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-CIAl (COLOMBIA) 000038 
• 
SERIE SE-15-78 
lo. de SeptiElilDre. 1978 
. S!EM~NAR~O 
~Nr!E~NO 
nm rorENTIAL OF Andropo¡on sayarws IWlth IN nm OXISOL 
AND ULTlSOL SAVANNAS OF TROPlOO- AMERICA 
By 
C. A. JONBS :110 
111 Grass Agronomist, Beef Production Program. Centro Internacional de 
Agricul1:!lra Tropical (CIAr). Cali, Colombia-. 
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Beet' ls a staple roed In Latln Amel"lea. About 70",{. of Its beet' 
pl"'oductlon.ls In tl"opU::al reglone. Tropical America has á hlgher pel" , 
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caplta beef' cattle populatlon ttan Ner"th Amerlca. Western Eul"ope. ór· 
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Tropical Africa; however". beef'production per ¡,nimal and per capita 
bee' consumptión ar"e ~tat¡vely low (CIAT. 1978). 
Approximately 51% (850 mU~lon ha) 01' Tr"QPlcalAmerlca Is 
covered by OXisols 01" Ultlsols. Of thls total approximately 300 mUlion 
ha are covered by savanna vegetation and approximately 550 minion ha 
are covered by t'ol"est vegetation,' It has ,been estimated that 70 to 75% 
of these solls are well-dl"alned (CIAT, 1978; T. Cochrane. per"sonal 
communlcatlon). The pr"lnclpte bar"l"'lel'" te beet' productlon In these 
areas Is Inadequate year-round 'oraga supply caused by low soil 
fel"tlllt;y and son water stress, drought on wel1-drained solts and 
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floodlng 01" soU saturation en pool"ly-cll"ained solls. The Identification 
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and use ot' f'ol"aga specles bettel'" adapted to the soil and c1!matic 
condltlons of !:hese areas is one means of Increaslng beefproductton. 
Andropogon gayanus Kunth. commonly known as ~amba gl"ass or 
" Sadabahal" (India), Is a ll!!cl"ge tuf'ted perennial Afrlcán specles of 
considerable econcmlc importence in West At'rica (Bowden, 1964a.; de 
Leeuw and Brincl<man .. 197'4)., n:.has been,repol"'ted tÓ.show promise 
upon lntroductton Into Austratla,(Anon •• 1~0 anct 1952;' Graham, 1951; 
: Raid and Mntel"', 1970;, Intila (Chattel"jee. 1964), .Jamaica (Arlon., 
. . . . 
.1957), Bl"azll(Otel"o. 1961;' Eml"lch. 1972), and Colombia (CIAT. t9n 
and 1978). In.ágronomlc' tl"'lals tt has been 'repol"'ted te be easlly 
21 establiShed, h'lghly productlve .. '.palatable ro livestóck. ccmoo.tll:ile with 
... 
,·1 legurnes, and very resistan~ ~ drouQht stress, burnin9.and problem 
.'2 solls (.Ademosun, 1974; Whyte, MotI" and Coeper, 195.9; Bowden, 1963a; 
.3 
4 
Bogdan. 1977). The purpose·of this papel" ls te revíew the literature .. 
concerning ite bó~nlcal and agronomic'characteristlcs and tedeterTTllne 
11 lts potentlal as a foraga grass for the acid •. infertile, wel1-drained 
6 '5011s o .. Latin .Ame rica • 
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3. 
1 BOTANICAL CHAFJACTERISTICS 
. 2 Systematics. 
,,3 ,Andropogon gayanusKunth !.s' riormally divided {nto thr:-ee va!",ieties " 
4 (Bowden. 1964b): 
5 val". gayanus (Val". genul.nÍJs Hiu~k.) 
6 Joints 'and pedicels cUlate along one margin; pedicelled 
,7 splkelets glabrous; callus beard scanty; awn 1-2, cm long. 
e val". squamulatus. (Hochst.) Stapr. 
9 ,Jotnts and Pedlcels elUate, atong both margins; pedicelle.d 
10 ,spikelets ,scaberulous and pUbe,rulous; cailus beard denl¡le, 
11 'frontal and lateral; awn 2-3 cm long. 
12 val". 'blSquamulatus (HOchst.) Hack. 
13 Jotrits and pedieets ciUate on both margins, pe.dicelled 
14 spikelets hairy to vUlous; catlus beard dense. rronts, and 
15 lateral; awn ~-3 cm long. 
16 Other taxa. have been spllt o" from val"'. bisquamulatus.' Bol'" 
11 (elte.d 1n BOINden. 1964b) raeognlzes val"'. al"'g}'l"'ophoeus as a'mol"'~ hail"')' 
18 form'with pedlceUe.d spikeleq. plumose}y vtllous.and basalleaves vB-
IS lous. Foster (1962) racognlzes' val"'. tl"identatus as a largaly diploid 
20 form wtth jointsand pediceÍs cUlate ~ one slele and sessHe spik.6lets 
21 '6-9,mm long (see Bowden. 1964b). 
22' , ' " "Foster:d 962) hes ~Í"Id contlnUOUSva ..... tátion in tha degramar leal' 
hatrtness. leal' wtdth.,. and, the presl¡anc;e 01"> ab~ence of haira on the p'edi-
. .,' . 23 
24 ceUed spikelet:. a trait usad to dlstlngulsh val"'. squamulatus from val". 
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1 studted In detall'b,Y B~den (1964a). I~ Is a large perennlal grass form-
,,", ,,2 Ing, due to short I"'hizome lnter.nodes aríd Intl"'l!I.vaglnal branching. dense 
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,,3 tussocks to1 m in dlameter ando produclng larga inflorescences to 3 m ' 
4 tan. Its morphologlcal and anatomical characterlstics are almost en-
6 tlrel'y panlcolda The embryo. however. possesses two festucoid cha-
6 racters: it has an epiblastand lacks a scuteltar cleft. 
,'1 Va ...... sguamulatus and val"'. gayanus have not been stualed In 
8 detan. 
9 Dlstributlon • 
" • 10 Bowden (1964b) has d, scr.!bed the a~titudinal. geographiC''\l and ,: 
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11 climatlc dlstrlbutlon oF~. gayanus. In Africa'U occurs almo..¡t exclu,,:, 
12 sivel,Y between the 400 mm and the 1500 mm annual Isohyets except 
13 when locall'y favorable son and topographlcal conditions permit its 
1 
14 growth at lower annual ralnfall or when forest clearing practicE: : alloliv 
15 its extenslon Into higher r:-alnfal1 al"'eas normall,Y dominated by closed 
16 forast (Adejuwon. 1974). 
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Val"'. sqUamulatus ls a moderatet,Y vlgorous type not excee ling l.! 
m In height and Is the most widely dtstl"'ibuted 01' the three val"'ietlas. It 
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Is found on weU-drained soils throught tropical .Africa., NOl"'th 01' the 
equator It extends In a wlde belt between the Sahara and the equatol"'lal 
ralnforests fl"Om Senegal on the west to too Sudan and northern Uganda 
on the eut. South 01' the equator It Is found In the savannas' to 'the east 
and I!!outh 01', the equatorlal ralnforests in Zaire and as far 'south as 
MOzambique ánd the Transvaal In South .Al'rlca. lt occurs up to' 2300, 
and occaslonalt,Y to 2600 m. . ~. 
