DURHAM, N.H. — Over the last decade, interest in forage legumes for grazing and as stored feed has increased among the region’s dairy farmers. At an upcoming virtual research field day, scientists with the New Hampshire Agricultural Experiment Station at the UNH College of Life Sciences and Agriculture will provide results from ongoing research that aims to assist farmers in maximizing the quality and nutritional benefits of legumes for milk production.
In collaboration with the UNH Cooperative Extension Dairy, Livestock, and Forage Crop team, station researchers will provide an update on their forage legume research —information that could improve the bottom line for the approximately 95 dairy farms in the state. A Dairy and Livestock Crops Virtual Field Day will be held from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 27, 2021. Register for the free event at https://extension.unh.edu/events/dairy-livestock-crops-field-day-virtual.
“With the rising grain costs and oscillating milk price, we believe that if we increase legumes in dairy diets and bring greater nutritive value for the diet, we can rely on less grains. With a higher proportion of legumes in the diet, we expect to have greater levels of milk components—milk fat and protein—which is basically what the farmers are being paid for,” said experiment station researcher Andre Brito, associate professor of agriculture, nutrition, and food systems.
According to Granite State Dairy Promotion, the New Hampshire dairy industry generates $55 million in state tax revenue, employs 5,300 and generates annual sales of $191 million, which is 30 percent of the state’s total gross agricultural sales.
Experiment station researcher Richard Smith, associate professor of natural resources and the environment, explained that forage production is critically important to the dairy industry. Forage legumes are nitrogen fixers and high in protein, which means they are important to the resilience of forage production system and to the diets of dairy cows and other livestock.
Despite these apparent benefits, perennial legumes often are difficult to establish and can be difficult to maintain at ideal level of abundance over time. “The abundance declines over time, which is a persistence issue. We have been looking at different ways to manage different types of perennial forage legumes to enhance their persistence,” Smith said. Providing science-based information that can help farmers to overcome these production challenges and to benefit from implementing higher forage legume diets for their animals is a critical goal of the research.
The research has focused on the most commonly used forage legumes—white clover, red cover, and alfalfa—as well as alternative forage legumes such as bird’s foot trefoil. Bird’s food trefoil has several beneficial qualities for the dairy industry but can be more difficult to establish. Researchers are conducting experiments to determine how to best manage that alternative forage legume.
“Higher quality forage and higher nutritional value are going to translate to greater milk production and higher quality milk being produced. That has to be balanced with the cost of seed and other harvesting costs. Certainly, a better product is going to result in a financial benefit for dairy farmers,” Smith said.
This material is based upon work supported by the NH Agricultural Experiment Station, through joint funding of the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, U.S. Department of Agriculture, under award number 1023638, and the state of New Hampshire.
Founded in 1887, the NH Agricultural Experiment Station at the UNH College of Life Sciences and Agriculture is UNH’s first research center and an elemental component of New Hampshire’s land-grant university heritage and mission. We steward federal and state funding, including support from the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture, to provide unbiased and objective research concerning diverse aspects of sustainable agriculture and foods, aquaculture, forest management, and related wildlife, natural resources, and rural community topics. We maintain the Woodman and Kingman agronomy and horticultural research farms, the Macfarlane Research Greenhouses, the Fairchild Dairy Teaching and Research Center, and the Organic Dairy Research Farm. Additional properties also provide forage, forests, and woodlands in direct support to research, teaching, and outreach.
The University of New Hampshire is a flagship research university that inspires innovation and transforms lives in our state, nation, and world. More than 16,000 students from all 50 states and 71 countries engage with an award-winning faculty in top ranked programs in business, engineering, law, liberal arts, and the sciences across more than 200 programs of study. UNH’s research portfolio includes partnerships with NASA, NOAA, NSF, NIH, and USDA, receiving more than $100 million in competitive external funding every year to further explore and define the frontiers of land, sea, and space.
–NH Agricultural Experiment Station
UNH College of Life Sciences and Agriculture
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