Abstract

East-Mediterranean natural pastures are characterised by extreme seasonal variation in nutritional value. High quality green standing pasture is available only during the rainy season (Dec-May), whereas during the rest of the year the standing pasture is dry and of low quality. The main objective of this study was to investigate the potential of increasing weaning rates and weaning weights on a commercial beef suckler herd under the above conditions. The main 3 means to achieve this were: (I) increasing stocking rate, (ii) intensive trough-feeding, during the dry pasture season, of rations based on recycled wastes, and (iii) short calving periods. Main input-output data in the 1st and 10th year of the study, respectively, were as follows: herd size: 424, 624 cows; stocking rate 0.19, 0.29 cow/ha of pasture; trough-fed ration; 1, 2 metric tons DM/cow/year; energy in trough- fed ration: 7.5, 8.8-9.6 MJ ME/kg DM; percent cows calving in the first 2 months of the calving season (Aug. + Sept.): 35, 89; percent cows weaning (of exposed to mating bulls): 73, 86; avg. calf weaning weight 206, 259 kg LW; total weaned calf crop: 64, 138 metric ton LW/year. These data present a potential model for improving the efficiency and increasing the volume of range beef production under Mediterranean-type pasture conditions. Studies are in progress on intensive beef production (I) by suckler herds in full confinement - fed year-round on rations composed mainly of recycled wastes, (ii) by dual-purpose cattle - in dairy herds under milk quotas, and (iii) under desert conditions based on grazing or trough-feeding forage irrigated with saline water and/or purified recycled sewage water.

DL, Hopkins, and RS Hegarty

Proceedings of the New Zealand Society of Animal Production, Volume 55, , 117-119, 1995