,Val"'. blsquamutatus ,ls a lal"ge vigorous type 'ol'tan exceeding 2 m· 
in he(ght. It (s I'cund on weH-dralned soU!!! to 2000 m aro has a 
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1 geographical d~stributlon almost idEln~lcal tO,that ol'var. sguamulatus 
2 north 01' the equato.... It does not occur south 01' the !'Iguator. Varieties 
3 squamulatus and bisguamulatus have .invaded man:'made savanna areas, 
4 throughout the nol"'thern part ef the fOl"'est zona in Nigel"'ia (Adejuwoo. 
6 1974). Val"'.'btsguamulatus has beén !ntl"'oduced tnto Colombia, South 
6 Amel"'ica and gr:-ovvs vigerouslywitli a blmodal rainfall distribut!on 01' 
C5. 
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,'1 ove,.. 1800.mm annually.,and wi,th, a single 5 menth dry seaSon and 2100 m in 
8 annual rainfan. 
9 Varo gayanus occurs en seasonally I'looded land in West Africa 
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10 where it forms aL-nost pur', stands (13ogdan. 1977; Bowden. 19~).: ~~ 
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11 .aJ.so occur's south 01' the eqt.:;atorial rainforeste in Za"ire. 
12 Va .... trldentatus Is shorter than val"'. bisguamulatus and occurs In 
13 the sem!desert parte 01' the Sahel zona 01' West Afrlca (Sogdan, 1977; 
. t. ~ 
14 Fester, 1962). 
15 The \iarietles sguamulatus. blsquamulatus and gaya,nus occur 
lG naturally where the average mlnimj.Jl'Tl temperature 01' the coldest winter 
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11 month doss I!ot fan below 4.4 C (Sowden, 1964b). The species tole-
18 rates lIght frastE¡ (Chatte ... jee and Slngh. 1966). 
19 Varletles squamulatus and bisguamulatus can wlthstand up to 9 
'20 mentbs 01' drought, but ,their,most favorable environment appears to be 
21 below 1000 m yvlth a dry season 01' 3 to 5 months and a 'total rainfaU el' 
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22 over 750.mm (Bogdan, 1977; SowdÉln, 190080). 
23 Flowering behavior. 
24 . Andropogon gayanus. Hke most members 01' tlJe Andr-opogoneae, 
25 (Evans. ,1964). lB a shor-t-day p l8ont. Its oritica" daylangth ,fol". flowerkl, 
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26 lI!i between 12 and 14 hl'" (Tompsett. '197'6). Flowering!s IntenslFied b~. 
21 shortenlng daytength fr-OI'n J2 to a:hr at" by exposing older' plants to 
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,1 short-day treatments. Flowering ls oPtimum at tipproxlmatety 25·C, 
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but eool nlght temperatures (fS·C) stronQ.ly Inhibit ftowering. Auxln. 
gibberelUn. abscisic acid, and,dimethytaminosucctnamlc acid (B9) 
,tnhtblt ftowering uncler normall,Y inductive condltlons. Several growth 
hormone treatments Includtng comblnatlons .01' the above fail te stimulate 
ftowerlng in long days •. Whole or par.otial root removal tnhlbits ftowerlng 
suggestlng thát cytokinln 01' glbberellin produetlon by the roots (Atldn. 
Barton and Roblnson, 1973) may stimulate f'1owering. 
The maximum ftowertng response can be induced by short-day 
exposure 01' oril~ one expandlng leal' --rol' example by wrapping the leal' 
With alumlnum ¡'oH. Young leaves are more sensitive to thÉI photoPsrio-
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die stlrnulus than otd leaves. Use 01' this technlque could I'acilitate 
breedlng since three generations per year can be produced (Tompsett. 
1976). 
Haggar (1966) repo~ted that at Shika. Nigerla the tiU!!,rs formed . 
before 01' dur'tng the eariy part 01' the ralny season make the greatest 
eontributlon to ~,flnal seed yletd. Very I'ew new tillers are formed 
after the first two mOr:'lths 01' the ratny seas:> n. and those that are forme 
faH te,ftower. With regard ~Q percentage of flO';'lering tlllers ancl In-
ftoreseence 'teÍ'lgth, tiUers formed before the raíny season behave si-
'mltarly to those proQuced at the beglnr¡lng 01' the ralny season. 
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,ChatterJee and Stngh (1968) reportad that in India tmer death 
contlnuas throughout the year but 15 great:est after panlcle emergence 
ancl during the dry season. In general tillers die wlthin the year ol' '. 
thelr f"ormation and are replaced by neÍN tÜlers. Tlller number la 
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,towest at ftOwering arlc:Jlnereases te:> a maximum" durlng' the,earty part 
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01' the. ralny season (Slngh and Chatterje8,'. ;1965). ' 
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Flowertng occ:urs 1'0,. approxi~ately one houl'" betwe.en 600 and 140C 
(Foster, 1962); Flowerlng ts acropliltal, and each racame patr takes 
about 5 da.ys to complete flow~f.ng. ~oth time 01' day lind' date 01' flower: 
ing are correlated with the orlg11"1 01' the ecotype. At Shika. Nlgeria. thE . 
flowers 01' ecotypes from dr\er nor:ttlern Nlgerla open earUer 1n the 
mornlng than dó those of ecotypes from farther south. These ecotypes 
also begin flowering as muc:h as 48 days earl.ler than those from farthér 
'south (Fqster, 1962). This Is p~ab,ly a photoperiodic response 
(Tompsett. 1976) and an adaptatien tO',the ehorter rainy /!Ieason in 
northern Nigeria sinca eact" ecotype' b,eglns flowering cín the date which 
11 coincides with' the end 01' tha'rainy season at Ita site 01' ~nect:len 
12 (Fes te 1"', 1962). 
13 Foster (1962) reporta 'that the epectes producas polten I'rom a 
. -u single recame palr en alt flve days of ita l'1owerlng perlod. but stlgmas 
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'15 are only exerted en the flrst ,three'days. He hypothesizes that the 
16 flowering date of the populatlen as a whele wtU tend te become earUer 
17 ti' ctimatlc condlUons altów. 
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, Other studies have examinad the structure and functlon 01' leal' 
nectarlea (Bowden, 197q, the llgules (Bowden, 1964c), aríd the 
triglyceride metaboUsm 01' gérminating' seeda (WlÍliams. and Bowden, 
1973). 
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AGRONOMIC CHA.RACTERISTICS 
Andropogbn gayanus val". bisquamulatus is more v'igórous and ag-
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gresslve than val". squamutab.lS (Bowden. 1963a; P. N. de, Leeuw, par'S! 
nal oornmunlcatlon). In West Al'rica these' two varieties are known 1'01" 
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thair drought reststanea. retention 01' green follage weU lnto the dry 
ssasan. and rapid produetlon 01' high qualilif rorage at the beglnnlng, 01' 
the rainy season (Anon., 1942; Bogdan. 1977). The speclas ie weU 
adapted to burning. and' careful graztng management. periodic bUl"ning. 
01" cutting may be neeessary suppress the accumulatiO!"\ 01' old '''lb'r'OUs 
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material (BOIIVden. 1963a; Haggar. 1¡;¡70). In unburned ungrazed A. 
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gayanus pastures Utter can" ¡onstlli.lte more th&.n 50"/0 01' the total ol"gW'lic 
matter during the dry season (Egunjobt, 1974). 
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In the eastel"n savannas '01' Colombia the regl"owth 01' nativa sa-
vanna is gl"eatel" than that ~ A. gayanus 1'01" the.l'il"st 4-5 days al'ter 
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bUl"nlng; hoWever. within,.10 days ,~ regl"ONth, of' A. gayanus greater. 
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Artel" 6 weeks its I"egrowth was 0'1191" twlce that 01' natlve savanna (9'17 
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vs. 419 I<:g PM ha -1). Ligntl'lcation of' !;he I"egrowth appeal"S to ba mue" 
stower In A. gayanus than in native savanna (M. Si!Ínchez. personal 
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, communtcation). 
