Protein content and yield of grasses in the wet tropics as influenced by seasonal productivity, frequency of cutting and species

Abstract

Grasses cut at monthly, two-monthly and three-monthly intervals showed (a) minimum values for protein content during the "zenith" period of productivity, (b) a high level of protein content in the period following establishment and during the "low" period of productivity, and (c) transition from high to low protein values and vice versa during the "rapid increase" and "rapid decrease" periods of productivity, ie., there is a negative corelation between dry-matter yield and protein content.