Is soil fertility a factor limiting pasture production and persistence in New Zealand?
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.33584/jnzg.2025.87.3723Abstract
Clover-based pastures are an important foundation on which New Zealand’s $38b pastoral sector is based. However, clover has a higher requirement for all nutrients than the associated companion grasses and does not persist when the soil fertility is less than optimal. This paper summarises data on the nutrient status of pastoral soils in New Zealand collected in the last 20 odd years. It is found that most New Zealand
pastoral soils are sub-optimal in respect to optimal clover growth. It is suggested that this is a factor limiting the production and persistence of clover-based pastures in New Zealand. The data suggest that many New Zealand pastures are operating at about 60%-80% of potential pasture production.
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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License. Rights granted to the New Zealand Grassland Association through this agreement are non-exclusive. You are free to publish the work(s) elsewhere and no ownership is assumed by the NZGA when storing or curating an electronic version of the work(s). The author(s) will receive no monetary return from the Association for the use of material contained in the manuscript. If I am one of several co-authors, I hereby confirm that I am authorized by my co-authors to grant this Licence as their agent on their behalf. For the avoidance of doubt, this includes the rights to supply the article in electronic and online forms and systems.
