Change in Botanical Composition, Dry Matter Yield and Forage Quality of Grassland After Five Seasons of Extensification

Extensification of grassland management in Germany has 2 major objectives (I) to reduce the surplus of crop and animal products, and (2) to diminish unwanted side effects against the environment from intensive production systems. Some of the programmes on offer require a reduced number of cuttings and grazings per season, including a very late first cut of the sward and a reduction of nitrogen fertiliser. In a 5-yenr experiment at the grassland research station Rengen, Eifel-mountain-range, Germany, extensification of this type on productive grassland sites created an unbalanced botanical composition and, with nitrogen applied, a major portion of quackgrass in the stand. In contrast, an intensive grassland- management system with frequent cuts suppressed quackgrass and created a botanical composition with better forage quality. The higher digestibility and higher crude protein concentration in turn means that much more nitrogen can be recycled than in extensive management systems.