The effects of grazing on vegetation and soil properties in the artificial pasture

The study was conducted in Hacıpehlivan Village, 17 km far from Biga (Çanakkale) in 2006-2007. Experimental pasture was 22 ha and established on 4th December 2004 with a mixture of 40 % legumes (birdsfoot trefoil and alfalfa) and 60 % grasses (perennial ryegrass and smooth brome). In the village, there are 408.4 heads. As size of the pasture was too small for these animals, grazing was carried out at three different times (April-May, June and November). The aim of the study was to determine hay yield and quality of the pasture, evaluate hay supply for the animals, determine change of pasture usage with distance from the village and investigate the effect of grazing on soil properties. For these purposes, 30 cages were placed in the meadow at the different distances (from 30 m to 300 m) from the village. Soil samples from 0-10 cm depth were taken in the beginning and end of the experiment.The highest dry hay yield (288.2 kg/da) was obtained at the end of first grazing. The yields significantly decreased at the end of second (204.3 kg/da) and third (109.6 kg/da) grazing. Amount of grazed hay in the pasture was higher in the first (172.1 kg/da) and second (167.4 kg/da) grazing periods, compared to the last grazing (83.2 kg/da). When proportion of produced total hay according to grazing periods are considered, consumed hay was 59.5%, 81.9% and 71.4% of the hay produced in the first, second and third grazing periods, respectively. Botanical composition contained 76.8% grasses, 13.3% legumes and 9.4% other forbs. Crude protein content of the hay was high in the beginning of grazing (14.5%) and end of third grazing period (14.6%) whereas it is low at the end of the first (12.2%) and second (10.7%) grazing periods. NDF, ADF and ADL contents generally increased by the time. During experimental period, organic matter, total N, exchangeable K and volume weight of the soil significantly increased while available P, exchangeable Ca and total porosity decreased. pH, EC and exchangeable Mg did not change significantly.Key Words: Hay Yield, Intake, Botanical Composition, Chemical Composition, Soil Characteristics.