New Zealand Journal of Agricultural Research abstracts
Sustainability of New Zealand high-country pastures under contrasting
development inputs. 3. Sheep carrying capacity
D. SCOTT
AgResearch
P.O. Box 60
Lincoln, New Zealand
Abstract Annual sheep-grazing-days over 14 years is reported
for two grazed, mixed-species pasture trials on a Pukaki/Tekapo high-country
soil. One compared 30 combinations of 5 superphosphate rates (0-500 kg
ha-1 yr-1) x 3 stocking rates x 2 stocking methods; the
other compared 27 combinations of P and S fertiliser (0-100 kg element
ha-1 yr-1). Carrying capacity increased with both S and P
fertiliser from 2.3 grazing-days/365 ha-1 yr-1 with zero
fertiliser, to 20.9 under high fertiliser and irrigation. Carrying capacity was
11-27% less under sustained or set-stocking than under mob stocking, the
difference increasing with mean carrying capacity. There were several time
trends in carrying capacity: a year to year fluctuation related to positive
effects of Sep-Dec rainfall and negative effect with March temperature; the
difference between treatments increasing in good years; an increase or decrease
to asymptote carrying capacity dependent on P fertiliser rate; and an
increasing positive effect of S fertiliser.
Keywords New Zealand; high country; fertiliser;
sustainability; carrying capacity
New Zealand Journal of Agricultural Research 2000, Vol. 43: 175-185
0028-8233/00/4302-0175 $7.00/0 (c) The Royal Society of New Zealand
2000
PDF file of entire paper: medium quality (2194K); (scanned from paper original: notes about this process)
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