By Maurice Rangoma Panicum coloratum is an erect tufted perennial grass with tout stems. It grows to 40 – 150 cm high. Leaves are bluish green and long with variable lengths of 5 – 50cm. width vary between 4 and 14 cm depending on soil conditions and other ecological factors.
The grass is cross pollinated with some degree of apomixes.
Annual rainfall requirements is variable but the grass can survive well in 600 to 1200mm per year of rainfall. Rainfall must however be very well distributed such that plenty should occur during establishment and harvesting.
Ecotypes include solai type collected early in 1960’s. they are good seeders and easily establishes from seeds. Shallow planting is mandatory for better establishment.
Dry matter (DM) production depend on soil fertility, height of harvesting and frequency of harvesting. When about 100 – 150 cm the DM content is about 9 – 10 ton/ha/yr at 8 weeks harvesting interval.
Seeding rate is about 3 kg/ha on well prepared seedbed. Rough seedbed needs a higher seeding rate.
By Maurice Rangoma Elephant or Napier grass (penisetum puperum) is a perennial grass which can grow to 4 – 5 m high if left undisturbed. Leaves range from hairy to smooth types. The grass is not suitable for grazing as it cannot withstand trampling by livestock. However it can be used for stall feeding and zero grazing when chopped into smaller sizes. It is also suitable for silage.
A number of varieties are available but the common ones are French Cameroon, Bana grass and Kakamega 1.
| Climate |
Napier grass can be grown at altitudes from sea level to 2,000 m – any higher, growth and regeneration after cutting is slow and it may die after frost. It does best in high rainfall areas, over 1500 mm per year, but survives well in droughts due to its deep root system. |
| Soils |
Napier grass can grow in almost any soil but does best in deep, fertile, well drained soils. |
| Site |
Napier does best as a pure stand. To save labour, under cut-and-carry systems, it is recommended that the plot be situated as close to the zero-grazing unit as possible. Napier may also be planted to prevent soil erosion such as in strips along contours, along river banks and on steep slopes which are unsuitable for growing food crops. |
| Preparation |
Prepare site by ploughing or digging. Make sure the site is weed free at the time of planting. |
| Planting |
The best time to plant Napier is at the beginning of the main rainy season. Wait for two heavy down pours before planting. Either canes or splits can be used for propagation. Canes require less labour and planting material. If using canes, select mature Napier and cut a length with three to four nodes with buds from the middle part of the cane. Plant canes at an angle of at least 45 degrees. To use splits, cut the Napier plant to 10 to 15 cm above the soil. Uproot and divide into small parts. Each part should have some roots covered with soil. Allow 0.5 m between plants and 0.5 m between rows in high rainfall areas and 0.5 m between plants and 1 m between rows in low rainfall areas. An alternative method of planting napier grass is where several splits or canes are planted in big round or rectangular pits. This method is referred to as “tumbukiza.” For round pits, dig pits 60 cm in diameter, 60 cm deep and 60 cm apart. For rectangular pits, dig 60cm deep by 60 to 90 cm wide. The length can vary depending on available land. The pits should be 90 cm apart. Separate top soil from sub-soil. Mix about 20 kg of top-soil with about 40 kg of manure and put into each round pit or 90 cm of a rectangular pit. Plant 5 to 10 cane cuttings or splits in every round pit or for every 90 cm length of the rectangular pit. Cover and leave about 15 cm unfilled space at the top of each pit. |
| Fertilizer |
Apply compound fertilizer (NPK: 20-20-0), 1 teaspoon per hole at planting time. After establishment, return as much as possible of the cows’ manure back to the Napier. If practicing zero grazing, collect slurry and apply after every cutting in a furrow between the Napier rows. If applying dry manure, work it into the soil. Apply NPK (20-10-10 or 20-20-0) fertilizer during heavy rains at the rate of 4 teaspoons per plant. Additional topdressing may be done using CAN at the rate of 1 teaspoon per plant after cutting. |
| Weeding |
Keep the plot weed-free, especially after initial planting. Once established, Napier grass is able to suppress most weeds other than very stubborn ones like couch grass. Weed after every cutting and avoid heaping soil around the plants. |
| Pests |
Napier is relatively free of pests and diseases but it is susceptible to Napier headsmut in some regions. Control by removing and avoiding infected material and planting resistant varieties, such as Kakamega 1. |
| Harvesting |
Harvest from 3 to 4 months after planting, when the Napier is about one metre high. Cutting interval varies depending on rainfall but generally harvest when the Napier is about one metre high. Cut the plant to about 5 cm from the ground during the rainy season and 10 to 15 cm during the dry season. With good climate, soil fertility and management yields can be over 25 tonnes (dry matter) per hectare per year. Yields of about half this amount can be achieved with little or no fertilizer. |
| Feeding |
Fresh material is commonly fed in stalls under cut-and-carry system. Chop the material into pieces about 5 cm long to avoid wastage. Do not graze directly. Excess Napier grass can be made into good quality silage. If it is not possible to make silage, leave a portion of the plot standing and continue to harvest the rest at the optimum height. When necessary, use the tops of overgrown Napier to feed cattle. The old canes can also be used as mulch or they can be made into compost manure. |
By Maurice Rangoma For farmers to effectively manage grazing livestock they need to understand the stocking rate of their farms. Stocking rate is the number of animals grazing a unit area in a given time and is measured in terms of Animal Unit (AU) for large stock or Dry Sheep Equivalent (DSE) for small stock.