Varo bisquamulatus la known te aggresslvaly coloniza disturbe 
soU In both l'aUow flelds (P.N. de Leeuw. personal communicátion)and 
disturbed nativa savanna ( .. r.M. Spai"'. personal communicatlon). In. 
northern Nigerla tt la aowri in'grass fal10w and lB known té, be useful in 
bunding sou rertillty (Bowden. 1963&.); Its benel'icial ert'ect en sub-:-
sequent cl"'Oj:)s ,ls pr'obably due more te, tmprova soU rer.tntty,than toa .. 
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long-lasting Improvement of soH phystcal properties (Wilklnson. 1975) 
_ , Andropogon gayanus ts adaptad te a range ofs,ol1 typelS tnc.l.Alng. 
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,1 rleh al1uvlal solls (8arrault. ,1973). serpentina solls (Wild. 1974a and 
'2 1974b). Oxisots and, Ultisols (CIAT. 1977? and we1t dralned sandy clays 
,3 011 medlum to hlgh fertility (8&den, H:)63a). 
4 Establishment. 
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5 Andl"'opo9on gayanus may be establlshed ethr from crown spllts 
6 or seed. Crown sptits areoften uSed In experimental work to quiekty . 
,7 estabUsh a unil'OI"'m stand. Slnee the speciea ls altogarrious and plants 
'8 vary morphologleany spUts shoul~ be taken fl"CJ!Tl a number 01' plants and 
'9 random~zed within a plot. Where seeifqualtty or other' factors prohlbtt 
10 mechanized pianting 01' S~cI,lOW derúilly plantlng (1000 plants ha-1 01" , 
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11 less) 01' crown spllts appeal"!, pra:nlslng. Evan when the land 'la pre-
12 pared and spUts al"'e planted late In the wet season, seed p~uctlon ma~ 
13 be sufflcient to tnsure a good stand the'foUowingrainy ¡seaaon (.J. M. 
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14 Spaln, personal communlca~lon). 
15 ' Seed.ma,y be aown I;lroaclc:ast.or In rows. Bowden (1963a) recom-
16 menda aowtng 1.2 to 2.5' cm dEiep on weU preparad seedbed. Sowlng 
17 rates depend largetyon aeed 'f'ertttUy •. Bogdan (1977) recommends 
18 sowlng at least 45 kg ,uncleaned seed ha-1 Ir quaUIy la unknow~. A total 
19 01' 2 kg puregermlnatlng aeed ha:-
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ls pi"Obably sufflclent (.J.E~ Ferguscr. 
20 personal communication). 
2l Since~. gayanus. Hke many perennlat gr'asses. produces Uttle 
22 :' forage during the wet season In whld1 It ,la s,own, ti: can be sown with 
23 annuat companlon crops té) lncrease th\9 econcmlc yield durlng the 1'lr~t, 
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24 year. '[1"'1 Nlgerla (Haggar, ,1969). malze and a~eans are more sutt-
~ 25 able companto,; crops 'than muCIJ~ (5tizoloblum sp.). ~'tr-amng tegume! 
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2G or tt:te, annval graSs Penntsetl.ll'"('l pedlcenatÚm., Tha 1atter'are too' 
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27 competltive. ,AH compa,;lon,crops slgnlflcilotty reduce llileed 
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1 competition. ene! their early harvest improves estabUshmen~ 01' A. 
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,2 gayarY..Is. Ory'ÍTlIltter yie\ds In the flrst year are hlg~r when the gras.s 
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: 3 ls sown broadcast. but establishment. in rows shows a stlght advaritage 
4 af't:er the f'irst yaa,.. 
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S Ory Matte,. Yield and Water Use Eff'\clengt~ 
6 The reported dry matter ylelds 1'01" /!lo. gayarY..IS ra,nge f'rom less 
,7 than 3 (Hagga,.. 19eá)t~ oval" 1,7 tona OM ha-1 yr-1 (CrAT;> 1979). In 
8 mature stands impo¡"ta~t yield-detel"'l'Tltnlng f'actors appe¡¡lr to be prevlO\.i 
'9 grezing management (Haggar~ 1975), f'ertiUty (Haggar. 1.966 ard 1975; 
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10 Barrault. 1973), and raini 11 (BarrauU. 1973) Haggar. 1975; Anon., 
11 1978). 
12 Bowden (1963a) reviewed DM ylelds obtained in 5 Af'rlcan trials •. 
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In hse trials~. gayanus was always among the three hlghest yieldlng 
specles. Ita yield was roughly ~parable to that 01' Panicum !: axlmulT • 
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lt outyie\ded 1:. maximum in two tt;'ials, ylelded less than.!:'.maximum 
in two tMals, ard proouced equlvalentyields In one trial. 
At 23" North Latitute in India ~. gayanus and Brachlaria 
brizantha had aqual annuat Otvt yields (11 .6 tons ha- t ) and outylEollded 
the 10 other gl"aeses In the trlal. Interestingly,~. gayanus had the 
highest DM yleld (1 .2 tona ha-1) during the 7-month dry season (Singh 
and Chatterjee, 1965). On ,an annuat, basis U produced 9 to 10,kg DM 
ha-1 mm-1 ralnl'aU. ' 
In en analysls al' severat experimenta in Nigerta and Camel"oon, 
, ~. gayanus 'grown at near optlm~fe,.ttHty yielded approximately 8· to .' 
'?! kg DM ha"'~ mm-1 ralnfa11 ~n 4 to 5-month rainy s~alilons (Barrautb. 
'1973;: Haggar¡ .1975). In BraZl1 EmrtCQ-(1972) reported fresh weight 
, /',' 
yietds whlch, when calcutated on the basis 01' 25'Yo'to 30% DM (se., 
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1 Barrault. 1913), are equivalent to 9 to 1 f' kg DM ha-1 m~-1 total 
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ralnfaU during two 6-montn ~tny seasons. . . " 
In Colombia (CIAT, 1918; B. G~f, personal ccmmunlcetton) ~. f 
gayanus grown in assoclatlon wlth legumes on an tnfertlle Ultlsol wtth 
90 kg P20s ha- t yletdedap,,~xl~ately 11 kg DM he-t m",,-f, r.alnfall. 
The cornpanton Ingumes ~Ietded an average of 3.4 kg DM: "a-1 mm"".' 
ra tnfa n. '. In cornpartson, Hyparrhenia ~ ani:! the same assoetated 
tegl:lmes yielded 9 ancl 4.5 kg DM ~a-1 mm-1 ralnfan, respectivaty. 
These hlgh vatues or water use efflciency uncler relativa 16w fertility 
may be the resutt or 10lI'l water loss due te deep drainage ancl runot'f 
beCause or the bimodal distribution of rainfall. 
Haggar (f970) ,reported maximum c~p growtn rates in Hghtty 
rertltlz'lId~. gayanus pAstures 01' sUghUy over 32 kg DM ha-1 day-1 rol" 
at .1east a month prior te stem etongatlon. 
The abiUt:y of'~. gayanus te remaln green throughout muen of the 
,16 
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dry soason then provlda an "early blté". at the beglnning.ol' ttie rainy 
season Is ene 01' its most important agronornic characterlstlcs (Bowden. 
18 1963a; Bogdan, f977). Nevar~.ess, only onestudy has bean conducte< 
11l on lts roet system (Bowden, 1963b·)., ¡Ilondropogon gayanus val". 
20 btsquamulatus was gr"OWn as spaced. plants at Kampala. Uganda. Three 
21 morphologlcal classes 01' roets were identlrled. 
