Abstract
During the past decade trials have shown the value of species-rich grasslands for farmland biodiversity.
On four highly productive dairy farms, where farming was combined with management of species-rich
grasslands and habitat creation for meadow birds, we analysed the value of these species-diverse swards
with respect to grass production and quality, farm management and biodiversity. Compared with grass,
herbs and legumes generally contained higher levels of minerals and their herbage offered more structure
in the cattle diet. Speeding up the creation of species-diverse swards is possible by reseeding with speciesrich
mixtures. On these farms a species richness of 17-30 species per 100 m-2 was obtained. Previous
research showed that replacement of 25-30% Lolium perenne silage by silage from comparable speciesrich
swards is possible without a decline in milk production. When highly productive dairy farms create
species-diverse swards on part of their acreage, it will be possible to produce healthy forage while also
providing a good habitat for meadow birds.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Title of host publication | Grassland and forages in high output dairy farming systems |
| Editors | A. van den Pol-van Dasselaar, H.F.M. Aarts, A. DeVliegher, A. Elgersma, D. Reheul, J.A. Reijneveld, J. Verloop, A. Hopkins |
| Place of Publication | Wageningen |
| Publisher | Nederlandse Vereniging voor Weide- en Voederbouw |
| Pages | 443-445 |
| Volume | 20 |
| ISBN (Print) | 9789090289618 |
| Publication status | Published - 2015 |
| Event | 18th Symposium of the European Grassland Federation Grassland and forages in high output dairy farming systems - Duration: 15 Jun 2015 → 17 Jun 2015 |
Conference/symposium
| Conference/symposium | 18th Symposium of the European Grassland Federation Grassland and forages in high output dairy farming systems |
|---|---|
| Period | 15/06/15 → 17/06/15 |