Superior performance of triticale over wheat, barley, and oat under grazing and cutting for dual-purpose technology in warmer and colder northern regions
摘要
Increasing demand for food and feed necessitates dual-purpose technology of cereals to provide quality forage for livestock and grain for food using the same crop and land. A two-year (2022–23 and 2023–24) field experiment was conducted during Rabi using an RCBD split plot. The experiment consisted of three factors, cereal crops (wheat, barley, triticale and oat), cutting treatments (no-cut, cutting, sheep grazing, and cow grazing), and locations (The University of Agriculture Peshawar and Farmer field of Alamganj Tehsil Charbagh, Swat). Cereal crops sown in Swat had extended phenological stages. No-cut improved growth, yield traits and biological yield (12,818 kg ha−1) while cutting extended phenological stages of oats compared to other cereals. Yield components, grain yield (3242 kg ha−1), and net income were higher for cereal crops sown in Peshawar than Swat. Triticale produced higher spikelets spike−1 (23), grains spike−1 (57), TGW (49.22 g), BY (13,457 kg ha−1), GY (4102 kg ha−1) and net income (0.704 and 0.693 million rupees). Sheep grazing resulted in higher net income (0.608 million rupees) leading to the best economic suitability under the dual-purpose system, with only 8% reduction in grain yield over the grain-only system. Compared to a grain only system, cutting, sheep, and cow grazing reduced grain yield by 15%, 19%, and 29%, respectively. However, removal of fodder at an early stage was compensated by the additional product of fodder increasing value cost ratio by 8.95%, 8.59%, and 3.25%, respectively. In conclusion, crops grown in Peshawar outperformed those in Swat in terms of yield and economic returns. No-cut improved yield traits while cut exhibited higher net income. Therefore, no-cut can be recommended for higher yield attributes whereas, cereal crops at Peshawar location and sheep grazing could be recommended for maximum net income. Triticale can be recommended for dual purpose system in warmer regions due to its higher biological, grain yield, grain spike−1.