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F ibrous roots are 
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22 profUsely branched dlstany~ u_Uy less then 0.5 mm dlameter. ancl 
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Z3 extend lateraUy over a meter I'rom the planto Cord roots are about 
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1M 2 mm in d,lameter. are sParse ly branched ~ make an angle or 30a te 40~ 
25 wtt/:l the sciU'surface, and a~ setdom mor,e than 0.5 m ln leng~. 
2G Vertical roets resemble f'ibr,OÚ$ roots except thet they are sparsely 
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27 branched ancl extencl vertlcally 1'01" more tnan 80 cm. The total root 
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1 system conststed 01' 50%. fibrous roots. 40% cord roots. and .10% 
:8 ve'rUecal roots (by welght). 
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, '. 3 Ourlng the dry seasqn on a deep Oxisol In Carlmagua. Colc:rnbta .. 
. . . 
-4 ~. gayanus. tlke Brachiárla decumbelÍS. conttnued te extract water 
6 I'rc:rn the deeper layers 01' thá soil prof11e leng~r than -,=. maxlmum 
6 (J.M. Spain. personal cc:rnmt.ntcation). Ouring the dry seasen It 
.7 produc:ed slighUy graater CM ylelds than!!. decumbens (P. Sánchez. 
8 personal communlcatiop). Two months into the dry seasen both lts 
9 earl)' morl")lng and mld-afternoon leal' water potentials were similar to 
10 these of B. decumbens and hlgher (less negat!.ve)than those of -,=. 
11 maxlmum and.!::!.. rufa (tha author. unpubllshed data). This ¡: ,'obably 
12 Indicates a better developed root system than those 01' P. maxlmum and 
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13 1:!.. rufa. 
14 [n Carlmagua raw spacf.ng and cutttng frequency are majo' factors 
15 affecting the relativa yiel~ of~. gayanus and.§. decumbens In the lI'Iet 
16 seasen. With an 8-week cutttng interval and 1 .o-meter raIN spacing 
17 .!!. dacumbens produced almost twlce a much OM as ~. gayanuF. (P. 
lB Sánchez, pereonal communlcatlon); hawever. with O.6-nleter r·QW 
19 spaclng and only three cuts per yea!"'~. gayanus ylélded slightly more 
200M tlÍan!!. decumbens or -,=. maxlmÚm (F. MC,Ue!"'. personal 
21 communtcation). These data agree wUh those 01' Barrault (1973) whlch 
22 Indicate thiat 10000ar rrequer:lCy 01'· C\Jttlngfavors total OM ac~ulatlon 
23 ~n ~ gayarus. l.lght lnterceptlón \s probaply timits crop grawth rata 
undar frequen~ C\Jttlng and ls a major factor In yleld depresslon unde!'" 
25 frequent 'cuttif1g and/or wlde rawspaclng. -Frc:rn these data lt appears . 
• t • • . • 
so . that the corn~tltlve advantage' 01' A. gay¡1nus C<in be readlly . 
"'. - .. ' 
21 mánlpulated by grázi.ng managem.ent. 
• 
, , 
• 
. . 
.. 
1 Quallty. 
2 
. . . -
Values 01' percentage crude protein (CP) ancl diges.t\bll\ty vary 
3 within plants as a function of!. plant part, age and soil fer:-tiHty·. Table'1. 
4 summarizes data from a number of squrces for~. gayanus. Fran ~ 
5 ·Table 1 it Is evident that A. gayanus is·a, grass 01' medlum to IQW 
6 ·nutrltive value. 
7 Mlller and Rains (1963) found that 01' a specles studied In northern 
8 
9 
10 
11 
12 
13 
14 
15 
16 
17 
18 
19 
20 
21 
·22 
23 
24 
25 
26 
27 
Nlgerla A. gayanus was the best agronanlcally, but Its percentage· 
- .'. . 
digestible· crude protein was comp¡;ii-able to that of nativa savanna 
specles. Where canpar'so~ we'toe made between grasses on hlgh~ 
fer.titlty sons,· P. maximl-m and Pennlsetum purpureum were superior 
to A. gayanus In dlges.tlbl1!tyand crUde proteln contento 
Reld et~. (1973) '7"easu.red the In vitro dry matter digestibillty 
(IVDMD) ·of a number of g'rasses throughout a 16-week period during 
the ralny season In Uganda. .·The dlgestibitlty 01' unclipped A. gayanus 
forage dropped fran approxlmately 68% at the beginnlng of the rainy 
season at a rate of about 1.5% per Week. Its dlgestibility was 
generatly below tnat of a number of Brachiaria species ancl Digitar1a 
decumbens. It was about equal tQ··that of Cynodon dactylon and p .• 
maximum varo Makuéni, and It was hlgher than that r:f H. ~ 
.. . Haggar and Ahmed (1970) reported on 27 sheep feedlng t~lals In 
whlch fre~hly cut~. gayanus hay was fed, during. the wet season at 
Shika, Nlgerla. In each year IVDMD and voluntary lritake were 
htghest during tha f{rst part of the growing season and declined wlth· , 
.-: . 
advanc.ing maturlty 01' the plants. There were smalt increases In 
voluntary d ... y matter intake at the ~me of panicle emergence, but ... 
t4. 
1 ful"ther de creases followed. The IVOMO of elongating stems was as 
2 hlgh as that of leave!!!. Voluntary feed Intake wás relatad to NOMO 
" 
"3 (r=0.40) and CP (ril:: 0.82). Percentage crude protein was related to,'. 
4 pereentage éllgestlbte crude prOtein (r=0.88). Perc:entage crude 
5 protein'was concluded to be:a useful'crlterlon for,predictlng nutrltive 
11 wtues. 
,'1 Hagga,. (1970) studied yleld, yleld components and quallty 
8 parameters In unferttliZed and lIg!1tly fertillzad~. gayarius varo 
9 bisquamulatus swards growing ,unlnterruptedly (ungrazed and uncut) 
10 durlng both we~ ánd dry seasons In Shika. NIgeria. Ourlng the 1964 
11 'Wet season sta :"Idlng c:rop OM on unfertl1ized plots increased SlgmoidaUy 
12 to 3.9 tons, ha -1. 'Durlng the followlng dry season thEi standing crop , 
13 nevel" dropped batow 2.8 tens ha-ti however. CP dropped frcm over 6% 
" 14 at the beglnnlng ;)1' the wet sesson. to approxlmately 4% during the 
15 perlad of rapld growth in ,the middle of the wet seas,on, 'te less'l:I'lan 
16 1.5% In the 'I'ourth month 01' the, dry season. During the 1967 w.et aeasor 
17 analysls of ylelc".c:omponents showad that the pereentage 01' green teál' 
18 In the total dry rnatter ranged i'rcm about 60% before stem elongatlon 
19 te about 25% at ftowerlng. Thts was ac:compalned by a drop In the CP 
21! content ol'!:he éntlre plant from about 4.5% durlng !:he ,rainy season te 
21 3.0% In the sec:ond month 01' the dry season. During the same perlad 
22 the CP 01' the gresn teat c:omponentl")ever dropped be.low 5.5%. ' 
23 Bowden (t953a), cites reports that In a 2-year •. 12-varlety 
24 palatabtuty ,trlal lri Nlgerla.,e.. gayanUs ranked hlghest In pl1latabtllty 
25 tollowed by Panlc:um colorntum. !!. maxlmum and 1:. eurpure\n1 • 
. 
26 In a 'prel'erenee tr:-Ial In Ghana ca~t~e •. sheep. and -goats grazed a 
27 total 01' 12 major gress!'lpec:~es~ AU lI~stoc:k showedf)reference tor,-
- , 
, ' 
,~ 
, . 
