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RPF-J (2013-14)

PERFORMA FOR SUBMISSION OF RESEARCH PROJECTS

PART -1: GENERAL INFORMATION

200 Project code

2001 Institute code PAR- 4.2

2002 rCAR code

201 Name oflnstitute & Division

20 II Name & address of Institute INDIAN GRASSLAND AND FODDERRESEARCH INSTITUTE, JHANSI- 284003

2012 Name of Division /Section PAR Division

2013 Location of Project PAR Division

202 Project Title: Long term effect of different grazing intensities on soil health and

pasture -animal productivity

203 Priority Area Development of efficient & economical feeding system for ruminant

animals

2031 Research Approach: Applied Res. Basic Res. Transfer ofTechnology04

Process/ orDevelopment0301 02

204 Specific Arearangeland/ pasture

Nutrition and sustainable feeding strategies of mixed herd on

205 Duration of Project

2051 Date of start July 2013

2052 Likely date of completion June 2018 (l " phase) & June 201.1(2nd phase)

206 Total cost of the Project

2061 Foreign Exchange Component (if any)

207 Project Profile Summary:

In semi-arid regions, the low productivity of livestock is primarily due to inadequateavailability of quality forage. Looking to the very limited scope of expanding the area underfodder crops on arable lands, development of pasture with trees/shrubs on unutilizeddegraded/ wastelands are of great promise in meeting society's forage requirements, besidesland conservation. But stocking rate is the key to successful pasture based livestockproduction. Overstocking pastures/ grasslands leads to a reduction in desirable forage speciesand an invasion of weeds and undesirable grasses, besides degradation of natural resources.Animal performance declines and the carrying capacity of the grazing land are reduced.Conversely, understocking results in wasted forage and decreased profit potential from thelivestock operation. Thus the present investigation will be undertaken to study the effect ofdifferent grazing intensities on soil health and pasture-animal productivity in semi-aridecosystem as long term approach, since there has been relatively little study on sustainableanimal production based on different grazing intensities. .

208 Key Words Grazing intensity, Soil health, Pasture production, Animal production

PART -II: INVESTIGATOR PROFILE

210 Principal Investigator:

: Dr. S.K. Mahanta2101 ame

2102 Designation

2103 Division/Section

2104 Location

2105 Institute Address

211 Co-Investigator:

211 I Name

2112 Designation

2 113 Division/Section

2114 Location

21 15 Institute Address

212 Co-Investigator

2121 Name

: Principal Scientist (Animal Nutrition)

: PAR Division

: PAR Division

: IGFRI, Jhansi (UP)

: Dr. S.N. Ram

: Principal Scientist (Agronomy)

: GSM Division

: GSM Division

: IGFRI, Jhansi (UP)

: Dr. Archana Singh

2

2122 Designation : Sr. Scientist (Economic Botany)

2123 Division/Section : GSM Division

2124 Location : GSM Division

2125 Institute Address : IGFRI, Jhansi (UP)

213 Co-Investigator:

2131 Name : Dr. Sultan Singh

2132 Designation : Principal Scientist (Animal Nutrition)

2133 Division/Section : PAR Division

2134 Location : PAR Division


214 Co-Investigator

2141 Name : Dr. A.K. Rai

2142 Designation : Sr. Scientist (Soil Science)

2143 Division/Section : CP Division

2144 Location : CP Division


215 Co-Investigator

2151 Name : Dr. R. Srinivasan

2152 Designation : Sr. Scientist (Soil Microbiology)

2153 Division/Section : CP Division



216 Co-Investigator

2161 Name : Dr. 1.B. Singh

2162 Designation : Principal Scientist (Agril. Meteorology)

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2163 Division/Section : CP Division (I'


2165 Institute Address : IOFRI, Jhansi (UP)

217 Co-Investigator

2171 Name : Dr. Akram Ahmed

2172 Designation : Scientist (Soil and Water Conservation)

2173 Division/Section : FM & PHT Division

2174 Location : FM & PHT Division..

2175 Institute Address : IOFRI, Jhansi (UP)

218 Co-Investigator

2181 Name : Dr. S.B. Maity

2182 Designation : Principal Scientist (LPM)

2183 Division/Section : PAR Division

2184 Location : PAR Division

2185 Institute Address : IOFR!, Jhansi (UP)

PART-III: TECHNICAL DETAILS

220 Introduction and objective:

2201 Origin of the Proj ect:(Problem identification)

Please See Annexure-I

2202 Definition of Problem

2203 Immediate objectives:

2204 Long term objectives:

2205 Review of status of Research in the Subject:

a) International Status:

b) National Status:

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221 Project Technical Profile:

2211 Organization of work elements (for each objective and

Participating investigator giving man - months involved)

