Irrigation frequency for white clover [Trifolium repens] and lucerne [Medicago sativa] on a cracking clay in the Murrumbidgee Valley, New South Wales
1994
Lattimore, A-M.E. | Thompson, J.A. | O'Callaghan, K.L. (New South Wales Agriculture, Yanco (Australia). Agricultural Inst.)
One-year-old swards of lucerne cvv. Maxidor II and Pioneer brand 581 (P581), and white clover cvv. Haifa and Irrigation, were flood-irrigated at 75, 100, 150, and 200 mm of cumulative net potential evapotranspiration during 3 irrigation seasons. White clover was more sensitive to water stress than lucerne, with yield reductions at the 2 longer intervals of 13 percent in the first season, 37 percent in the second, and 39 percent in the third. The 2 white cover cultivars differed in seasonal production and growth habitat, Haifa being more productive and withstanding water stress better than Irrigation in the first season. A combination of higher available soil water content and a considerably deeper effective rooting depth, both of which were strongly influenced by soil type, enabled productivity to be maintained at a longer irrigation interval (100 mm) than reported in other Australian studies. It is considered that in order to maximise production, an irrigation interval up to 100 mm is appropriate for white clover on this soil type. The optimum frequency for lucerne will depend on the life of the stand desired, balanced against productivity and irrigation costs.
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