Pasture improvement
Management Activity
Pasture improvement is undertaken to increase the nutritional value and performance of pasture grasses and legumes. Improved pastures can also contribute to soil nitrogen levels. Improvement may take the form of: sowing pastures into tilled soil, oversowing into established pastures, applying fertiliser or increasing the decomposition of soil organic matter by soil cultivation.
Pasture improvement can be associated with the following management activities and their subsequent impacts:
- Soil tillage
- Fertiliser application
- Deep ripping of pastures
- Irrigation with fresh water
- Irrigation with effluent water
- Vegetation clearing
- Thinning of woody regrowth
The direct impacts of pasture improvement may include:
- Introduction of new plant species
- Increased vegetative growth and subsequent pasture productivity
- Increased ground cover in some situations
- Reduced ground cover in some situations
- Reduced invasion of production weeds
- Soil nutrient build up
- Improve livestock production
If heavy machinery is used for pasture improvement then impacts may also include:
Last updated 7 September 2010