Investigator Man- Work elementsmonths

1. S.K. Mahanta 2.5 Nutritional status and production performance of animals2. S.N. Ram 2.0 Management of pasture biomass, shrubs & trees3. Archana Singh 2.0 Changes in botanical composition of biomass/pasture4. Sultan Singh 2.0 Recording methane emission5. A.K. Rai 2.0 Recording soil fertility status and carbon sequestrations6. R. Srinivasan 2.0 Changes in soil microflora7. 1.B. Singh 2.0 Correlating weather data with pasture-animal productivity8. Akram Ahmed 2.0 Soil moisture dynamics, composition and run off loss9. S.B. Maity 2.0 Behaviour of animals under grazing

2212 Methodology:

Standard methods will be followed for recording data and collection as well as

laboratory analysis of biological and soil samples

2213 Plan of action:

2214 Time schedule of activities (milestones):

Activities Time required (weeks)1. Management of biomass under different grazing paddocks & 4arrangement of experimental animals2. Conducting grazing trials under different grazing intensities 283. Biological and soil samples collection from grazing paddocks 84. Laboratory analysis of biological and soil samples 105. Compilation of data, report writing and literature collection 4

...N.B.: Above mentioned activities are continuous In nature except for first two years(establishment years for pastures and recording initial information on soils and vegetations

2215 Annual targets for each activity:

Ist Year = Establishment of pasture including fencing, bunding etc and recording initial

information on soils and vegetations

= Continuation of establishment of pasture including fencing, bunding etc and

recording initial information on soils and vegetations

= Studies on different grazing intensities impacting soil health and pasture-

2nd year

3rd Year

5

animal productivity

= Continuation of Studies on different grazing intensities impacting soil health

and pasture-animal productivity

s" year = Continuation of Studies on different grazing intensities impacting soil health

and pasture-animal productivity and submission of report for 1st phase.

4th Year

2216 Estimated Man months:

a) Scientific = 18.5

b) Technical = 2.0

c) Supporting = 2.0

222 Proposed Research Details: Please See Annexure-I

2221 Importance of the proposed Project (gaps in Knowledge/Products/ process technology) to the institute mandate.

The project has been formulated keeping inmind the mandate of Plant AnimalRelation Division (Institute) i.e. development of feeding system for different categories oflivestock with available feed resources.

2222 Questions attempted to be answered:

• What will be long term effect of grazing intensities on animal and pasture production

including changes in herbage composition?

• What will be effect of grazing on soil health and carbon emission in pasture based

animal production system?

• What will be the grazing intensities for sustainable pasture and animal production in

semi-arid region?

2223 Anticipated process/Products/Technology/ Knowledge Expectedto be Evolved by pursuing the project:

• Information on appropriate grazing intensities will be evolved for sustainable animalproduction based on grazing

• Assessing the carrying capacity of natural grasslands

2224 Practical utility of Anticipated results ofthe project:

• Improvement in pasture and animal production• Sustainable development of 'Iand-pasture-animal' system keeping in view natural

resources and animal welfare• Generating information on soil carbon sequestration in natural grasslands

2225 Expertise available with investigatory Group Institute

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co-Investigators~~

1. (S.N. Ram)

2. (Archana Singh) ~

C},.jJ.' -:

3. (Sulta~n~

~ --4. (A.K. Rai)~, -=--~~5. (R\ Sn~an) ~ ,

6.(J.B.~)

~7. (Akram Ahmed)

~7 ..t.8. (S.B. Malty)

Signature & comments of the

Signature & Comments of tbe Head ~ /'

of the Division/ Section I{C ~

Signature &Comments of the

JOintDir:;: ese~ ~ ~

~~ -ss-:

Director

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Annexure-INew Project

Title: Long term effect of different grazing intensities on soil health andpasture-animal productivity

Workers: S. K. Mahanta, S. N. Ram, Archana Singh, Sultan Singh, A.K. Rai, R. Srinivasan,J.B. Singh, Akram Ahmed, S.B. Maity

Duration: 10 years (Phase I & II of 5 years each)

Background and Rationale

In semi-arid regions, the low productivity of livestock is primarily due to inadequateavailability of quality forage. Looking to the very limited scope of expanding the area underfodder crops on arable lands, development of pasture with trees/shrubs on unutilizeddegraded/ wastelands are of great promise in meeting society's forage requirements, besidesland conservation (Roy, 2004). In fact, in most of the developing countries including India,the human population is increasing, with land not well suited for cropping and earlier used tograze by ruminants now being cultivated. Thus there is greater direct competition betweenhumans and animals and, as such, animals are being pushed more and more to less productiveland (Sahlu and Goetsch, 2005). Although, the non-arable lands can also be exploited formaxim ization of forage production.

