Abstract:
A field experiment to evaluate the growth parameters and fodder yields of Sugar Graze and Jumbo Plus under occasional
irrigation was conducted at 3 different plant spacings (30 × 15, 30 × 45 and 30 × 60 cm) on a red-yellow latosol in the
dry zone of Sri Lanka from August 2015 to January 2016. The design was a randomized block with 3 replications. Initial
harvesting of fodder was done 60 days after planting and 2 ratoon yields were assessed at successive 60-day intervals.
Plant spacing was inversely related (P<0.05) to dry matter (DM) yield with the narrowest spacing (30 × 15 cm) producing
yields of 14.1 t DM/ha for Sugar Graze and 12.6 t DM/ha for Jumbo Plus at the initial harvest. Plant spacing also
influenced leaf area, stem girth, root length and plant height in the initial harvest. Sugar Graze produced higher yields
than Jumbo Plus at the initial and second ratoon harvests. Yields from ratoon crops were about 30% of those for the
initial harvest. Further studies are needed to determine how these findings apply under the low-rainfall conditions of the
yala season, and chemical analyses and animal feeding studies would provide valuable information on the nutritional
value of the different forages.
