PRODUCTION POTENTIAL OF DUAL PURPOSE WINTER CEREALS AS INFLUENCED BY CUTTING MANAGEMENT UNDER MID HILL CONDITIONS OF HIMACHAL PRADESH

NAVEEN KUMAR, NITISH BANTA, ARVIND CHAHAL*, S. R. KANTWA AND SUKHCHAIN SINGH
Department of Agronomy, CSK HPKV, Palampur-176062 (Himachal Pradesh), India
Division of Agronomy, IGFRI Jhansi-284003 (Uttar Pradesh), India
*(e-mail : chahal.arvind92@gmail.com)
(Received : 31 March 2021; Accepted : 11 July 2021)

SUMMARY

The field experiment was conducted at CSK HPKV, Palampur from 2011-12 to 2013-14 (Rabi) for three consecutive years to study the effect of cutting management on dual purpose winter cereals. Oat crop produced 20.9 and 60.9 per cent more green fodder yield than barley and wheat, respectively with respective increase in dry fodder yield of 28.9 and 123.2 per cent. Crops harvested for fodder at 90 DAS produced higher green and dry herbage yields. No fodder cut resulted in reduction in grain yield of oat and wheat. Among crops grain yield of wheat was significantly better than oat and barley. Fodder cut at 70 DAS resulted in higher grain yield of the crops, whereas, fodder cut at 80 or 90 DAS reduced the grain yield of crops significantly. Wheat crop had better grain and straw yield and thereafter had significantly higher values of net returns and B:C ratio. The crude protein content in wheat fodder was at par with oat, whereas, crude protein yield of oat was at par with barley. Earlier harvesting of fodder at 70 DAS had better crude protein content and lower ADF and NDF contents, but further delay in fodder cut decreased the crude protein content and increased the ADF and NDF contents.

Key words:Oat green fodder equivalent yield, forage yield, crude protein, ADF and NDF

187-192