Glossary : Perennial Ryegrass, White Clover, Pasture Information, Pasture Management

Glossary

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Term				Definition


AgResearch				Government research and development company.

Annual ryegrass				Fast establishing, winter active ryegrass, generally persists only 9 - 12 months. See Annual & short rotation ryegrass.


AR1				Novel endophyte producing peramine. Also see Plus AR1.See Endophyte.

AR37				Novel endophyte producing janthitrems.

AR6				Novel endophyte produce ergovaline and peramine.



Argentine stem weevil (ASW)				Insect attacking endophyte-free ryegrass, cereals and maize, found throughout NZ.





Bloat				A build-up of foam in the rumen of animals grazing pastures low in fibre, usually with high clover content. Can be fatal.

Brome				Genus of dryland grass. Includes the species pasture brome, grazing brome, and prairie grass. See Brome grasses.


Certified seed				Seed which has passed seed certification.

Certification				A quality control system on seed production. To ensure variety identity and purity is maintained during seed production.

Clipped seed				Brome seed has a long awn (like a hair) making it hard to drill. This is removed (clipped) by mechanical means when seed is cleaned.

Cultivar				The same as 'variety', a named line of a plant species e.g. Bronsyn or Meridian are different cultivars of perennial ryegrass.

Cultivation				Ploughing and tilling soil before sowing. To kill resident vegetation, and remove any compaction.

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Term				Definition


Dexcel				Dexcel is the research and extension arm of the dairy industry, owned by New Zealand dairy farmers through Fonterra.



Direct drilling				Drilling seed directly into the soil without cultivation. A term more often used in cropping (see also spray-drilling and undersowing).


Dry Matter (DM)				The weight of forage when it's water content is removed. This is the usual way pasture yield is assessed, presented as kilograms of dry matter per hectare (kgDM/ha).

Ear emergence				When a seedhead appears out of the stem of a grass plant.


ELISA				The ELISA (Enzyme Linked Immuno Sorbant Assay) test is to ensure Plus AR1 is not contaminated by Standard endophyte.

Endophyte				Fungus found in permanent pasture ryegrass that provides it with protection from a range of insect pests and can effect animal health and cause "ryegrass staggers". See Endophyte


Ergovaline				Toxin produced by ryegrass endophyte.

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Term				Definition




Forage grass				A grass used in pastures for grazing.

Grass staggers				Nervous disorder due to a magnesium (Mg) deficiency in lactating animals, usually in spring. Note: not to be confused with ryegrass staggers or summer staggers, caused by Standard endophyte.


Hybrid ryegrass				See short rotation ryegrass.


Influorescence				A flower head or seed head.

Italian ryegrass				Fast establishing winter active ryegrass. More persistent than annual ryegrass. See Italian and annual ryegrass.

Leaf sheath				Base of a ryegrass tiller, close to the ground.

Legume				A plant that can have rhizobia bacteria living on its roots, that fix nitrogen from the air. Legumes may need to be inoculated with rhizobia before sowing.

Lime				Calcium carbonate, applied to soil to increase pH.

Line of seed				A line of seed is that which originated from the same seed crop. The number of the seed line is branded on the side of the sack and allows traceability of any line of seed sold.

Lolitrem B				Toxin produced by Standard endophyte that causes summer staggers or ryegrass staggers in stock.

Long rotation ryegrass				Generally intermediate to perennial and hybrid ryegrass in growth and persistence. Genetic composition mostly of perennial ryegrass but may contain up to 25% of short term ryegrass in their breeding. See Long rotation ryegrass & hybrid ryegrass.

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Term				Definition


Maintenance				The energy required by an animal to undertake its basic functions (breathing, moving, eating etc).



Mixed sward pasture				A pasture containing several different forage species e.g. grass and clover.

NFVT				National Forage Variety Trials. A co-operative system for testing pasture varieties co-ordinated by a number of forage breeding companies and AgResearch. See NFVT trial yield results.



Palatability				Term used to describe the preference animals show for different plants/pastures.

Peramine				Toxin produced by ryegrass with endophyte, that protects it against argentine stem weevil.

Perennial ryegrass				The most commonly used pasture grass in NZ. May or may not contain endophyte. See Perennial ryegrass.

Permanent pasture				Long-term pasture. "Long term" in northern NZ in summer dry areas with high insect levels may be only 5 - 10 years.

Persistence				How well a variety survives over time under, pressures from climate, grazing and insects (see permanent pasture).

Phalaris				Rhizomatous grass species.

