Background: Mixtures with birdsfoot trefoil (BFT) increase herbage intake in grazing cattle. We hypothesized that BFT spatially separated from grasses would increase preferential grazing of BFT and herbage intake compared to grass and BFT in mixed rows.

Methods: Binary mixtures of BFT were established with orchardgrass, meadow bromegrass, tall fescue, and perennial ryegrass in alternating and in mixed rows. Pastures were rotationally stocked with Jersey heifers, and herbage mass, intake, and preferential grazing were estimated.

Results: Planting BFT in alternating rows did not affect herbage mass, intake, or BFT preference. Regardless of spatial arrangement, pasture production averaged 4116 kg ha^–1 per rotation, of which 32% was BFT. BFT comprised 39% of herbage intake in alternating and mixed rows, 7% greater (p = 0.001) than offered, indicating partial preference for BFT. Greatest preferential grazing of BFT was in tall fescue and orchardgrass mixtures, but less than commonly reported for legumes grown in more contrasting spatial arrangements with cool-season grasses.

Conclusions: Grazing heifers showed partial preference for BFT over grass. However, the lack of an effect of spatial arrangement on herbage mass, herbage intake, and diet preference indicates that spatial arrangements greater than alternating rows may be needed to increase overall herbage intake.

Background: Arundo donax L. has great potential as an energy crop due to its high biomass yield and broad adaptability, while lack of a reference genome is a hindrance to genetic improvement efforts for this species.

Methods: Genome assembly of A. donax was conducted by utilizing PacBio SMRT sequencing and high-throughput chromosome conformation capture technology, with further analysis exploring the plant’s ploidy, whole-genome duplication event, and evolutionary history through comparative genomics.

Results: The genome assembly of A. donax consists of 1.30 Gb with a contig N50 size of 33.15 Mb. A total of 74 403 gene models were identified, with over 90% of genes being functionally annotated. Karyotype and synteny analyses revealed that A. donax is an autoalloenneaploid (3n = 9x = 108) and has experienced significant gene family expansion and two whole-genome duplication events during its evolutionary history. Furthermore, utilizing the genome assembly, a variety of salinity stress-related genes were uncovered through the analysis of public RNA-seq data.

Conclusions: This study presents the initial chromosome-scale genome assembly of A. donax, which will advance genetic comprehension and support the genetic enhancement of this important energy crop.

Background: Evaluation of forage resources is vital for the sustainability of livestock farming in the South American Andes, especially under conditions of low water availability for irrigation and acid soils.

Methods: We evaluated the productivity and nutritive value of two cultivars of chicory (Cichorium intybus L.) and one of plantain (Plantago lanceolata L.) in three high-altitude sites (AL) of the northern highlands of Peru: AL-I: 2300–2800 m.a.s.l, AL-II: 2801–3300 m.a.s.l. and AL-III: 3301–3800 m.a.s.l., for 1 year. The parameters evaluated were dry matter yield (DMY), plant height (PH), growth rate (GR) and nutritional value.

Results: Plantain achieved the greatest annual DMY (ADMY), PH and GR compared to the two chicory cultivars (9.34, 9.56 and 13.39 Mg ha^–1 for Puna II and Sese 100 chicory and Tonic plantain, respectively; p = 0.0019). The greatest ADMY and GR occurred at AL-I. Regarding nutritional value, differences were observed only for in vitro digestibility of dry matter and metabolisable energy with chicory cultivars higher than plantain.

Conclusions: The results indicate that the three cultivars evaluated may be used as a nutritional supplement in cattle feed, associated with grasses because they have high nutritive value suitable for milk production in the mountain regions of Peru.

Background: Diet regulates rumen microbiota, which in turn affects animal health. The present study evaluated the response of rumen microbiota and the immune system of lambs to a fermented total mixed ration diet.

Methods: A total of 30 lambs were assigned into two groups: a group fed an unfermented high-fiber diet (total mixed ration [TMR]) and a group fed an fermented low-fiber diet (fermented TMR [FTMR]).

