CULTIVATION PRACTICES OF LEGUMINOUS ANNUAL FODDER CROPS
BERSEEM OR EGYPTAIN CLOVER
It is a widely cultivated legume fodder in sub-tropical conditions, or in winter in tropics. It is an annual crop. This crop requires cool temperatures, but is highly susceptible to frost. High temperatures can suppress growth but stimulate flowering and seed formation.
It cannot tolerate water logging. It grows on all soil types, but heavy soils are good. It can tolerate soil salinity and alkalinity.
Varieties
Mescawi,Varada, JB-1,2&3,UPB-103.
Thorough land preparation is required. Later small sized beds are formed. Beds are flooded with 5 cm of water and berseem seeds, soaked in water overnight are broadcast in the standing water. For uniform distribution seed is mixed with equal quantity of fine earth or soil. This is called wet method of sowing. Berseem can also be sown line other crops adopting dry method of sowing.
The optimum time of sowing is October. The seed rate is 20-30 kg/ha for broadcast sowing.
Before sowing the seed is inoculated with Rhizobium culture. The fertilizer requirement is 25:30:40kg of NPK/ha. The entire dose of fertilizers is applied basally at the time of sowing. This crop may show deficiency symptoms of trace elements like boron (B) and molybdenum (Mo). As such, B in the form of borax @ 1. 0kg/ha, Mo in the form of ammonium molybdate@1.0-1.5 kg/ha is applied basally. This practice results in increased forage yields. Application of farm yard manure@10-15t/ha should be a regular practice for better growth of berseem.
Water requirement of this crop is high compared to oats and lucerne. This crop requires frequent irrigations. Initially irrigations are given at weekly intervals, later at 8-10 days during winter and 6-7 days during hot weather period.
Weed control in this crop is difficult because of broadcast sowing. This crop requires atleast one hand weeding. Dodder (Cuscuta sp.) is a problem in this crop. In case of infestation with cuscuta the field should be kept free of this weed by repeated hand weedings. Chicory (Chicorium intybus) is an associated weed of berseem fields. Admixture of chicory seed with berseem seed is most common. Feeding chicory plants causes scouring in animals. Seed of berseem should not be collected when the field is infested with chicory. Always use weed free seed of berseem to avoid the problem of chicory. Pre-sowing removal of chicory seed by 10% common salt solution is a simple and effective technique to separate the chicory seed from berseem seed. If the soil if infested with chicory, pre-sowing irrigation to germinate the chicory seed followed by cross-harrowing is beneficial to reduce the weed problem. After this operation, normal sowing of berseem can bedone.
Berseem is ready for cutting in 50-60 days and subsequent cuts are taken at 35-40 days interval. Totally 4-6 cuts can be obtained. In early summer, the cutting interval can be 25-30 days. The average green fodder yield is 45-55t/ha over all the cuttings. The last cut is allowed to flower and seed is collected. Berseem is a self pollinated crop. Cross pollination is also important. The average seed yield is 500-600 kg/ha.
Crude protein content of berseem fodder is 17-18% on dry weight basis.
Berseem is usually grown as pure crop. In north India, it is usually rotated with crops like cotton, chillies, sugarcane etc. Intercropping is rarely seen. In case of early sowing it is intercropped with rape seed and also oats.
It is mainly fed as green fodder. Continues sole feeding with early morning dew on it may lead to the problem of bloat in animals. Berseem can be conserved as hay, but great care is needed to prevent loss of leaf. During the process of hay making there will be heavy leaf fall because of the differences in the drying of leaf and stalk. Berseem is not suitable for silage making.
HORSEGRAM
It is a low spreading sub erecting manual with alternate trifoliate leaves, partially climbing in nature and reaching to a height of 30-50cm. Flowers are creamy yellow in color. The seeds are 4-7 in a pod, brown to black or mottled with a hard spiny seed coat.
Makes an excellent forage for all livestock particularly for milch animals. It requires optimum temperature of 20-30oC and rainfall of 900mm. The crop cannot withstand water logging conditions. In India it is cultivated in light sandy soils, red loams and black cotton soils with gravel.
Varieties
BR-10, BR-5, NO-35 and DB-7
Seed rate is 45kg/ha with row spacing of 30 cm. Does not need much manuring. Supplementation of superphosphate @50kg, nitrogen@30kg and phosphoric acid 60 kg will enhance the fodder yield. Requires irrigation at regular intervals for every 15 days. Harvesting is done at flowering time, normally in about 4.5 months after sowing. Yield is 25-30 t of green fodder/ha. The seed yield is 3.5-6.5q/ha. It is usually cultivated as mixed crop with bajra .
COWPEA OR LOBIA
It is an annual herb and has different growth habits like bushy or trailing or climbing nature. The seeds are also of different sizes and colors. This crop is grown in tropics, sub- tropics and warm temperature regions.
It is grown for feeding in green form, for grazing, for hay making or for ensiling in mixtures with sorghum or maize.
It can be grown in all the three seasons. It is suitable for year round cultivation.
Varieties
Russian giant, Bundel lobia 1 and 2, EC-4216, UPC-5286 and locals.
