Fodder legumes affecting sequential crop production and fertilizer N use efficiency

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Abstract
SUMMARY: Experiments made with winter fodder crops, lucerne (Medicago sativa), berseem (Trifolium alexandrinum) and oats (Avena sativa) and summer fodder crops, cow pea (Vigna unguiculata), guar (Cyamopsis tetragonoloba), sunhemp (Crotolaria juncea) and pearl millet (Pennisetum americanum) showed that a sequential crop of Sudan grass yielded more after the legumes than after the cereal fodders, oats or pearl millet. The legume advantage was noted in the crop not given fertilizers but also when Sudan grass was given N fertilizer. The yield increase in Sudan grass grown after legumes was equivalent to 32–60 kg fertilizer N/ha applied to Sudan grass following pearl millet.After harvesting the legumes more available N and NO3-N was present in the soil and the apparent recovery of fertilizer N by a subsequent crop was increased by the legume.