S. ALBAYRAK and M. TURK
Suleyman Demirel University, Faculty of Agriculture, Department of Field Crops, Isparta, Turkey
ALBAYRAK, Sebahattin and Mevlut TURK, 2011. Effects of fertilization on forage yield and quality of crested wheatgrass (Agropyron cristatum L. Gaertn.). Bulg. J. Agric. Sci., 17: 642-648
This study aimed to determine the effects of six nitrogen rates (0, 40, 80, 120, 160 and 200 kg ha-1) on forage yield and quality of crested wheatgrass (Agropyron cristatum L. Gaertn.). Dry matter (DM) yield, N, P, K, Ca, Mg, (K/Ca+Mg), NDF, ADF, TDN, DDM, DMI, RFV and NE1 were determined. Nitrogen rates significantly affected most of the components determined in crested wheatgrass. Nitrogen applications increased DM yield, N, P and K contents but decreased Ca, Mg, tetany ratio, NDF and ADF. TDN, DDM, DMI, RFV and NE1 increased by increasing N fertilization. The results showed that crested wheatgrass at the 160 kg ha-1 nitrogen treatment achieved a higher forage yield and quality than other nitrogen doses.
Key words: crested wheatgrass, forage, dry matter, neutral detergent fiber, relative feed value