1 ~. gayanus. 1:. maximum. Setaí-ia sphacelata and!!.: decumbens, 
2 (Tetteh. 1974). 
3 The Impol"tance or selectiVa ~umPttÓn of iOllV quaUty of . .!!.· 
" gayanus hay;to lntake aÍ"ld dlgas.tlbtUty In sheep was demonstrated by 
. . . 
5 Haggar aOO Ahmed (1970) aOO !-/aggar (1972)': Restrictlng the amOunt 
6 of feed on ol'l'el" reduced dl"y matter digestlbUlty. presumably because 
. '1 the sheep were forced·to consume more 01' the uOOigestlbhi stem 
. 
.. 
8 portions. Reducing selecUve ca:sumptton by chopping the hay resulted 
9 in 10000er voluntary Intake. Zemmettnk. Haggar aOO Davles (1972) 
10 reuOO that cattL.J select strongly for 1eafy material whenfed k N quaUt,Y 
, 
11 !!.. gayanus hay. 
12' . The data Indicate·that on InfertlIe so.lIs mature pure stands of A. 
13 gaYi!lnus are unsuitable 1'01" use. as hay (Haggar. 1972; Mmer aOO Rains. 
14 1963). O,,\y by se\ectíVei. gMU!!ing 01'. green teaf.materiat can a. .lmata 
15 obtaln a dlel: wlth a reasonable crude protein content CHaggar. 1970; 
16 Haggar al)d Ahmed. 1Q70 and 1971; Mltford and Minson, 1965). The 
17 sib,lation can bi 'Improved conslderably through increased soU' 'ertit\ty 
18 .(Barrault. 1973; Sen and Mabey, 19S6). managemerit amed at 
. . : 
U productng cOntlnua1 yeung gr'DllVth ·(Ratns. aOO Fester. 1958; Barrau1i:, 
20 1973), ando Incluslon of a legumtnous assoctate 01" supptement. (eIAT., 
21 1978; Haggar. 1972). 
22 Response to Ferttllty. 
23 The response 01' cr.ops to l'erttuzer N ts dlff'icult to .compare 
. . 
24 belween sltes aOO'between .vea,.. bá~e ?f' dlfferen~sJn the nltrOge!'1-
as s'upp~ylng power 01' dlff'er.ent s~nsaOO ~.lff'eirences In dreught strflss . 
26 whlch cause varlatlon l~.the .eff'tcleri~ ~~th whlch N. ts1,.ltUt:¡;ed b~ thtI, . 
27 planto Ftgure 1 ShOllVS:the N I"esp~curves feuOObv severál 
\" . . . . : .'. 
t . 
~ '. '. 
.. 
.. ~ . 
• 
, ' 
, 
1 authors for A. gayanus. Larga diffe.rances are eviclent In bo.th the', 
2 nativa N-supplying powar of tha solls (reflectad In 'yleld wlthout' , 
3 addition of ,fertill.zer N) and the effteiency of N use (the tn1tlal slape 6r 
4 the N responli¡e cUrves). 1/. " 
5 Figure 2, shows the e~ct 01' ratnfaU ~ the response 01' DM yteld 
6 to fert\\tzer N applicatlon in tIie few expertmente in whtch ratnfaU ane:! 
,'1 the response of dry matter yietd te N ferttUzation were reportad. From 
8 Figure a It appears that approximately 600 mm annual rainfáll ls 
9 necessary' befare significant response,te fertllizer N can be expeeted. ' 
10 Aftar the fir~t 600 mm ralnfaU eaeh 100 mm 01' rainfall (to approxt-
11 mately 1250 mm) increased DM produetlon per heetare by 
12 approxtmately a kg, ha -~ yr-1 k9-1 fertltlzer N(up to approximately 100 
13 ,k9 N ha-1 yr-1). 
14 In ~htka, Nlgerla (Haggar. 1975) the beginning of the ralny 
15 season was the mast efficient time te apply N. "Nitro-chalk" aOO 
. , 
. 
16 calctum nttrate wera móre efficient sourees 01' N than were urea. 
17 sodium nttrate', 01" ammOnl.um,sull'ate. 
18 The res..,onse 01' yield to P fertl.lization was comparad tn A. ' 
, .-
19 gayanus,..r:... maximum, !'!. dl¡!cumbens aOO H. !!::!!!. on ~ highlytnf'ertl1e 
,29 Oxlsol at Carlmagua. Colombia. AH four vartetles responded up te 
21 400 kg PaOe ~ -1. ,Without.adcfltion 01' ferttUzer P, the ylelds of ~. 
22 gayanus,E;!. decumbens • .!:!.' ~ ane:! 13: maximum were 3,5". ,20%, 
23 10% and 0'''. respecttvel~. 01' the maxtmum. At 150 kg PaOsha -1 l' the 
24 ,per,cent 01' maxlmum yield of,the four grasses were:,~' gayanus. 55%; 
25 
26 iJ InttlatN response evalúated by tIie "Unear response·and p.tateau" 
27L-~ _____ m __ e_th __ od __ ~~_a_ug~h~.~e~t._'a=1~,.~.~1~9_7~5~)~._:_'J_: ____________ ~'. ______ ~ __ .-----J 
" 
'. 
" . 
. . 
• o,,' .. ",' .-__________ -.-______ ~__:.__:.-.., 
• 
1 .§..: deeumbens, ElO%J !:.. maxfmum, S8% and t!..~. 20%. In the'~ 
2 trial!!.. gayanus responded less than the qther three varietles to 
, 
3 fertilizer" Mg. AH varlettes responded te? S (J.M~ Spatn., personal " 
4 communication; CIAT. 1978). 
5 The low external P requirement of!!!.. gaYl;lnus was confirmed in 
6' pot trials whare the critlca1 soU test leval was determinad by tha Cate-
'1 " Nelson method lo be about 5.2 ppm (Available, Bray II-P) (F., Mul1er. 
8 personal communicatlon; CIAT .1~78? 
" 9 The response of!!.: gayanus to time on a very acid Oxlsol at 
, . 
10 Cartmagua. Colombia, Wa$' comparábte to that of other alumlnlum-
11 tole~ant spactes such as BrLchtaria humldtcola and Brachiaria radlcans 
12 Il:s lolerance was sUghUy better than that of!'!. decumbens, ,E.maximum 
13 B. mutica and a. decumbens. It was much more toterant than a 
-- - ' , 
14 Cynodon h~rld • .!:!.~. "nd Axonopus scopar"ius (;J.M. Spaln. 
15 personal communicatlon;, CIAT. 1978). In Gt:ana. A. gayanus did not 
16 respond tó time appUcatlons whtch inéreased the yields of Cenchrus 
17 citiaris and Tripsacum laxum by 10 to 12% (Kannegieter, 1966). 
18 CompatibiUtywlth teguri,es.: 
19 Work in Nigerla (Onaylnka; 1973; Adegbola IlInd Qnaylnka., 1966) 
20 has shown that A.gayanus ls compatible with both traiUng (Centrosema 
,-- , 
21 sp.) and non-tralUng (Sty\osanthes gutanensls) lagumes; The sama 
22 'compatibiUty has been demonstrated In both clipplng and,grazlng trlals 
23\1'1 Colombia (CIAT, 1978; B. ~ror. personal communlcetton).', It has' 
24 b_ri reported to mtx succossrulty wtth cntorta ternata in Northern 
25 Australia (Whyte, !!.~. 1959).' 
. ... 
26 , : rn,Gt,ana from September 1959 to November" 1970 t:..~ gayanus 
',' 21 pr-!X;h.Jced mor,~ droy matter'than Dlgltaría decumbens in pure stand 
" .. , .. 