Cowpea is sown at a row spacing of 30 cm adopting a seed rate of 30-40 kg/ha. When it is sown by broadcasting, the seed rate can be as high as 100kg/ha. Nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium fertilizers are applied @25-30:60:30-40kg/ha, all at the time of sowing. Inoculation with rhizobium culture is important if the crop is grown for the first time.
Summer crop needs irrigation at 12-15 days interval. The crop is seldom weeded because it has highest weed smothering efficiency. For green fodder, it can be cut at 60-70 days, usually at 50% flowering stage. Only one cut is taken from this crop. The average green fodder yield is 30-35 t/ha with a crude protein content of 17- 18% on dry weight basis. Usually it is sown as an inter crop with maize, sorghum or bajra in 2:1 or 2:2 ratios.
SUNNHEMP
It is an erect, shrubby annual. It is grown for fibre, green manuring and also as fodder.The fodder can be fed either green or dry. However, it is most commonly used after conserving in the form of hay. This crop can be grown on a wide variety of soil, but heavy, water logged and saline soils are not suitable. It is grown in kharif and rabi season. In parts of Andhra Pradesh (Krishna and West Godavari) it is grown after paddy (relay cropping system). It is converted into hay and stacked in alternate layers with paddy straw.
Varieties
All locals, laxmi(developed at A.R.S.,Mudhole) and K-12 yellow.
The seed rate is 30-40kg/ha and when the crop is sown by broadcasting, the seed rate can go up to 90-100kg/ha.
Usually fertilizers are not used. However, 40-50kg P2O5 /ha can be applied as basal in the form of single super phosphate. It is grown with residual soil moisture after paddy and kharif crop is rainfed. Weeding is seldom practiced. The average green fodder yield is 20-25t/ha.
PILLIPESARA
It is a popular legume in delta regions of Andhra Pradesh. It is useful as fodder and also for green manuring. It comes up well on all soil types. It is usually grazed (pasture legume). Commonly it is grown as a relay crop after paddy.
As a permanent pasture it can be sown by broadcasting seed @25-30 kg/ha and rational grazing is practiced and animals are allowed only after the pods have set seed in the first year.
The average green fodder yield is 15-20t/h
| Cultivation practice | Sorghum | Maize | Pearl millet | Oats | Cowpea |
| Varieties | Single cut | African tall, J-1006, Vijaya composite, Ganga-5, are some important fodder varieties | Multicut varieties Moti bajra Gaint bajra, BAIF bajra | Kent, OS-6, | Vijaya UPC-5286, |
| P.C-6, P.C.-23, M.P. chari, U.P.chari -1, and 2, CSV-30F, Multicut varieties SSG 59-3 Hara Sona, X-988, SafedMoti, Jumbo, MFSH-8, CoFS 29, 32 | RO 19 | Bundel lobia-1, | |||
| Multicut Hybrids are CSH24MF, CSH20MF | Bundel lobia-2 | ||||
| Soils | All types of soils | All types of soils. Well drain soils much suitable | Well drain soils, light and black soils | Well drain soils, light and black soils | Well drain soils, light and black soils |
| Sowing time | Kharif : June-Aug, September. Rabi: Oct-Nov. Summer: Jan-April | Kharif : June-July, Rabi: Oct-Nov. Summer: Jan-Feb | Kharif : June-July, Rabi: Oct-Nov. | October november | Kharif : June-July, Rabi: Oct-Nov. Summer: Jan-Feb |
| Seed rate kg/ac | 15-Dec | 20-25 | 7-May | 25-30 | 15-18 |
| Spacing | 30 X 10 cm | 30 X 10 cm | 30 X 10 cm | 25 cm | 30 X 10 cm |
| Recommended dose of fertilizers(NPK kg per acre) | FYM 4-5 tones Rainfed crop:24:16:12 | FYM 4-5 tones Rainfed crop:24:16:12 Irrigated: 40:16:12 NPK | FYM 4-5 tones Rainfed crop:24:16:12 | 24:16;12 at time of sowing | Nitrogen 8 Phosporous16 |
| Irrigated: 40:16:12 NPK | Irrigated: 40:16:12 NPK | ||||
| Apply 8kg nitrogen after every cut | |||||
| Harvesting time | First cut at 50% flowering time. Subsequent cuts 45 days after first cut | Milky grain or dough grain stage or 75 days to 85 DAS | First cut at 50% flowering time. Subsequent cuts 30 days after first cut | 50% flowering time. 60-65 DAS | 50% flowering time. 60-65 DAS |
| Green fodder yield tonnes/ acre | Single cut: | Irrigated:14-16 Irrigated:20-25 | Irrigated 6-8 Irrigated:12-14 | 15-Dec | Irrigated 8-10 |
| Irrigated:14-16 Irrigated:18-20 | Multicut 32t/ac/3cuts | ||||
| Multicut: | |||||
| 1st cut 16-18 subsequent cuts 8-10 | |||||
| Other information | For weed control spray Atrazine @3g per liter of water as pre emergence weedicide | Seed treatment with capton or Thiram @3g per kg seed | Crude protein content:8-10% | Suitable for low temparature areas of Telangana | Weed control spray Pendimithalin @5ml per litre of water with in 48 hrs of sowing |
| *Crude protein content:7-6% | For weed control spray Atrazine @4g per liter of water as pre emergence weedicide | ||||
| *Crude protein content:8-10% |