Interspecific interference in biphytic mixture between Cloris gayana Kunt and Lotus tenuis Walds et Kit.: Implantation, first use and nutritional quality

Abstract

The nutritional quality of Chloris gayana Kunt. it is inferior, compared to temperate species, given that it has a higher fiber content and high lignin content that decreases dry matter digestibility. The amount of crude protein is also low, which is why the inclusion of a legume, with its ability to fix atmospheric nitrogen, would increase the quality and quantity of the total forage. This proposal incorporated Lotus tenuis Waldst et Kit., a legume introduced in Argentina and widely distributed in halohydromorphic environments of the Pampa Depressed. With the purpose of evaluating a biphytic mixture of Chloris gayana and a semiprostrate biotype of Lotus tenuis in cattle soils of the Salado Depression. In order to determine: i) the implantation efficiency and tillering and branching capacity, ii) the quantity and quality of the dry matter at the end of the implantation period and, iii) the relative complementarity of the mixture. Based on the results obtained, it can be concluded that the joint planting of a diploid cultivar of Chloris gayana with a semiprostrate biotype of Lotus tenuis does not cause a negative interaction that endangers the implementation of the binary mixture. The mixture of both species improves the nutritional quality in terms of crude protein. This combination does not modify the total yield of the mixture with respect to the pure culture of Grama Rhodes. The studied biotypes of both species combined in binary mixtures establish a relationship of quantitative complementation that is manifested in the first use.