The availability of pasture including its quality can be increased by appropriate and scientificmanagement of natural grasslands like introduction of pasture legumes, fertilizer application,seeding of improved grasses and also appropriate grazing management practices (Hazra,1995). But adequate nutrition to plants is vital for the good forage production. Although, theavailability of nutrients from soil sources is dependent upon various physical and chemicalfactors operating in soils. Because of complex relationship between soil-plant-animals due tospecific characteristics of the plants and the interaction between different nutrients includingminerals, it has became essential to know the status of nutrients in different soil-forage-livestock interfaces for sustainable livestock development in a region. Although, the forageplants in general are believed to be heavy feeder and thus, drain considerable amount ofnutrients. Thus, there is every possibility of imbalances of nutrients including micronutrients,which will affect the productivity of animals, more so reproduction and health.

Nutrient cycle includes the uptake, utilization and release of a nutrient into a form that can bereused. A study on the cycling of nutrients in arid and semi-arid grasslands of Kutch showedthat storage was more under the ungrazed than the grazed treatment. Grazing induced moreuptakes of Nand K and reduced the retention and replacement of P (Pandeya and Sidha,1989). Decomposition of faecal matter also plays a significant role in cycling of organicmatter and nutrients in grazing land ecosystems (Joshi et aI., 1982). However, the focus inmost of the studies on grassland ecology and range management is either on plants or animalaspects and they are generally silent on plant-animal or soil-plant-animal interactions(Shankar and Singh, 1996).

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Carbon sequestration in rangeland ecosystems has recently emerged as an important serviceto sequester greenhouse gases and mitigate climate change. Grazing, as the mostgeographically expansive land use, occurs over a third of the earth's land surface and maypotentially influence the storage of 109 Mg year+ l of greenhouse gases as soil C (Scurlockand Hall, 1998). Grasslands store considerably more carbon in soil than in the vegetation(White et aI., 2000). Studies have shown that grazing can often promote C storage (Reederand Schuman, 2002). Thus, understanding the change of soil C storage under grazingintensity is important to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions and mitigate climate change.Grazing can have a direct impact on plant production and thereby on soil C inputs (Steffens etaI., 2008; Lu et aI., 2011). The change of vegetation composition was found to be animportant factor in influencing soil carbon sequestration in grazing ecosystems (Bagchi andRitchie, 2010). Vegetation that was changed from a C3 dominated, to a more C4 dominatedplant community due to grazing, lead to sac accumulating closer to the soil surface, makingit more vulnerable to being lost to the atmosphere (Ingram et aI., 2008). However, it was alsoreported that an increase in communities of C4 grasses which were tolerant of grazing andhad more dense root systems and higher root-to-shoot ratios, at heavy grazing resulted inincreases in soil C and N. Grazing also influenced the amount and composition of soilorganic matter (SaM) through its effects on litter accumulation and decomposition (Schariffet aI., 1994) ..

Soil microorganisms playa central role in decomposition and respiration, and influence Cstorage in soil. Soil microbial biomass, the living part of soil organic matter, functions as atransient nutrient sink and is responsible for decomposition and transformation of organicmaterials which are mostly derived from above and below-ground plant residues, andreleasing nutrient from organic matter which is used by plants. Microbial biomass carbon(MBC) generally comprises 1-4% of soil organic matter and is the most active component ofsoil organic carbon that regulates biogeochemical processes in terrestrial ecosystems. SoilMBC, as an important indicator of changes of soil quality and management practices is verysensitive to environmental changes (Nielsen et aI., 2002). Microbial biomass also acts as asmall but labile reservoir of nutrients that contributes to maintaining long-term soilsustainability. In grazing lands, organic input from vegetation and excreta of animal cancontribute to increased soil organic matter content and consequently cause an impact on soilbiological processes. Thus, soil microbial biomass plays a critical role in grazing ecosystemsas there is a large input of organic residue.

Again it was reported that mixed species grazing may result in high output per unit area.Identification of animal dietary preferences can provide a basis for securing better intake andselecting the correct mix to suit particular vegetation under mixed grazing. Under temperateconditions mixed cattle and sheep grazing resulted in a 10% increase in individual animalgrowth rate without stocking rate or an increase in of upto 13% stocking rate withoutaffecting individual animal growth rate (No Ion and Connolly, 1989). In arid region, thecarrying capacity could be doubled by raising sheep and goats together. Since sheep werechiefly foragers and goats are browsers, they complemented each other for utilization ofrange resources (Mittal, 1988). The best utilization of rangeland achieved if cattle grazed firstfollowed by sheep and goats (Shankar et aI., 1988). In North-west arid zone the dry matterand energy (TON) consumption by goats were higher than sheep in all the seasons. Drymatter digestibility was also higher in goats that in sheep. CP digestibility was lower duringMarch and June in goats than in sheep while it was reverse during September and December.This was due to consumption of dry grass by sheep and browsing of palatable bushes by