, 
, 
.' . 
1 (3'7 vs. 17 t/ha). tn associati,onwltl) Centrosema'pubescens (30va. 
2 29 t/ha). and In assoclation wlth Desmodlurn leiocarpum (34 vs. 2Qt/ha 
, , 
3 (Tetteh. 1972). 
,< 
" Animal Production. 
6 Very I'ew data are a.vailable concernlng animal performance on A. 
, -
6 gayanus pasb..tres. de Leeuw (1971) reports that, on cleared but 
,'1 otherwlse unj.mprovad Northern Guinea Zona savannas the, maximurn 
B yields which could be expected,e~n with moderate supplementary 
9 I'eedlng 01' concentratas is 28 kg Uve ~eight ha -1 yr-1 .' In the 
10 experiments reviewed b.Y: de ,Leeuw (1971) the best stecking ratas on 
11 r;¡atlve savanna'~ dUl""lng the wet season were 0.62 animals ha-~', whlch, 
12 gave a mean rate 01' Uve welghtgain over two wet seasons 01' 0.17 kg 
13 animal-1 day-1 'and a total Uve,weight gal,; 01' 16 kg ha-1 ovel"" a mean 
14 01' 142 days. In lnother tl""iat on native savan.'la the Uve welght aln at ' 
15 0.62 head ha-1 was about 35 kg ha-1 durlng the wet season (203 days) 
16 and -14 kg ha-1 durlrig the dry season (140 days). In comparis'on. llve 
17 weight gains on s,,,:mi-nab..tl""al unfertillzed ~. gayanus grasstand Nar a 
1 3-:yeal"" period duo Lng the wet season wel""e 0.~6 kg ha-1 day-1 at a 
19 stockln~ rate 01' 2.0 animals ha-1 and 0.49 kg ha-1 day-:' at 1.0anlmal 
20 ha-1• Total wet season Uve welght gains in thls trial were 84 te 96 kg 
" . 
21 ha-1. 
22 Another management trlal was' conducted durlng thé wet season 
, 
23 on nab..tral savanna dornlnated (66%) by A. gayanus In Western NIgerla., 
24 Appllcatlon of a total 01' 112 kg N ha,,",1 increased DM productlon thl""ee 
, 
25 roId OV9l""'the;unfertlllzed control', Uve welght galne Were',O.SS and 
26 
aT 
0.77 kg.animal-1 day-1 on unfer'tillzed and fel""tllized traatr.nentS. 
l""espeetlvalYl, and durlrig the seéond gr'azlng. N .'ertilization doubled 
, 
lntake of avaHable DM, rro.-" 33.5% to:67%. Uve weight gains 
: .... ~ .. 
. '
19. 
1 ranged fl"Om 116 kg 'f:'la-1 y,.'" 1 , wlthout fertilizer N to 250 kg ha-1 
2 yr-1 wlth 112 kg'Í\j ha-1 yr-1 (Adegbóla. Onaytnka and,Eweje. 19~a). 
3 Seed Produetlon. 
" 
Bogdan (1977) reportetHhat y!elds 01' uneleaned seed range I'rom 
6 20 to 100 kg ha-l yr-1 • He reporbad that annual seed ylelds 01' up to 
6 90 kg,ha-1 y..,-1 were obtalned in India and Brazil. In the Indiantrial 
,7 the uncleaned seed contained only 5 to 10r. caryopses, Bowden (1963a) 
8 reported that earyopses content r~lnged from less than 1% to more than 
9 6or.. Ge,rmlnation 01' earyopses varied only sllghtly. f'rom 60 to Sor.. 
10 Bowden (1963a) reportad that 2~2 kg ha-1 01' pure ,germinatlng seed Is 
11 sufficlent I'or esbabHshment. but s!nce seed puril:y Is so varia ,le a 
12 minlmum rate 01' 46 kg ha-1 01' uncleaned ,;'leed is reeommended. 
13 In Shtka. 'Nigeria the number 01' flowering tillers was lncreased 
,14 three to four-I'old by grazlng only once, early in the ra~ny seasr,. 
15 rather than three times (Haggar. 1966), 01'1 these soils applieatlon 01' 
16 up to 67 kg P2 0 5 ha-1 had little effect 01'1 dry matbar yield 01' seed 
17 productton. AppHeatlon 01' 168 kg N ha-1 Increased the number 01' 
. 18 flowering inflor<escences approxlmately two ~o three-fold. AppUeation 
19 ,01' 224 kg N ha-1 increased dry matter productlon from :2.4 to 7.0 tons 
20 ha-l ,' increased inftorescence helght"from 1 • ..; to 2.3 m. increa~ed 
21 the numbE!r' 01" tnflorescences from 1'3 to 36 m ~2 • increased 
22 inflorescenc:e length fr.omA6 to:es €m, and Increased unthrashed seed 
, 
23 ylelds I'rom 25 to 75 kg ha-,1', ,Detay 01' harvestlng untH al'ter the 
24 rachis tips !:legan to o,bscise eaulOed severe reductlon in seed yield. 
• 25 A 16-day delay, in harvesttng éause<;f an 84% reduction in seed y!eld.' 
, , 
26 In ,this experiment no esttmate was made 01' purlty nor gen-nlnation In 
27 the val"lous treatments. Bogdan (1977) r\?ported that germination 
" 
f 
.' 
. '
• 
" 
," 
1 declines I'rom 80% te 50% In the I'lrst b'ear. to 30% in the third year 
.' 
2 ard to zero in 4 to 6-year-old seed. 
.. ' '·8 In Colombia ylelds 01' grac!,ed seed 01' 40% purity has varled I'rom 
30 to 300 kg ha-1 wlth a mean graded seed yield 01' 120 kg ha-1 • 4 
20 • 
5 Germination 01' untreated pure seed h~s been as high as 65% at 9 months 
6 
:7 
8 
9 
: 10 
11 
12 
13 
14 
15 
16 
.. 
17 
18 
lE 
20 
21 
.22 
23 
24 
25 
26 
2'7 
(J.E. Fergus~. personal communlcatlon). These yields are 
eonsiderably better than those reported elsewhere and ls probably 
Indicativa 01' tha Importan ce of' eli.mate ¡n'seed ·production. 
Ylelds 01' 200 kg/ha of' graded seelng testing 40% international 
. . .... 
RUrity ard 50% '1ermination (I..e. 20% Pure Live Seed (PLS,) content). 
would allow seeding rates 01' 10'kg ha-1 of such seed (providing 2 kg 
ha-1 of PLS). Thus. a multiplication rate 01' approxl.mately 20 (20 ha 
seeded 1'01'" each'h:t harvested) Is feaslble. 
\l 
'. 
lO 
. , 
2l... 
, . 
1 
CONCLIJSIGlNS 2 
3 
, Andropogon gayar.lus ~nth Is a large tufted grass species i:hat 15 
4 highly productive. moderately'nutritious In pure stand without N 
5 fertillzation. and highly palatable to aH classes of lvestock. It 'is 
6 easil,Y establlshed and Is easily eHminated by ploughing. It is very 
',7 tolerant of p~oblem soils. including Oxisols ancj Ultisols which are low.: 
8 In P and have high levels of Al saturation. It is resistant to burning 
9 anc! drought stress arid is known for.-,its production of green forage 
10 throughout. the dry season and its r?pid recuperation after burning and 
. •. 
. . .. 
