ON FARM LEVEL
Conservationagriculture
t
his article is the fifth in a series of articles highlighting a
specific pasture crop species that can play an imperative role
inconservationagriculture (CA)basedcrop-pasture-rotations.
Besides improving the physical, chemical, hydrological and
biologicalpropertiesof thesoil, suchspecies, includingannual
or perennial cover crops, can successfullybeused as animal feed.
Livestock production systems are in many ways dependant on the
utilisation of pasture species, in this case as a pasture ley crop, and
can therefore become an integral component of CA-based crop-
pasture-rotations. It is imperative however to identify a pasture
species fulfilling the requirements of a dual purpose crop, i.e. for
livestock fodder and soil restoration.
Panicummaximum
/Guinea orwhite
buffalo grass/
witbuffelsgras
Guinea grass is a weak perennial grass (two to five years) that
is indigenous to Africa. The growth form of this grass differs
immensely, ascertainecotypeshardlygrow taller than1m,whereas
other ecotypes grow as tall as 2,5 m. Many ecotypes are strongly
tufted andothers have amore creepingnature.
As a result of the latter classification, this species isdivided into two
maingroups:
Themedium to tall growing types, which include cultivars such
asHamil, Vencedor andColoniao.
The tall growing types, also known as
P. maximum var.
trichoglume
. This group includes cultivars such as green panic
(Petri), Gatton and Sabi which originally come from Zimbabwe
and ismorecommonlydescribedas adrought resistant species.
This species is also known to be a very palatable grazing species.
It produces a very good foggage and can in some instances remain
green in winter, especially in frost-free areas. Hay can be made
from this species under the correctmanagement, but it could easily
produce abetter quality silage.
Agro-ecological distribution
White buffalo grass is also known as a good grass species to grow
under trees, but can occur in open grassland areas too. Due to the
large variation in ecotypes, it is accepted that this species is well
adapted tomany areas.
It is noted that this species can grow in aswide an area as from the
Limpopo province to the Eastern Cape. To date, a large percentage
of
Panicum maximum
is imported into South Africa, and many
questions regarding the adaptability of imported cultivars remain
unanswered.
The following observations can be confirmed to a large extent:
Gatton, currently the most available cultivar in South Africa, has
been doing well in areas such as Potchefstroom, and is therefore
cold-resistant and requires an average rainfall of approximately
550 mm - 600 mm per annum. This species particularly thrives in
slightly more humid climates, such as the Lowveld regions of the
Limpopoprovince.
Management and utilisation
A fine to firm seedbed is required and the establishment is
recommended tobe done duringOctober/November or additionally
the month of February. Good quality seed is a major requirement.
If this species is to be planted in rows, seeding rates of between
2 kg to 4 kg seed/ha canbeplanted.
If planted using a broadcasting method, the seeding rate should
increase to 6 kg - 8 kg seed/ha. If this grass is to be planted under
irrigationpractices, then seeding rates canbe increased to10 kg/ha.
Whitebuffalograss isknown tobeplantedwell inmixtureswithother
palatable grasses, such as Smutsfinger grass, Rhodes grass and
bottle brush grass. It can also be planted together with leguminous
species such as lucerne, which will ensure a higher quality grazing
andhayproduction.
White buffalo grass requires an average to high nitrogen (N)
fertilisation. It is therefore recommended that Guinea grass grown
under dryland conditions (500 mm - 600 mm rain per annum) can
require 75 kg - 100 kgN/ha.
In higher rainfall areas and even under irrigation, levels of up to
150 kgN/ha canbe required.
WAYNE TRUTER,
University of Pretoria,
CHRISDANNHAUSER,
Grass SA,
HENDRIKSMITH,
Grain SA and
GERRIE TRYTSMAN,
ARC-Animal Production Institute
Integrated cropandpasture-based
livestockproduction systems
–Part 5
AGRICULTURE
Conservat ion
Series
Julie 2014
76
