Effects of the height and interval of cutting on dwarf elephant grass. I. Forages production and quality

Abstract

This experiment was conducted in an area of Empresa Brasileira de Pesquisa Agropecuária de Clima Temperado (Embrapa) - Centro de Pesquisa Agropecuária de Clima Temperado (CPACT), Pelotas, RS, Brazil, from November, 1992 to April, 1993, with the objective to study the effect of height and cutting interval on the production and quality of dwarf elephant grass cv. Mott. It was used a completely randomized design with subplots and three replications. The main plots were cutting heights (5, 10 and 15 cm above ground surface) and the subplots, the cutting intervals (28, 56, 84, 112 and 140 days). With the results obtained, it is possible to conclude that the interval of 56 days is the best one, independent of the cutting heights, since there was no significant difference in this parameter (P < 0.01).