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Dietary Cation–Anion Difference of Forage Species after Chloride Fertilization
Author(s) -
Tremblay Gaëtan F.,
Bélanger Gilles,
Pelletier Sophie,
Lajeunesse Julie,
Pageau Denis
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
agronomy journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.752
H-Index - 131
eISSN - 1435-0645
pISSN - 0002-1962
DOI - 10.2134/agronj2012.0355
Subject(s) - phalaris arundinacea , agronomy , bromus inermis , forage , bromus , phleum , biology , human fertilization , red clover , agropyron cristatum , poa pratensis , dry matter , poaceae , ecology , wetland
The dietary cation‐anion difference (DCAD), an indicator of hypocalcaemia risk in dairy cows, has been shown to be decreased by Cl fertilization in a limited number of forage species. Our objective was to assess the response of eight forage species grown in eastern Canada to two Cl fertilization treatments (0 vs. 90 + 50 kg Cl ha −1 applied in early spring and after the first harvest, respectively). Alfalfa ( Medicago sativa L.), red clover ( Trifolium pratense L.), smooth bromegrass ( Bromus inermis Leyss.), meadow bromegrass ( Bromus biebersteinii Roemer and J.A. Schultes), tall fescue [ Lolium arundinaceum (Schreb.) S.J. Darbyshire], timothy ( Phleum pratense L.), reed canarygrass ( Phalaris arundinacea L.), and Kentucky bluegrass ( Poa pratensis L.) were seeded in 2 yr at one location and harvested twice in the first post‐seeding year of each seeding. The experimental design was a split‐plot with four replicates; species as main plots and Cl fertilization as subplots. Chloride fertilization decreased the DCAD [(Na + + K + ) – (Cl − + S 2– )] of all forage species; this decrease ranged from 78 (smooth and meadow bromegrasses) to 201 mmol c kg −1 dry matter (DM) (reed canarygrass) in spring growth and from 88 (Kentucky bluegrass) to 269 mmol c kg −1 DM (tall fescue) in summer regrowth. Species differed in their DCAD with legume species having the highest and timothy, reed canarygrass, and Kentucky bluegrass having the lowest. Producing forage with a DCAD lower than 250 mmol c kg −1 DM is possible without Cl fertilization in Kentucky bluegrass and with Cl fertilization in timothy and reed canarygrass.