The effect of planting date on flowering and production of twelve Mediterranean pasture legumes in a Mediterraen environment.

Abstract

A study of the influence of three consecutive plantings on the flowering and production of 12 annual Mediterranean pasture legumes was conducted at Stellenbosch. The period from emergence to flowering and from emergence to maturity declined sharply with later planting, and resulted in a proportional decline in production, even though water was non-limiting. The possible relationship between the performance of the species and climatic factors recorded for the various growth periods is discussed. However, the number of plantings was too limited to allow a quantitative assessment of climatic effects.

Keywords: decline; flowering; growth; legumes; mediterranean; pasture legumes; pastures; performance; production; south africa; stellenbosch