One AU is equivalent to 400 Kg and one DSE to 40 Kg.
For example the following classes of animals can be standardized as follows:
| A calf (1 – 8 months) | 0.35 AU |
| Weaner (8 – 12 months) | 0.4 AU |
| Steer (1 – 2 years) | 0.87 AU |
| Breeding cow | 2.00 AU |
| Bull | 2.00 AU |
| Lamb (2 teeth) | 0.5 DSE |
| Breeding ewe | 1.7 DSE |
| Ram | 1.7 DSE |
The stocking rate influences livestock production in the farm. Production decreases as stocking rate increases. At high stocking rates production per animal and per hectare is reduced relative to high but comparatively safe stocking rate. Grazing pressure which is the ratio of feed demand to feed available is so high that animal demand exceed supply and overgrazing results in decline of pasture productivity and death of some plants which will further increase the grazing pressure. Death of some animals may occur after the crash point.
So the objectives of grazing management is to maintain high production for good quality forage for the longest period, maintain favorable balance between herbage species in pasture mixtures (grass / legumes mix), achieve efficient utilization of herbage produced, achieve high animal production and to regulate ectoparasites.
The stocking rate of the farm can be increased by the following systems of grazing animals:
This is a system of grazing in which animals are fed on grass or other feeds in a stall. Farmers establish highly productive fodders like Bana grass, French Cameroons, Guatemala grass, giant setaria, or sweet potato vines. These fodders are managed to ensure enough feed is available throughout the year. Forages can be conserved in form of Hay or Silage during the peak growing season to be utilized during the dry season.
The are many benefits of zero grazing because it:
However the flip side is that the system is labor intensive and there are high costs incurred in fodder establishments, maintenance and constructing the zero grazing shed.
The success of zero grazing is dependent on feeding. Adequate feed, water and minerals should be provided to the animals. The feeds include cut and carry fodder, crop residue, agro-industrial waste (brewers waste, pyrethrum marc). These roughages can be utilized for average daily milk production of 8 – 10 litres without supplementation. Animals producing over 10 litres per day require supplementation with concentrates at a rate of 1 to 1.5 Kg/litre of milk above the daily 10 litres.
Farmers should try to utilize what is available in the farm for maintenance and only use concentrates for high yielders.
This involves grazing animals during the day and then feeding animals on fodder or crop residues, agro-industrial byproducts as supplements at night.
Animals under semi-zero grazing system require 9 kg of fresh napier grass per animal per day as night feeding supplementation. Fodder should be chopped into small pieces to increase the DM intake. Long pieces lead to lots of wastage. The intake is also affected by plant species. For equal chop length it has been found that the DM intake for maize is higher than that of napier.
Animals should be grazed for at least 12 hours. If confined for more than 12 hours then there is a need to supplement the grazing or else the system will have detrimental effect on animal production. If conditions in the night boma are favorable milk production of 6 to 8 litres per animal per day is possible without the night shed confinement seriously affecting the yield.
Semi – zero grazing has many benefits such as:
By Peter Muiru A silo is an enclosure in which plant material is ensiled and should be free from air as much as possible. There are several types of silos:
A greater proportion of ensiled material is above the ground. This is a long and narrow silo adopted in areas where it is difficult to dig to greater depth because of shallow water table. The width of the silo should be such that it is easy to drive a tractor during the compression or compaction process. The clamp or hip silo has large surface area and controlling air flow into the ensiled material is usually difficult. Most exposed parts are wasted because they form poor quality silage.
This is the most popular amongst farmers. Most of the ensiled material settles in areas underneath the soil surface and control of air flow is easy. Trench silos are usually large and narrow. The silo should be sited in an area where the surface water is easy to drain i.e. on a sloppy area.
A pit is dug underneath ground in a flat area. It’s cylindrical walls slope outwards. A trench is dug all around the pit to prevent run-off water from getting in. A roof, high enough (5.5m) to enable passage of machinery, may be constructed to protect from rain or run-off.
This is made of concrete, bricks or galvanized iron sheets. Drainage is provided at the foot of the tower. When ensiled material is compressed, plant juices are released and drained through an opening at the bottom. Silage is removed at the bottom. The weakness of this type of silo is that it is expensive to construct and filling and compaction is difficult thereby making it unpopular with farmers.
By Maurice Rangoma 
Molasses grass (melinis minutiflora) is a tufted perennial grass which grows to 150 cm in height. The leaves are covered by soft hairs which feels velvet to touch. Leaves produce sweet smell which cannot be tainted to meat or milk if grass is fed to livestock. The grass is not highly palatable.
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