Hu Guofu

Effect of Different Stocking Rates on Deyeuxia angustifolia Bog Meadow in Sanjiang Plain of China

Abstract This paper investigated the effects of cattle grazing on herbage production and its nutrient and soil characteristics over the grazing season. The grazing experiment was conducted on Deyeuxia angustifolia Bog meadow grassland established in 2010 in Sanjiang Plain. Four grazing treatments were light grazing (LG), moderate grazing (MG), heavy grazing (HG), and a non-grazed exclosure (CK) with corresponding stocking rates of 0.6, 1.0, 1.4, and 0 AU • hm−2 • month−1, selected as three replications. And then found out the optimum carrying capacity after analyzed the nutrition balance between livestock and grassland. Heavy grazing led to a decline in grassland productivity and soil nutrients. The SOM and the TN content in the soil layer of 0–10 cm were much higher than that in the soil layer of 20–30 cm. More attention should be paid to the nutrient changes in the soil layer of 20–30 cm. Currently, studies showed that the reliable carrying capacity in this type of grassland was 1.0 AU • hm−2 • month−1. Inclusion of rangeland health monitoring and optimum stocking rate into grassland management model could facilitate the sustainable development of the grassland.