11 uppn resumption oF the ra:,'Y season. . It appears to be best adapteé..··te 
, 
12 monsoonal cllmates at elevatlons below 2000 m with dr'y seasons of 3 
13 to 5 (01" more.) months and annual ralnfall above 750 mm. Urider 
14 moderate to high ferttuty annual DM production ranges from 9 to 11 kg: 
, 
15 DM ha-1 mm-1 rainFaH •. It is reported te associate well wlth a 
16 number of legumes. 'and the few avaitable data indicate that animal 
17 gains on etther pure stands 01" on mixtures with legumes are Far 
18 ~uperior te those on' native pasture. 
19 Seed production varies With location. but a ratio of 20 ha planted 
20 per ha hal"Vested seems ppssible to attain •. In addition, A. gayanus 
21 adapts wett te companion crops, and 900d possibllities exlst For the 
22 development oFvery low de~iI:Y. mlnimum Input planting techniques 
23 whl"ch take advanlage of selF-sown seed. 
Z4 
25 
26 
27 
.. -: ". 
~--~------------~----~--~~--------~--~ 
.' 
'0. 
o" 
22. 
1 
:& BIS L..IOGRAPHY 
o' 
3 Adegbola. A .A.; Onayinka. B. (1gee) 'o-The- prOducttc:in and 'manÍigement 
.. of grass/legume mlxtures ,at Agege. Nlgerian Agriculture 
5 Journal, 3, 84-91. 
, o 
6 Adegbola. A .A.; Onaylnka. B.O.; Eweje.,J. K. (tesa) The 
o'i 
9 
maríagement and improvernent 01' natural grasslando in Nigeria. 
N~ger.ian Agriculture Journal, 5. 5-6. 
9 Adejuwon; O. (1974) Savanna in the forest areas 01' wester'n Nigeria: 
io 
11 
distributlon and vegetation characteristtcs. ,Joumal of T!"Of?lcal 
Geography, 39. 1-10. 
12 Ademosun. A.A. (1974) UtlJization 01' pOOl" quaUty roughages in the 
13 derlved sávanna zone.o In J.!Inimaloproductlon in the tr.?pics. 
14 lbadá:n. Nlgeria; Heinemann Educatlonal Books, L..imltedo, 
15 152-165. 
le Anonyrnous (1942) Report 1'01' the}'ear 1941-42., Gold Coast 
11 Depat"tment 01' Animal Heatth. Acera, 5pp~ 
18 Anonyrnous (1950) Klniberley Resear'ch Statlon progress report. 
1 1947-49. ,Journal 01' the Depal"'tment 01' Agricultura ofWe:stern 
.. ' 
20 Australia, 27. 199:..a09. 
21 Anonyrnous (1962) Pasture invEiS,tlgations at regIonal centr.es. , 
22 C.S.I.R.O. Fourth,Ar1I'1Uat Report, canberl"'a. 
23 ~nonyrnous (1957) Departrnent 01' Agriculture investigatlons 1956. 
24 
25 
BuHetin" Department 01' Agricultura,; Klngston. Jamaica," 
, NO.,55 (N.S.). pp. 100: 
26 'oCIATG'977) Seaf' prcductton."Program Ar1I'1Ual Raport 1976~ 'Centro .. 
21L-_ ...... -=In~te¡o;r_n .. ,a;;;,c",' t;¡:¡'O.t1D.¡¡¡¡¡,;I .. d;¡¡e=A.::¡¡:r",' i¡,¡cu='.tu .. I"'a;.¡¡¡¡"'T:.:::r'o .... D.;,;ic=il;;;,l=t..:C::a:,:t..:,i!., ..,:C:;,0;¡;l;:.:0<:::..:.:"::b:.:.!a::!. • ...:p:.!p:;,.:...,:7.:5:,.:.:....J : 
, 
• 
1 C'IAT (1978) Seel' Productton Program Annual Report 1977. Centro 
.. . 
2 Internacional de Agrlcultul"'S. Tropical, Call, Colombia, i:a press. 
3 Atkln, R.K.; Sartan, G.E.; RebIASon, O.K. (1973) 'Effect of root-· 
4 growing tempera.tures on growth substances in xylem exuda te ol' 
5 Zea mays. 'Journa,l 0'- Experimental·Sotany. , 24, 475-487. 
6 Sarrault. J. (1973) La recherche l'ourrag~re au Nol"d-cameroun. 
,'1 
8 
9 
10 
11 
12 
13 
14 
15 
16 
1'1 
18 
,19 
20 
21 
22 
23 
24 
25 
26 
27 
Productlon ei: valeur aHmentai,re de quelques fourrages tocaux 
(Travaux menés par l'IRAT.de 1965 a 1971). (FOrage crop 
researCh In Narth Cameroon. P¡"'oduction and food value 01' some 
la«a1 l'orage (work ca¡:'~ied' out ~ IRA 1- I'~ 1965 to 1971») • 
L'Agronomle Tropicale" Parls, 28, 173-188. 
, . 
Sogdan. A.V. (1977) Tropical pasture and fodder ptants. London; 
, ' ' 
Longman; 475'pp. 
, , 
Soudet, G. (1970) Managem~nt o~ savanna wood\and range In West 
.. ~ . . 
Al'rlca. Proceedlngs o, the ,11 th Internatlonal Grasslands 
CongreSs, Surfers Paradl.Se, p. 1-3. 
Bowden, S.N. (1963a) Studles onAndrópogon gayanus Kunth. 
l. The use of Andropogon gayanus' In agrlculture. E::mplre 
Journal ol' Experimental Agr"leulture. 31, 267-273. 
Sowden S. N. (1963b) -r:he root distl"lbutton 01' Andr"opogon gayanus 
var,_ blsguamulatus • East Arrican Agricultural a,nd FOr"estry 
,Journal.¡ 29, ,157-159. 
, . 
Sowden S.N. (1964a) StuI;Iies on Andr"opogpn gayanus Kunth. n. An 
outllne o: the mOl"phology and anatomy ol' Andr"Opogon gayanus 
: ' 
vl!l,r. blsguamutatus ,(Hoenst,),f-:laqk~ Journat ol' the Ltnnean 
: .... 
Socie!:y @atany); 58, 509-519 •. 
,. 
... '.-:;: . 
). 
, , 
" 
. \ 
'. 
'. ' 
.. 
• 
1 
2 
3 
4 
S 
6 
'7 
8 
9 
10 
U 
12 
13 
14 
15 
16 
17 
I 
18 
19 
20 
21 
22 
24. 
sowden. S.N. (1964b) StudiesonAndropogon gay~nus Kunth. 
\ . 
" 
ItI. An outUne 01' Ita biolog,y.' ,Journal'of Ecology. 52, 255-2.71 •... 
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l 
Chattérjee. B.N. (1964) .At Sabour. Sadab,ahar ls firSt among fórage 
. . . . " 
grasses.. Indlan ¡:::"armlng. 14. 17-20. 
Chatter.jee. S.N.~ Singh, R.O. (1968) Gr6wth analysis 01' perannial 
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, . 
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Emrich, E.S. (1972) Competi~o entre Cinco gramineas fórragelras 
, , . 
para a I'ormac¡:!l'o de' pastagens em solo de cerrado. (Performance 
01' flvEJ I'orage grásses used .,In ' pastura establishment In Cerrado 
, . 
