Bkl P13 WR Buffel Grasses (Cenchrus ciliaris L.) on Different Gidyea Soils - January 1963 to December 1970

Abstract

This project compared five different buffel grass (Cenchrus ciliaris L.) cultivars on four different gidyea soils in the Blackall district for their growth, nutritive value, palatability to sheep and persistence. The cultivars were American, Biloela, Gayndah, Nunbank and West Australian. Some informal comparisons were also made between these buffels and other pasture grasses commonly sown in nearby brigalow country. The information has been gathered in 2020 from surviving archival files and thus remains incomplete in some aspects. The results presented represent primarily what was known and published by the early 1970s rather than an interpretation in light of knowledge at the time of writing 50 years later. Replicated sowings were done in 30 x 30 link (36m2) plots within a fenced area of about one third of an acre (0.14 ha) into existing West Australian buffel pastures without additional fertilizer after rotary hoeing in late January 1963. The neutral to alkaline soils were characterized in detail for the surface 0-2 (0-5cm) and 2-8 inch (5-20cm) layers.
Descriptive recordings were made of the establishment success in every plot and then of the palatability of each species to sheep, the heat and moisture stress tolerance of species and cultivars, and the general vigour of each sown line. Particularly detailed sampling was carried out over several years at one site to document the chemical composition of each buffel cultivar at three growth stages, pre-flowering, peak end-of-summer growth and late winter frosted material.