Little difference in the carbon balance of ryegrass/white clover- and plantain-dominated swards under dairy grazing

Abstract Incorporating plantain into grazed pasture swards is proposed as an approach to reduce nitrate leaching and nitrous oxide emissions. However, consideration must be given to potential emission-swapping, such as a reduction in soil carbon (C), which can contribute to increases in atmospheric CO 2 . We compared the net ecosystem C balance (NECB) of two adjacent newly-sown paddocks (~ 3 ha each) of (i) traditional ryegrass and white clover pasture (RyWC) and (ii) a pure plantain sward, to assess whether plantain was beneficial or detrimental for the carbon balance. The NECB was calculated by combining eddy covariance (EC) measurements of CO 2 with measurements and estimates of lateral C transfers. Concurrently, regular measurements of sward composition and properties were taken. During the approximately 2.5-year experiment, the RyWC sward had an NECB of −199 g C m −2 period −1 compared with −273 g C m −2 period −1 for the plantain sward. The slightly larger loss from the plantain sward was attributed to lower excretal C returns due to differences in grazing duration (13.9 days for the RyWC paddock, and 5.9 days for the plantain paddock) during the first year of grazing. In the second year, the grazing management of the two paddocks was the same, and the NECBs were comparable. Both pasture dry matter production and CO 2 uptake were similar between the swards, although the lower C content of the plantain resulted in smaller C exports by either harvest or grazing. We conclude that small differences in NECB (and assumed soil C) between a pure plantain sward and a traditional ryegrass and white clover sward are associated with management rather than pasture species.