SOiU. .A.r~IS lIa Reuniao Srasilelra de Cer~dos~ ·1~67.· Sete 
23 Lagoas. MoG •• 2()9,-221. 
34 Evans. L. T. (1964)' Reprc:iductlon o In Grasses and grass lands. 
25 ~ " 1 
. London, UK¡ Maem,lIan; 1'26-153. i 
26 Faster, W. H~ (1962) llÍ\iestlgatlonS preU~inarY to the productlor."l 01' 
2'1L..._....:........:C:;:u:.;l.:,t:.;i v;,;:a:.:r..:s::,. ..:o¡;"F..,¡.A¡¡¡¡,cn=d=r:!:!o:!:!:!!0'2=..,;¡¡o=nL.g¡!'i!ia!;!¡M.=:s='nu~S:..:.:-..:E;.:" u:;:;o~h:.;,v¡.:.:tt i:;¡c~.?:.!J:"':".!'.L.: .4: :,' 7:..-::,:5::::2:::.:,. __ ......,-1 
• . . 
. , 
. " 
25. 
1 Grsham. T.G. (1951) Tropicai pasture inVesttgations. Queensland 
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5 251-259. 
6 Haggar. R • ..J. (1969) Use of companion crops in grasslaÍ1é:l.· 
.7 establishment in Nigeria. Experimental ~gricultu,..e. 5. 47-52. 
8 Haggar. R.J. (1970) Seasonal prodt,i.ction of ~nd,..opogon gayanus. 
, , 
9 l. Seasonal changes. in yleld cc;rnponents and chemicel 
• l. t ' 
. . 
10 composftion. ..Journal::lf ~gricultu!"'al Sclence. Camb,..lé.,¡e; 7;.." 
, , 
11 . ·1 487-494. 
12 Haggar. R.J. (1972) The Intake and dlgestlbility 0(' low quali'ty 
13 ~ndropogón gayanus hay. supplemented wlth va,..ious nitrogenous 
14 feeds. as recol"'ded in sheep. Nigerlan ~gricultu,..e Journc.l ... 7. 
15 70-75. 
16 Haggar, R.J. (1975) Too effect ofquality. source and time of 
17 appUcatlon 01' nltr"ogen fertllizers on the yield ando quaUty ~ 
18 Andropogon gayanus at Sh!l<a. N,lgerla¡ Journal of 
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20 Haggar. R • ..J •• ~hrned. M.B. (1970) 'Seasonal productlon of 
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22 feed intake. Journal of ~grlcultural S~ience. Cambridge, 75. 
23 369-373. 
24 . Haggar. R ... J.;· .Ahmed. M.B. (197.1) Seasonal productlon of, 
25 AndropoQon gayanus~ IU. Changas 'In crude pl"'dteln content arte!, ~ . 
26 -In vitro dry matter dlgestlbllity 01' leaf and stem portlons~ 
-- , 
21~ ____ ~..J_o_u __ rna_.~I_o_f~~~~="'3ICU~I=tu~,..~ar.lis=c='t=e=n=ce~.~Ca~.~m~b~r~ld:g~e~.~·~7~7~.~4~7_-5~2~' ______ -J'· 
.. 
• 
• 
26. 
1 Hagga~, R.J.; de L.eeuw, P.N. (1969) 'Annua! report of the 
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3 Belto University" l~-ea. lnstitute 01' Agricultun:l1 Research, 
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6 Northern Guinea Zone savannaS. Samaru Agricultural 
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8 L.eeuw. P.N. de; Brlnckma"\. W~ L. (1974) Pasture and rangeland 
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10 
11 
In Animal production In the tropies, lbadan. Nlgeria¡ Helnemann 
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. . . . 
12 MlIford. R.; Mlnson,. 0 • ..1. (1955) Intake of tropical paSture speeias. 
13 
14 
15 
~ 16 
1'1 
18 
19 ' 
20 
21 
Proce,edirigs ol' the 9th Internatlonel Grasslands Congress, , S~o 
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'. . 
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. . 
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" , 
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22 Oyenuga, V.A. (1957) Agricultura! )l8,lue 01' Nigerlan grasa specles. 
23 'Emplre Journa.\ of' Exper~mental Agrleulture, 25. 237-255.' 
1I4 Ratns, A.B.¡;Foster. W.H. (1957) El'feet 01' cutting Andl"'opogon 
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26 ofAgriculture ol' Northem Nlgeria. Part 11. 1956-:-57" 
27 '163-164; 
.. .: 
. ' 
" 
¡ 
, 
.' 
" 
: 
• 
• 
27. 
1 Reid. P.A.; Miller. I.C. (1970), New grasses fol"" the top ene! Gamba 
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. . .. 
4 on the nutrittonal qua1U:yof grasaea ane! legumes ln Uganda. 
. . . 
6 l. Appllcation 01' In vitro dlgestibiUI:y technl.qu!'$ te apecl.e.!ii and 
- . . 
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11 Con9ress. Sio Paulo. 163-771. 
12 Slngh. R.O.; Chatterjee, S.N. (1965) Ttllerlng o~perennial grasses 
·13 
14 
15 
18 
17 
18 
U 
20 
21 
22 
23 
24 
25 
26 
27 
In the trQpics 01' India. Prbceedings of the 9th International 
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.. ' . 
", 
. 
• 
. . 
28. 
1 Cal"OUna State Universlty, Raleigh, USA. 484-601. 
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"" 8 Klrkiá. 9. 209-{!32 •. 
,'1 Wild, H. (19746) lndlgenous plants and chromium in Rhodesla. Klrkia, 
8 9. 233-241. 
9 Wilkinson, G •. ":=. (1975) Effect 9f gra$s faUow rotatlons on the 
10 
11 
12 
13 
14 
15 
16 
17 
'18 
19 
, 20 
,21 
22 
23 
24 
25 
26 
21 
, ' 
Infl1trat:on ofwater ¡nte a savanna zona soil"of North¡; ,"n Nlgeria. 
.. 
Troplcat" Agriculture, Trinidad. 52, 97-103. 
Wtl1lams, P.M,¡ BÓWden. B.N. (1973) , Trlglyceride met:a&olism In . 
germinat. Ig Andropogon gayanus seeds., Phytechemts:. -:l. 12, 
2821-2827. 
ZemmeUnk. G.; Haggar,.R.J;;.Oavie-s, J.H. ,(1972) A note on l:Me 
voluntary intake of Andl"Opogon gayanus hay by,cattle, a'. affeéted 
by level of feeding. Animal Production •. f5; 8S-aa. 
, 
, " 
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5.' .... 5 (4.') 60.'-46.5 (52.1) porel, .~0Wft l .. ift. (3) ve&. .eaNn ¡.outh 
'.4-l.l (1.4) 49.5·21.' ,(]7.7) .• ..- .... \ ... ·(4) can Mor I '''''''''' 
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l.'-2.2 U.U U.'-45.5 (55.%) lEea bdov (2) ball 01 cb, rdtlJ' 
2.4-1.5 (2.0' 60.5-)7.4 (49.9) .c_be1ov(3). .o •• on. :C.d •• 
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JlUI ..... 6.S 61.6 U ...... ) JI n .. lOO _. nI. a, JI ca ID B ,.,'llla.11oft. 
.. i..,UQ 4.3 52.4 (la .... , 100 .. 12$ ca, .w.& ac ZS al .."t fine. 1"",&:1a 
3.a 54.1 (b .... 101 n-lOO ca. cae .c 12-ta ea .(vet ...... 
4.1 54.0 (lo .... 1.1 l00-12S ca, cut n 12-11 ca 
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200 300 400 500 
Fertilizer Nl~n (kg ha-1 yr-1) 
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FJg. 1. RespOnse af dry matter yield to fertUlze,r nltrogen. 
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Total R:iinfaU (mm) 
Fig. l. Effect of rainfaU en response of dry matwr yield. to 
fortillzer nitrogon. Rninfall eorresponding to point (x) 
has bcen oor1'Octed fol' nbnel,. 'nUy blgh, fncffcctive 
'rainfaU at the beginning of too rn1ny senson.' 
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