New Zealand Journal of Agricultural Research abstracts

---

Sustainability of New Zealand high-country pastures under contrasting development inputs. 8. Modelling sheep carrying capacity

D. Scott

AgResearch
P.O. Box 60
Lincoln, New Zealand

Abstract   Quantitative tabular and non-linear mathematical response functions between sheep-grazing carrying capacities, S and P fertiliser rates, S and P soil tests, stocking-rate, stocking-method, irrigation, and year-to-year climate variation, were derived from empirical measurements reported previously. The best fitting of the fertiliser response functions was a polynomial quadratic response with the square root of S and P fertiliser rates. Reliability factors were associated with each of the estimates. The model multipliers show that carrying capacity increased up to a x4.8 increase with S and P fertiliser, x1.2 with K and micro-nutrient fertiliser, x0.6-1.2 with annual climate variation, x3.3 with irrigation, and x0.6 for set-stocking compared with mob-stocking.

Keywords   New Zealand; high country; sustainability; response functions; modelling; decision support systems

A01021 Received 16 July 2001; accepted 8 April 2002; published 30 September 2002
New Zealand Journal of Agricultural Research, 2002, Vol. 45: 151-163
0028-8233/02/4503-0151 $7.00/0 © The Royal Society of New Zealand 2002

PDF file of entire paper: Print-quality (96K) | screen-quality (84K)

---

This year's abstracts | Journal home page | All abstracts | Publishing home page