Effects of replacing timothy silage by alsike clover silage on performance,carcass traits and meat quality of finishing Aberdeen Angus and Nordic Red bulls

The objective of the study was to determine the effects of silage plant species and cattle breed on performance and meat quality of finishing bulls. A feeding experiment was conducted using thirty Aberdeen Angus (AA) and thirty Nordic Red (NR) bulls. Both breeds were randomly allotted to three experimental diets. The composition (g kg^?1 dry matter) of the diets was as follows: (i) timothy silage (TS) (650) and barley (350); (ii) TS (325), alsike clover silage (AS) (325) and barley (350); and (iii) AS (650) and barley (350). The bulls were fed a total mixed ration ad libitum. Replacing TS by AS did not affect dry‐matter intake, growth, carcass conformation or meat quality traits of the bulls, but carcass fat score tended to decrease when replacing TS by AS (P = 0·07). The AA bulls grew faster and had better feed conversion and superior carcass conformation compared with the NR bulls (P < 0·001). The loin of the AA bulls had lower shear force value and was given higher scores in sensory analyses compared with the NR bulls (P < 0·01). The experiment demonstrated that replacing TS by AS in the diet of finishing bulls had minor effects on performance or meat quality.     

Estimates of heritability for,and relationships between,root and shoot characters of white clover. I. Replicated clonal material

Summary A total of 749 genotypes from a number of white clover (trifolium repens L.) cultivars and populations, many collected from dryland areas, were cloned and grown in field titles. Several morphological characters, including leaf size, number and diameter of large nodal roots (taproots), and proportion of root weight that was classified as taproot were measured. There was large variation between lines and genotypes for all characters measured, and differences between genotypes within lines are also reported. Broad sense heritability estimates were higher (>0.5) for leaflet width, petiole length and stolon diameter, than for all root character heritability estimates which were between 0.2 and 0.4.     

白三叶种子催芽技术与育苗基质的研究

以白三叶(Trifoliu mrepens)种子为试验材料,研究水浸时间、育苗基质类型、不同浓度赤霉素与硝酸钾浸种处理对白三叶种子发芽的影响。结果表明,水浸24h可极显著提高种子发芽指数、萌发活力指数、发芽势和发芽率,与未浸种的相比发芽率可提高10%-13%;基质类型对种子的发芽指数和萌发活力指数影响均达到显著水平,种子较适合的催芽浓度与育苗基质组合为50mg·L-2赤霉素、0.2%硝酸钾、园土∶沙∶泥炭土=2∶1∶1,平均发芽率达31.67%,平均萌发活力指数达42.212。     

Improved growth and Cu tolerance of Cu excess-stressed white clover after inoculation with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi

The effects of arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungus, Glomus intraradices, on growth and copper (Cu) tolerance of white clover (Trifolium repens) were investigated in soils with different Cu amounts. The AM inoculation increased plant biomass and the total or bound Cu concentrations in shoots and roots but decreased the total Cu in soils and the exchangeable Cu in shoots, roots and soils at all Cu levels. Mycorrhizal plants had higher levels of root phosphorus and shoot zinc (Zn) at lower Cu levels and more nitrogen and Zn in roots and potassium, calcium and magnesium in shoots and roots at all Cu addition levels. Additionally, AM inoculation enhanced urease, acid phosphatase and catalase activities in rhizosphere soils and mycorrhizal roots showed higher levels of peroxidase, catalase, proline and soluble sugar at all Cu addition levels. These results indicate that mycorrhizal white clover is potentially suitable for Cu phytoremediation based on greenhouse studies.     

镉胁迫对白车轴草生长、镉含量及养分分配的影响

为了解镉(Cd)胁迫对白车轴草(Tritolium repens L.)生长发育以及养分的吸收、累积与分配的影响,采用盆栽试验,研究了不同浓度镉处理下白车轴草幼苗的生长、生物量及碳(C)、氮(N)、磷(P)和钾(K)的积累与分配特征。结果表明:随镉胁迫浓度增加,植株幼苗叶面积、主根长、侧根数、侧根长及地上部高先升高后降低,叶柄长明显降低;而根、茎、叶中镉含量逐渐升高,且根系大于茎叶。同时,植物各器官生物量生产及C、N、P和K积累量均表现出随镉添加量的增加而先升高后降低,高浓度镉胁迫处理(50.00、100.00和200.00 mg·kg-1)明显抑制植株生物量生产以及C、N、P和K的积累,显著改变了生物量及其C、N、P和K积累量的分配格局,但低浓度镉处理(12.50mg·kg-1)却无明显影响。一定浓度的镉胁迫处理(12.50和25.00 mg·kg-1)降低植株N、P、K的利用效率,但高浓度镉处理(200.00 mg·kg-1)则提高植株N、P、K的利用效率。本研究为城市园林绿化及镉污染土壤的修复提供了应用潜力,同时也为牧草的安全评估提供了科学借鉴。     

