its quality.
Key words: Intensities cuttings, irrigation at evaporation rates, dry matter forage yield and its quality, water use efficiency