 | Abstract 384Productivity of grass-legume pasture and its contribution to animal production in the tropics.Maeno,-N National Grassland Res. Inst., Nishinasuno, Tochigi 329-27, Japan. Tropical-Agriculture-Research-Series. 1985, No.18, 159-172; 20 ref. The contribution of legumes to increases in liveweight gain, particularly in the dry season, by cattle grazing legume/grass mixtures in the tropics is discussed. Particular attention is paid to a mixture of Brachiaria decumbens and Desmodium ovalifolium. Data on the relationships between liveweight gain and forage availability, protein content and proportion of legumes in the diet and between the relative selection index (percentage legume in diet/percentage legume on offer) and water balance, proportion of grass in the diet, K content and in vitro digestibility are presented graphically. This abstract relates to the following species: |