Forage Information

Forage is plant material (mainly plant leaves and stems) eaten by grazing livestock.^[1] Historically the term forage has meant only plants eaten by the animals directly as pasture, crop residue, or immature cereal crops, but it is also used more loosely to include similar plants cut for fodder and carried to the animals, especially as hay or silage.^[2]

While the term forage has a broad definition, the term forage crop is used to define crops, annual or biennal, which are grown to be utilized by grazing or harvesting as a whole crop.^[3]

Common forages

Grasses

^[4]

• Andropogon hallii
• Brachiaria decumbens
• Brachiara humidicola
• Bothriochloa pertusa
• Bothrioochloa bladhii
• Heteropogon contortus
• Themeda triandra
• Guinea grass (Panicum maximum)
• Cenchrus ciliaris
• Melinis minutiflora
• Setaria sphacelata
• Chloris guyana
• Cynodon dactylon
• Paspalum dilatatum
• Hyparrhenia rufa
• Echinochloa pyrmaidalis
• Leersia hexandra
• Hymenachne amplexicaulis
• Entolasia imbricata
• Intermediate wheatgrass (Thinopyrum intermedium)
• Bluegrasses or meadow-grasses (Poa species)
  • Kentucky bluegrass or smooth meadow-grass (Poa pratensis)
  • Rough meadow-grass (Poa trivialis)
  • Texas bluegrass (Poa arachnifera)
• Bromegrass or brome (Bromus species)
• False oat-grass (Arrhenatherum elatius)
• Fescues (Festuca species):
  • Red fescue (Festuca rubra)
  • Meadow fescue (Festuca pratensis)
  • Tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea)
• Orchard grass or cock's-foot (Dactylis glomerata)
• Reed canary-grass (Phalaris arundinacea)
• Ryegrasses (Lolium species):
  • Annual or Italian ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum)
  • Perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne)
• Timothy-grass or timothy (Phleum pratense)

Herbaceous Legumes

^[5]

• Stylosanthes scabra
• Stylosanthes humilis
• Chamaecrista rotundifolia
• Macroptilium atropurpeum
• Macroptilium bracteatum
• Medicago truncatula
• Glycine wightii
• Clitoria ternatea
• Arachis pintoi
• Vigna parkeri
• Alfalfa or lucerne (Medicago sativa)
• Bird's-foot trefoil (Lotus corniculatus)
• Clovers (Trifolium species):
  • Alsike clover (Trifolium hybridum)
  • Crimson clover (Trifolium incarnatum)
  • Red clover (Trifolium pratense)
  • White clover (Trifolium repens)
• Sainfoin (Onobrychis viciifolia)
• Sweetclover or melilot (Melilotus species)
• Vetches (Vicia species)
  • Common vetch or tare (Vicia sativa)
  • Hairy vetch (Vicia villosa)
  • Bitter vetch (Vicia ervilia)
  • Vicia articulata Hornem
  • Vicia narbonensis

Tree Legumes

• Leucaena leucocephala
• Albizia lebbeck
• Acacia aneura

Silage

Silage may be composed by one of the following^[6]

• Corn (maize)
• Alfalfa
• Grass-legume mix
• Sorghums
• Oats

Crop residue

• Sorghum
• Corn (maize) stover
• Soybean stover

See also

• Grass-fed beef
• Forage fish
• Forage (honeybee) can also refer to the plants that produce nectar, in the context of the animals that gather it, such as honeybees.
• Foraging, a method of finding food
• Hunter-gatherers, humans who survive by foraging

References

1. ^ Fageria, N.K. (1997). Growth and Mineral Nutrition of Field Crops. NY,NY: Marcel Dekker. pp. 595.
2. ^ Fageria, N.K. (1997). Growth and Mineral Nutrition of Field Crops. NY,NY: Marcel Dekker. pp. 583.
3. ^ Givens, D. Ian (2000). Forage evaluation in ruminant nutrition. CABI. pp. 1. ISBN 978-0851993447. http://books.google.com/books?id=78WIrCCJW-MC&pg=PA1&dq=forage+definition&hl=en&ei=wxRKTca8EIbZgQfi2Y3mDw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=book-thumbnail&resnum=2&ved=0CEwQ6wEwAQ#v=onepage&q=forage%20definition&f=false.
4. ^ Murphy, Bill (1998). Greener Pastures On Your Side of the Fence. Colchester, Vermont: Arriba Publishing. pp. 19–20.
5. ^ Murphy, Bill (1998). Greener Pastures On Your Side of the Fence. Colchester, Vermont: Arriba Publishing. pp. 20.
6. ^ George, J. Ronald (1994). Extension Publications: Forage and Grain Crops. Dubuque,Iowa: Kendall/Hunt. pp. 152.

Categories: Livestock | Forages

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