The herbage yield and quality of three grass species on two marginal maize soils at Potchefstroom

Abstract

A small plot experiment with Digitaria eriantha, Panicum maximum and Anthephora pubescens, established on Valsrivier and Westleigh soil forms, was conducted at Potchefstroom during the 1986/87 and 1987/88 seasons. The yield of P. maximum was the highest of the three species during the drier 1986/87 season (478 mm), while the yield of D. eriantha was the highest during the wetter 1987/88 season (803 mm). Yield was not influenced significantly by soil form. The quality of all species, in terms of protein and digestibility, was adequate for animal production.