Accumulated yield of clovers grown in a summer dry environment after three years

Abstract

A 2019 experiment quantified the productivity of clover monocultures in a summer dry environment. ‘Taipan’
and ‘Viper’ balansa clovers were the most productive in their first early spring (see Olykan et al. 2021). They set seed at the end of Year 1 but there was poor establishment in Year 2. The unexpected reestablishment of high balansa populations in Year 3 prompted the experiment’s continuation to study balansa growth alongside ‘Woogenellup’ sub and ‘Relish’ red clovers that were still persistent and productive. Over three years, the total yield during the annual clover growing season (~late winter to early summer) was ~20.0 t DM/ha for sub and red clover, which was higher than the ~13.3 t for the balansa cultivars due to its re-establishment failure. In Year 3, the final accumulated yield from the best plot areas of all clovers, including balansa, was ~3.6 t DM/ha. Supported by sufficient early summer rainfall (i.e., 50+ mm), red clover provided an additional summer yield of 1.7 t in Year 2 and 7.2 t DM/ha in Year 3. The results confirmed that the growth rate and yield patterns of sub clover (late winter to late spring) and red clover (Late spring to mid-summer) are complementary. The possible reasons for the failure of balansa clover to re-establish in Year 2 relate to hot and dry conditions in 2020. Under these conditions, management options for balansa may require the inclusion of other pasture
species.