Abstract
Lucerne (Medicago sativa L.) has the potential to be grown widely under water-limiting conditions in the dairy region of northern Victoria and southern New South Wales, Australia, possibly because of its greater water productivity and because irrigation management of lucerne can be more flexible compared with other forage species. A large-scale field experiment was conducted at Tatura in northern Victoria, over 5 years to determine the effects of limiting (deficit) and non-limiting irrigation management on the dry matter (DM) production, water productivity (irrigation and total water productivity) and stand density (or persistence) of lucerne. Nine irrigation treatments were imposed that included full irrigation, partial irrigation and no irrigation in either a single, or over consecutive, irrigation seasons. In the fifth year of the experiment, all plots received the full irrigation treatment to examine plant recovery from the previous irrigation treatments. In any one year, there was a linear relationship between DM production and total water supply (irrigation plus rainfall plus changes in soil water) such that DM production decreased as the total water supply – due to deficit irrigation – decreased. Over the 5 years, annual DM production ranged from 1.4 to 17.7 t DM ha–1 with the highest production occurring in plots that received full irrigation. Irrigation water productivity was inversely related to the amount of water used and was higher in the treatments that had only been partially irrigated for that year compared with the treatments that had been fully watered for that year. Total water productivity values were significantly lower only in the treatments that had not been irrigated for that year, and there was little difference between the treatments that were only partially watered during the year and the fully watered treatments (range 9.1–12.2 kg DM ha–1 mm–1 for Year 4). There was no significant reduction in plant density or plant persistence in those plots where deficit irrigation had been imposed. However, the high irrigation regime and poor drainage in the fully irrigated border-check plots significantly reduced plant density and allowed weed infestation in the fifth year of the experiment. These results suggest that, although lucerne DM production is directly related to total water use and may be significantly reduced in the irrigation regions of south-eastern Australia in seasons when water is restricted, the lucerne stand is able to fully recover once a full irrigation regime is resumed. This makes lucerne an ideal forage species for situations when water is limiting.
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Claims 11
Claim · model-written summary
Dry matter production fell linearly as total water supply fell under deficit irrigation.
- Taxon
- Lucerne
Medicago sativat0 - Treatment
- deficit irrigatione0
- Outcome
- DM productione0
- Direction
- decreasede0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“DM production decreased as the total water supply – due to deficit irrigation – decreased”
t0“Lucerne yield, water productivity and persistence under variable and restricted irrigation strategies”
Claim · model-written summary
Annual dry matter production ranged from 1.4 to 17.7 t DM ha–1 over five years.
- Taxon
- LucerneMedicago sativat0
- Outcome
- annual DM productione0
- Value
- 1.4 to 17.7 t DM ha–1e0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“annual DM production ranged from 1.4 to 17.7 t DM ha–1”
t0“Lucerne yield, water productivity and persistence under variable and restricted irrigation strategies”
Claim · model-written summary
Full irrigation produced the highest dry matter production.
- Taxon
- LucerneMedicago sativat0
- Treatment
- full irrigatione0
- Outcome
- productione0
- Direction
- higheste0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“highest production occurring in plots that received full irrigation”
t0“Lucerne yield, water productivity and persistence under variable and restricted irrigation strategies”
Claim · model-written summary
Irrigation water productivity was inversely related to water used.
- Taxon
- LucerneMedicago sativat0
- Treatment
- amount of water usede0
- Outcome
- Irrigation water productivitye0
- Direction
- inversely relatede0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“Irrigation water productivity was inversely related to the amount of water used”
t0“Lucerne yield, water productivity and persistence under variable and restricted irrigation strategies”
Claim · model-written summary
Partially irrigated treatments had higher irrigation water productivity than fully watered treatments.
- Taxon
- LucerneMedicago sativat0
- Treatment
- partially irrigatede0
- Outcome
- Irrigation water productivityt1
- Direction
- highere0
- Comparator
- fully waterede0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“higher in the treatments that had only been partially irrigated for that year compared with the treatments that had been fully watered for that year”
t0“Lucerne yield, water productivity and persistence under variable and restricted irrigation strategies”
t1“Irrigation water productivity was inversely related to the amount of water used”
Claim · model-written summary
Total water productivity was significantly lower only without irrigation that year.
- Taxon
- LucerneMedicago sativat0
- Treatment
- not been irrigatede0
- Outcome
- Total water productivitye0
- Direction
- lowere0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“Total water productivity values were significantly lower only in the treatments that had not been irrigated for that year”
t0“Lucerne yield, water productivity and persistence under variable and restricted irrigation strategies”
Claim · model-written summary
Partially and fully watered treatments differed little in total water productivity.
- Taxon
- LucerneMedicago sativat0
- Treatment
- partially waterede0
- Outcome
- Total water productivityt1
- Direction
- little differencee0
- Value
- 9.1–12.2 kg DM ha–1 mm–1e0
- Comparator
- fully watered treatmentse0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“there was little difference between the treatments that were only partially watered during the year and the fully watered treatments (range 9.1–12.2 kg DM ha–1 mm–1 for Year 4)”
t0“Lucerne yield, water productivity and persistence under variable and restricted irrigation strategies”
t1“Total water productivity values were significantly lower only in the treatments that had not been irrigated for that year”
Claim · model-written summary
Deficit irrigation did not significantly reduce plant density or persistence.
- Taxon
- LucerneMedicago sativat0
- Treatment
- deficit irrigatione0
- Outcome
- plant density or plant persistencee0
- Direction
- no significant reductione0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“There was no significant reduction in plant density or plant persistence in those plots where deficit irrigation had been imposed”
t0“Lucerne yield, water productivity and persistence under variable and restricted irrigation strategies”
Claim · model-written summary
High irrigation and poor drainage significantly reduced plant density.
- Taxon
- LucerneMedicago sativat0
- Treatment
- high irrigation regime and poor drainagee0
- Outcome
- plant densitye0
- Direction
- reducede0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“the high irrigation regime and poor drainage in the fully irrigated border-check plots significantly reduced plant density”
t0“Lucerne yield, water productivity and persistence under variable and restricted irrigation strategies”
Claim · model-written summary
High irrigation and poor drainage allowed weed infestation in year five.
- Taxon
- LucerneMedicago sativat0
- Outcome
- weed infestatione0
Not reportedDirection
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“allowed weed infestation in the fifth year of the experiment”
t0“Lucerne yield, water productivity and persistence under variable and restricted irrigation strategies”
Claim · model-written summary
Lucerne stands fully recovered after full irrigation resumed.
- Taxon
- lucerneMedicago sativae0
- Treatment
- full irrigation regimee0
- Outcome
- fully recovere0
Not reportedDirection
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“the lucerne stand is able to fully recover once a full irrigation regime is resumed”
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See all 33 papers →Claims are grouped by organism, treatment and what was measured or targeted. A paper counts as positive when any of its claims in the group is positive.