Results: The results showed that FTMR markedly (p < 0.05) increased average daily gain and dry matter intake compared to TMR. The FTMR diet increased the relative abundance of Veillonellaceae_UCG-001 and decreased the diversity of undesirable microbiota despite stable overall microbial community diversity. Serum metabolomic analysis combined with enrichment analysis showed that serum metabolites were affected by the FTMR and metabolic pathways, and the FTMR diet significantly (p < 0.05) influenced amino acid metabolism of lambs. There was a decrease in inflammatory factors in the FTMR treatment, indicating that inflammatory factors followed the same trajectory as changes in microbial community structure and function.

Conclusions: Overall, the FTMR diet reduced undesirable microbiota diversity, thereby regulating host amino acid metabolism and improving immune status.

Background: Only a few decades ago, colorful, small-scale, heterogeneous, and species-rich hay meadows or extensive pastures were common, but have often been replaced by species-poor, uniform, large-scale multicut meadows. Technological advancements and improved efficiency in grassland management have come at the cost of biodiversity.

Methods: In Germany, 150 grassland plots have been investigated since 2006. Using these extensive data, we propose a new compound index for estimating the site-specific mowing intensity in order to facilitate assessment of the impact of mowing intensity on biodiversity and ecosystem processes. Our index integrates the various qualitative components of mowing machine type, mowing height and use of a conditioner, with the annual number of cuts.

Results: The newly proposed index achieves a much finer gradation of mowing intensity compared to the previous quantification based on the number of cuts only. Furthermore, a decrease in plant and arthropod species was observed at higher mowing intensity.

Conclusions: The proposed mowing intensity index offers enhanced precision in calculations and can easily be integrated into assessments of land-use intensity in grasslands. Further, it could serve as a basis for providing subsidies to farmers, who adopt low-impact mowing practices.

Background: Plant phyllosphere microbes are important for the host plant’s protection. Plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) and Trichoderma are common biocontrol agents (BCAs) for disease management. Pathogens and BCAs can change the rhizosphere microbial composition; however, the effect of PGPR or Trichoderma on plant phyllosphere microbes, particularly for mesocosms involving the interaction between pathogens and BCAs, is not well known.

Methods: High-throughput sequencing was used to identify the phyllosphere bacterial community of common vetch interacting with Colletotrichum spinaciae, two PGPRs (Bacillus subtilis and Bacillus licheniformis), and Trichoderma longibrachiatum. We evaluated anthracnose severity, phyllosphere bacteria diversity and composition, and the relationship between the activities of plant defense enzymes and hormonal molecules in plants treated with individual and combined inoculations of PGPRs, Trichoderma, and C. spinaciae.

Results: PGPR or Trichoderma alone reduced disease severity. Trichoderma reduced the salicylic acid content, PGPR increased the catalase activity in plants, and co-inoculation of PGPR and Trichoderma decreased the salicylic acid content. Inoculation of PGPR and Trichoderma individually or in combination changed the disease-associated phyllosphere bacteria, and this effect was related to plant defense enzymes and hormonal molecules.

Conclusions: We suggest that the plant defense response induced by PGPR and Trichoderma results in the enrichment of a fraction of favorable chloroplastic bacteria, which facilitates plant defense against diseases.

Background: Using winter fallow fields for plant forage is important to ensure food security. Forage triticale (× Triticosecale) has higher yields than other available forage crops and can be planted widely in winter fallow fields. Recently, the planted area of forage triticale in Shanxi Province, China, has exceeded 3500 ha; however, problems such as low farmer willingness to plant (WTP) winter forage still remain.

Methods: A total of 219 farmers were surveyed in Taiyuan, Lvliang, and Jinzhong. We analyzed the factors influencing farmer WTP forage triticale, focusing on personal, family, land, and cognition characteristics. We used a binary logistic regression model to quantify the influence of various factors on farmer behavior and conducted a robustness check and heterogeneity analysis.

Results: “Age” was negatively correlated with farmer WTP—farmers 50 years of age and older showed less WTP. “Land lease situation” was also negatively correlated with WTP. Factors that positively correlated with WTP were “land areas,” “raising of livestock,” “size of labor force,” and “development prospect.”

Conclusions: Many farmers are over 50 years of age, land lessors, and have low WTP winter forage. Farmers who raise livestock and have large labor forces, huge land areas, and good cultivation prospects have a high WTP. This study identifies the factors influencing farmers’ WTP to assist in the development of the forage triticale industry in the study region, improving land resource utilization and efficiency. The findings are likely to have wider relevance and application.