Seasonal growth analysis of a white clover meadow (Trifolium repens L.)

The objective of the present study was to assess a growth analysis of white clover (Trifolium repens L.) and determine the optimal harvest time per season. The experiment was carried out at the Colegio de Postgraduados, Campus Montecillo, Texcoco, Mexico. Twenty-four 3.7 X 1.7 m plots were used, distributed in a completely randomized design, with eight treatments and three replicates per station. The treatments consisted of successive weekly cuts, during a regrowth cycle of 8 wk, in each season of the year. At the beginning of the study, a uniform cut was made and the residual forage was determined. The evaluated variables were: accumulation of dry matter, botanical and morphological composition, and leaf area index of white clover. The highest forage accumulation (P<0.05) occurred in the eighth week in spring (2,688 kg DM ha-1). Leaf production was higher (P<0.05) in spring, autumn and winter. The highest leaf area index was reached in the eighth week in spring (3.0; P<0.05). It is recommend exploiting the white clover meadow in the sixth week of the spring-summer period and in the seventh week of autumn-winter.