偃麦草种质资源遗传多样性的RAPD分析

通过对DNA提取方法及RAPD反应体系进行探讨,建立了适应偃麦草基因组DNA提取的方法及优化的RAPD反应体系。在此基础上,依据Jaccard相似系数,采用UPGMA方法进行聚类,判定32份偃麦草种质材料间的亲缘关系及遗传多样性。结果表明:(1)改良常规CTAB法,即对样品先进行洗涤并提高CTAB含量到3%可提高偃麦草DNA的提取质量。(2)对100条随机引物进行筛选,共筛选出18条多态性高、重复性好的随机引物,以此对32份材料进行PCR扩增,共扩增出264条带,多态性条带为93.7%。(3)以遗传相似系数为依据,对32份偃麦草材料进行聚类分析,在相似系数为0.373处可将供试偃麦草种质资源划分为5大类群。     

Cutting regime determines allocation of fixed nitrogen in white clover

Leguminous leys are important sources of nitrogen (N), especially in forage-based animal production and organic cropping. Models for estimating total N₂ fixation of leys—including below-ground plant-derived N (BGN)—are based on grazed or harvested leys. However, green manure leys can have different proportions of above-ground plant-derived N (AGN) and BGN when subjected to different cutting regimes. To investigate the effects of cutting on N distribution in white clover, a pot experiment was carried out using ¹⁵N techniques to determine N₂ fixation, N rhizodeposition and root C and N content of cut and uncut white clover (Trifolium repens L. cv. Ramona) plants. Percentage N derived from air (%Ndfa) was lower in uncut (63%) than in cut (72%) plants, but total Ndfa was not significantly affected by cutting. The higher reliance on N₂ fixation in cut plants was thus counterbalanced by lower biomass and total N content. With BGN taken into account, total plant-derived N increased by approximately 50% compared with AGN only. Cutting did not affect the proportion of BGN to standing shoot biomass N after regrowth, but decreased the proportion of BGN to total shoot biomass production during the entire growth period. Thus, estimates of N fixation in green manure leys should consider management practices such as cutting regime, as this can result in differences in above- and below-ground proportions of plant-derived N.     

不同盐胁迫对白三叶种子萌发及幼苗生长的影响

采用不同浓度的NaCl、Na₂CO₃、Na₂SO₄溶液以及NaCl和Na₂CO₃ 的混合液,NaCl、Na₂CO₃和Na₂SO₄的混合液对白三叶种子进行胁迫处理,每个处理3个重复,测定白三叶种子的发芽率、发芽势、发芽指数、活力指数以及幼苗根长和苗高等指标。结果表明,与对照相比,随着NaCl、Na₂CO₃以及NaCl和Na₂CO₃ 混合液浓度的增加,白三叶的发芽率、发芽势、发芽指数、活力指数及幼苗的根长和苗高均呈下降趋势。随着Na₂SO₄及NaCl、Na₂CO₃和Na₂SO₄混合液浓度的增加,白三叶种子的发芽率、发芽势、发芽指数、活力指数呈先上升后下降趋势,幼苗的根长和苗高呈下降趋势。白三叶种子对不同类型盐的耐受性各异,对NaCl、Na₂CO₃、Na₂SO₄的耐受浓度阈值分别为300 mmol/L,100 mmol/L,150 mmol/L。     

白三叶叶片荧光特性对水分胁迫的响应

[目的]从生理角度研究白三叶(Trifolium repens)叶片叶绿素荧光参数对水分胁迫的响应.[方法]以白三叶品种"海发"为供试材料,设置75%(无胁迫,CK)、50%(轻度胁迫,LD)和25%(重度胁迫,HD)3个土壤含水量水平对植株进行培养,测定水分胁迫对一系列叶绿素荧光参数的影响,并进行统计学分析.[结果]土壤相对含水量为75%和50%时,白三叶叶片叶绿素荧光参数受到的影响不大,说明白三叶在这2种水分条件下能够正常生长;土壤相对含水量为25%时,初始荧光后极显著高于CK和LD处理,原初光能转化效率(Fv/Fm)、PS Ⅱ电子传递量子产量(φPS Ⅱ)和光化学猝灭系数显著降低.[结论]白三叶在重度干旱(HD)条件下,生理机能遭到破坏,不能正常生长,表现出旱害症状.     

Contribution of White Clover Varieties in High-Productivity Systems under Grazing and Cutting

Two medium leaf size varieties of white clover (Trifolium repens L.) were grown in mixture with a range of grass species and varieties in a field experiment conducted over 4 years. The clovers were grown singly or as a blend in swards with a tetraploid perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.), a diploid Italian ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum L.) or tetraploid hybrids between these two species (Lolium x boucheanum Kunth). These grasses were also grown in monoculture. Swards were managed in a regime involving two periods of sheep grazing, two periods of cattle grazing and a silage cut in the same year for 4 years. The objectives of this experiment were 3‐fold: (1) to examine the yield and persistency of white clover in highly productive systems with modern perennial, hybrid and Italian ryegrasses; (2) to compare the performance of white clover varieties grown singly in mixture with grasses with their performance together as a blend, and (3) to examine the persistency of new Italian ryegrass varieties, exemplified by AberComo. The clover content of the sward remained high throughout the experiment, with a mean of 31 % overall. Differences in clover yield between plots were largely attributable to the effects of companion grasses. Total yields were very similar in plots containing different clover varieties and in plots where these varieties had been grown singly or as a blend. Grass yields in mixture were greater than those in monoculture but showed similar relative rankings. The diploid Italian ryegrass variety AberComo showed an unexpectedly high yield in the 4th year of the experiment. The implications of these results for strategies for productive, sustainable agriculture using modern white clover and ryegrass varieties are discussed.