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goats. In mixed herd grazing, sheep and goats do not compete with each other for utilizationof vegetation resources in arid region (Arora and Swain, 1988). Small ruminants, particularlygoats are able to maintain a constant level of energy and nutrient intake, despite widefluctuation in supply from natural vegetations! ranges and probably because of theiropportunistic and selective behavior (Shinde et ai., 2000). Moreover, data, which have beenpublished, pertain to specific climatic conditions and are of little application for otherclimatic and grazing situations because of wide variation in biotic and abiotic components(Shinde et ai., 2002). New tendency in livestock production systems is also coming up, wherethere is shift from intensive to semi-intensive and extensive systems of production based insustainable development, animal welfare, high quality animal products etc (Lachica andAguilera, 2005).

Stocking rate is the key to successful pasture based animal production. Overstocking ofrangeland leads to a reduction in desirable forage species and an invasion of weeds andundesirable grasses. As the incidence of undesirable species increases at the expense of themore desirable forage species, animal performance declines and the carrying capacity of thegrazing land is reduced. Conversely, understocking results in patch (or spot) grazing. Patchgrazing occurs where animals repeatedly graze the same area as soon as regrowth isavailable. Animals continue to utilize previously grazed areas because the immature regrowthis more palatable and of higher nutritive value. Un grazed areas in the pasture continue toincrease in maturity, decline in nutritive value, and become increasingly less palatable. Thedecline in forage utilization (harvest efficiency) results in wasted forage and decreased profitpotential from the livestock operation. In either case, proper stocking rate and some form ofrotational stocking could improve the net profitability of the livestock production system.Maximum individual animal performance occurs at light stocking rates because there is littlecompetition for the best forage plants in the pasture. As stocking rate is increased, the level ofanimal performance is reduced due to increased competition. The opportunity for dietselection afforded by low stocking rates ensures that individual animal. performance ismaximized (Redfearn and Bidwell, 2012).

Keeping the above facts in view, the present investigation will be undertaken to study theeffect of different grazing intensities on soil health and pasture-animal productivity in semi-arid ecosystem as long term approach, since there has been relatively little study onsustainable animal production based on different grazing intensities.

Objectives:

• To study the long term effect of different grazing intensities on the pastureand animal production as well as changes in herbage

• To evaluate the effect of grazing on soil health and carbon emissions inpasture based animal production system

• To assess the impact of grazing and sustainability of pasture-animalproduction systems for improved animal production in semi-arid region

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Plan of work

The investigation will be carried out in 16 ha of pasture lands (Rammani watershed area,Experimental Farm, IGFRl) for improvement of animal production as well as sustainabilityof land unit on long term basis. Grazing at 3 different stocking rates (lACU/ha, 2 ACU/haand 3 ACU/ha) will be imposed on 12 ha of pasture lands and remaining 4 ha will be kept asungrazed/control unit. In each stocking rate/treatment, 4 plots/paddocks of 1 ha each will bemade for experimental grazing following continuous management practices. Mixed herdgrazing will be allowed at respective stocking rates, where half of that will be from smallruminants (sheep and goats) and other half will be from cattle. All the experimental animalswill be supplemented with concentrates depending upon the availability of forage its quality,as well as the nutritional requirements for improved productive performances. Thus, theefforts will be made to exploit the potential of animals on mixed rations of forage andconcentrates.

All the activities will be continued on the same pasture land for successive 8 years exceptslight change in number of animals to be allowed for grazing.

Observations to be made:

• Nutritional status and animal production in terms body weight changes/ growth• Pasture production and quality• Changes in botanical composition, plant vigour etc in pasture• Changes in soil fertility and soil micro-flora• Carbon sequestrations and emissions• Soil moisture dynamics, compaction and run off loss• Emission of methane from animals

References

Arrora CL and Swain N. (1988). Relative performances of sheep and goats under rangelandmanagement system. Proceedings Third International Rangeland Congress, Jhansi, India. pp.436-442.

Bagchi S, Ritchie ME. (2010) Introduced grazers can restrict potential soil carbonsequestration through impacts on plant community composition. Ecology Letters 13: 959-968.

Hazra CR. (1995). Advances in Forage Production Technology. Indian Grassland and FodderResearch Institute, Jhansi.

Ingram LJ, Stahl PO, Schuman GE, Buyer JS, Vance GF. (2008). Grazing impacts on soilcarbon and microbial communities in a mixed-grass ecosystem. Soil Science Society ofAmerican Journal 72: 939-948.

Joshi JK, Mukhiya YK, Shrotriya, N and Singh VP. (1982). Faecal matter decompositionefficiency of herbivores in tropical grazing lands. Indian J. Range Mgmt 3 : 39-43.

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