Spring Cereals for Forage and Grain Production in a Cool Maritime Climate

• Published in: Journal of Agronomy and Crop Science
• Main Authors: Todd, A. G., Spaner, D.
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Wiley 2003
• Subjects: Canada; Newfoundland
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.1046/j.1439-037x.2003.00589.x; https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1046/j.1439-037X.2003.00589.x

Abstract Newfoundland's climate is marginal for agricultural production. The availability of locally grown cereal grain and high‐quality forage are major limitations to successful animal agriculture in this region. Here, our overall objective was to compare several spring cereal species for both annual forage and grain production in Newfoundland's cool Maritime climate. Several varieties of barley ( Hordeum vulgare L.), wheat ( Triticum aesitivum L.), oats ( Avena sativa L.) and pea ( Pisum sativum L.)–cereal mixtures for forage yield and quality, as well as grain yield and maturity, were compared in field trials on the east and west coasts in both 1999 and 2000. Barley headed earliest, yielded greatest forage dry matter, had lowest forage protein and acid detergent fibre (ADF) percentages, and had neutral detergent fibre (NDF) mean values greater than those of pea–cereal mixtures, but less than those of oats and wheat. Forage harvested from pea–cereal mixtures was similar to that of barley for yield, ADF and NDF, while P and protein percentage were much greater. Barley matured 10–15 days earlier than both wheat and oats. In general terms, all three spring cereals exhibited similar grain yield potential. Oats tillered less, but compensated by producing more kernels spike −1 . Days to maturity for cereal grains in western Newfoundland were roughly similar to those reported for the Maritime provinces of Canada. Yield and maturity results for both forage and grain production suggest that eastern Newfoundland is a unique agro‐ecoregion in North America, and agronomic recommendations specific to other regions may not be applicable in this region.