Phalaris toxicity				Toxic effect on stock from grazing phalaris based pastures. Accentuated by low cobalt (Co) levels.

Phyto-oestrogens				Chemicals found in red clover that can lead to temporary infertility. Generally affects sheep as red clover levels are highest in autumn, when sheep mating occurs.

Plant pulling				On some soils, particularly peats, grass plants may be pulled out of the soil by grazing stock. Reduced plant pulling increases grass persistence.

Plant variety rights (PVR)				An intellectual property protection system for plants and endophytes. Similar to a copyright on a book.

Plus AR1				Agriseeds brand for AR1 endophyte, that greatly improves animal health and performance over Standard endophyte. See Endophyte.

Plus NEA2				Novel endophyte producing peramine and reduced levels of ergovaline. See Endophyte.

Prolactin				Hormone found in blood of animals. Reduced levels are used as an indicator of stress on animals.

Prostrate growth				Plant having a low or flat growth habit.

Pugging tolerance				The ability of a variety to resist the effect of animals trampling pastures in wet conditions.

Rhizobia				A beneficial bacteria living on the roots of legumes, that fix nitrogen from the air in return for nutrients supplied by the legume. Legumes may need to be inoculated with rhizobia before sowing.

Rhizomatous				Plant with rhizomes.

Rhizomes				Underground growing stems from which daughter plants can evolve. Rhizomatous species include lotus, twitch & phalaris.

Rotational grazing				Pasture grazing by stock in large mobs or herds for short periods, usually at high stocking rates, with stock regularly moved onto new pasture areas.

Rust				A fungal disease (species Puccinia) attacking plants, especially in warm and humid conditions. Decreases plant growth and palatability.

Rust resistance				The ability of a variety to withstand the effects of the fungal disease known as rust.

Ryegrass pulling				See plant pulling.

Ryegrass staggers				Nervous disorder caused by ingesting ryegrass infected with Standard endophyte. Causes ungainly movements or staggers in stock. Also known as summer staggers.

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Term				Definition


Seeding				The presence of seed heads on a plant.

Seed certification				A quality control system for seed production, to ensure variety identity and purity is maintained.

Seed dormancy				A period of time when a seed is alive but not ready to germinate.

Seed weight				The weight of a particular seed, usually given in seeds/gram.

Set stocking				The continuous grazing of a mob/herd of stock on an area for an extended time. Also known as "continuous stocking".

Short rotation ryegrass				Also called ‘hybrid ryegrass’, a ryegrass usually produced by crossing annual or Italian ryegrass with perennial ryegrass. Intermediate to Italian and perennial ryegrasses in growth and persistence. See Annual & short rotation ryegrass.

Short term ryegrass				A cumulative term for short rotation and annual ryegrasses.

Soil fertility				The level of nutrients in a soil available for plant growth.

Species				Different types of plants e.g. cocksfoot and perennial ryegrass are different grass species.

Spray-drilling				The drilling of seed into an existing pasture after spraying (usually with Roundup), with no cultivation.

Stolon				A runner which spreads along the surface of the ground, from which daughter plants can evolve. White clover has stolons which are important for its persistence.

Stolon growing point				Node on a stolon from which new leaves or roots develop. High numbers of these aid persistence.

Stolon growing point density				The number of stolon growing points in a unit area. A term usually related to white clovers.

Stoloniferous				A plant with stolons.

Summer staggers				See ryegrass staggers.



Tall fescue				A perennial grass more tolerant of hot summers, poorly drained and saline conditions than perennial ryegrass. See Tall fescue & cocksfoot.

Taproot				The predominant, deep root of a plant. Some plants have large taproots which enable them to source water and nutrients from deep in the soil profile e.g. red clover, chicory.


Tiller				These are the individual units of a grass plant. Grasses are made up of a collection of tillers, each tiller having a single stem, roots and leaves.

Tiller density				The number of tillers per unit area.

Topping				Removing poor quality pasture such as seedheads and rank growth, usually by mowing.

Undersowing				The drilling of seed into an existing pasture, without spraying or cultivation. Only recommended on thin pastures with low grass density to boost grass population and growth.

Variety				The same as ‘cultivar’, a named line of a plant species. E.g. Bronsyn or Impact are different varieties of perennial ryegrass.


Vernalisation				The cold temperature of winter that triggers (or vernalises) seeding in most pasture species in NZ.

Westerwold Ryegrass				Type of annual ryegrass which go to seed from a spring sowing. They do not require a cold treatment (vernalisation) to go to seed. E.g. Tama, Progrow.

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