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Margaret Raeside
PhD Student
School School of Animal and Veterinary Sciences
Location Charles Sturt University, Wagga Wagga
Phone
03 5573 0752
Email margaret.raeside@dpi.vic.gov.au
Project
Ecology and management of summer-active tall fescue in Western Victoria
Summary
Livestock production in Western Victoria relies primarily on dryland pasture production. However, the district typically experiences a hot and dry summer and early autumn period each year, which often results in poor pasture persistence, the cost of which is incurred by livestock producers as lost production or increased supplementary feeding.
Summer-active tall fescue ( Lolium arundinaceum syn. Festuca arundinacea ) is a deep rooted perennial grass that could potentially improve pasture persistence and productivity during this period because the species is able to access and utilize moisture in the soil profile that is not available to other pasture species. Summer-active tall fescue is also very responsive to summer rain and tolerates temperatures in excess of 30 o C.
However, information on this pasture species in Western Victoria is limited. Therefore, my project aims to determine how the species responds to different management and environmental factors, relating specifically to establishment, grazing and fertilizer management.
Supervisors
Dr Michael Friend and Dr Alister Lawson
Funding source
This project is funded by EverGraze 'More Livestock from Perennials', which is a CRC Future Farm Industries, Meat and Livestock Australia and Australian Wool Innovations research and delivery project. Additional funding is provided by the AW Howard Research Fellowship.