A comparison of liveweight gain and wool production from Polwarth ewe weaners grazed at three stocking rates on three different perennial based pastures in the southern Adelaide hills of South Australia.

Abstract

A COMPARISON OF LIVEWEIGHT GAIN AND WOOL PRODUCTION FROM POLWARTH EWE WEANERS GRAZED AT THREE STOCKING RATES ON THREE DIFFERENT PERENNIAL BASED PASTURES IN THE SOUTHERN ADELAIDE RILLS OF SOUTH AUSTRALIA P.R. GIBSON* Progress results frtorn a stocking rate (Polwarth ewe weaners set stocked at 10, 14 an .d 1 8 ha-l) x three pasture treatments (viz:Festuca arundinacea cv Demet -9 Lolium erenne 'Mt, Alma* and Phalaris tuberosa x Phalaris arundinac ea cv Siro 114 each sown with Trifolium -+-subterraneum cw. Mt. Barker and Woogene llup in Aprmtrial are reported.These three pasture treatmen .ts are hereafter referred to as A, B and C respectively. I The percentage of treatment grass (percentage green overlapping cover) decreased from 10% at time of stocking and until the germination of-annual legumes and grasses following late February rains to 27% (mean of all paddocks) at the last survey on the 15/9/75. The percentage contribution of subterranean clover was very similar between treatments during the experimental period and increased from 18.5% to 4% (mean - of treatments) during the winter. Weaner live weights increased from 26.8kg at allocation on 12/12/74 and reached a summer maximum at the beginning of February. The summer maximum live weight on 5/2/75, minimum live weight on 25/5/75 and final liveweight prior to shearing on 30/9/75 were higher for treatment A than either B or C. This advantage in live weight was significant (PcO.05) in all cases except between A and C at the final weighing, Treatment ranking on the basis of greasy fleece weight at shearing was A>B>C with only the difference in yield between A and C reaching significance (PeO.05) (Table 1). TABLE 1 This project has been financially supported by the Wool Research Trust Fund, 6P