Interannual alternate rotation grazing method for optimizing livestock production and grassland ecology

Abstract

The invention discloses an interannual alternate rotation grazing method for optimizing livestock production and grassland ecology, and belongs to the technical field of sustainable livestock production. The interannual alternate rotation grazing method comprises the following steps: (1) determining a specific annual grazing period and the number of grazing livestock of interannual alternate rotation grazing; (2) determining the number of interannual alternate rotation grazing areas, setting the number of the rotation grazing areas to be four in grassland with higher productivity, such as a grassland, as a meadow grassland, and setting the number of the rotation grazing areas to be two in grassland with lower productivity, such as a desert grassland; (3) determining an annual grazing mode; and (4) determining the interannual alternate rotation grazing mode. According to the method, through interannual diversified rotation grazing interference, on the basis of improving the utilization efficiency of grassland resources, the biodiversity can be better protected, the grassland production-ecological function is maintained, and sustainable utilization of the grassland resources is achieved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The invention belongs to the technical field of sustainable livestock production, and in particular relates to an inter-annual rotational grazing method for optimizing livestock production and grassland ecology. Background Art

[0002] Grassland is the largest terrestrial ecosystem in my country. Grassland ecological protection is crucial to my country's ecological environment construction and social sustainable development. At present, grassland degradation is serious and global climate change pressure is increasing. How to scientifically manage grasslands and improve the normal production and ecological functions of grasslands is a major scientific problem that needs to be solved urgently. The main way to use grasslands is grazing. In the past, grazing was considered a production method for the output of grassland livestock products. Today, grazing has been regarded as a key means of grassland production and ecological management. Scientific experiments and production practices have proved that herbivorous animal grazing is not only beneficial to maintaining the stability of the ecosystem, but also can improve its multifunctionality. However, there is currently a lack of efficient and feasible sustainable livestock production technology that takes into account both production and ecological functions at home and abroad.

[0003] Grazing management is the key to livestock production in grassland pastoral areas. Zoning rotational grazing technology is theoretically considered to be the most optimized grazing management technology at present. However, there are still the following problems in actual operation and management application, which leads to its significant advantages not being fully utilized: 1) The current rotational grazing technology mainly considers the regeneration of grassland plants in the growing season, but does not consider the nutritional needs of livestock throughout their life cycle. As the main body of the grassland herd structure in pastoral areas, breeding female livestock directly determines the livelihood of herders; in the grass growing season, female livestock are usually in a physiological period with low nutritional requirements, but at this time, the entire pasture rotational grazing makes most of the high-quality forage eaten by livestock, which may lead to excessive nutrition of livestock and unnecessary waste. In winter, female livestock are in a physiological period with high nutritional requirements, and the amount and quality of the remaining forage in the pasture decrease, which is not conducive to the growth and reproduction of livestock, resulting in a significant increase in the cost of supplementary feeding and a significant reduction in economic benefits; 2) Traditional rotational grazing usually adopts periodic regular rotational grazing, that is, each plot is regularly eaten by livestock at the same time every year. Due to the asynchronous nature of plant growth, plants in a specific growth period are destroyed, and the annual fixed disturbance will reduce the resistance of plant communities to extreme climate events such as drought, resulting in the grassland being unable to provide stable productivity; 3) Most of the current rotational grazing technologies only consider high-frequency rotational grazing in multiple plots during the growing season, which can improve the uniformity of forage utilization by herbivores and avoid unnecessary waste of resources. However, high-intensity grazing in a short period of time will intensify the selective grazing of herbivores on partial food species, and these species are usually non-perennial grasses with poor compensatory growth ability. After being grazed at an instantaneous high intensity, they cannot recover in the same year, and their seeds cannot spread, which is not conducive to the maintenance of plant diversity, resulting in the grassland being unable to provide sustainable productivity; 4) It is generally believed that high-frequency rotational grazing in multiple plots within a year can give plants a certain rest and recovery time (up to one month of recovery time), which is conducive to the compensatory growth of plants, but most grasslands are currently in a degraded state, and the plant recovery ability is poor, especially in grasslands with poor nutrients and low precipitation, such as desert grasslands, where plants still cannot recover well, resulting in the beneficial effects of zoned rotational grazing technology not being apparent. In addition, this method requires the establishment of more grazing areas, the cost of fencing investment is high, and herders need to rotate grazing areas every 3-7 days, so the actual operation is very complicated. Summary of the invention

[0004] The purpose of the present invention is to solve the problems of insufficient optimization of livestock production, insignificant grassland ecological protection effect, complex operation and high investment cost in the current grassland zoning rotational grazing process, and to provide an inter-annual alternating rotational grazing technology for optimizing livestock production and grassland ecology with low investment cost and simple operation. Livestock production is optimized by ensuring that the nutritional needs of livestock in different physiological periods are coupled with the quality supply of forage. Through the diversified interference between years, a longer recovery time can be provided for plants on the basis of improving the utilization efficiency of grassland resources, biodiversity can be better protected and the functions of grassland ecosystems can be maintained, thereby realizing the sustainable utilization of grassland resources.

[0005] In order to achieve the above object, the present invention adopts the following technical solution:

[0006] An interannual rotational grazing method for optimizing livestock production and grassland ecology comprises the following steps:

[0007] S1, determine the specific grazing period and number of grazing livestock in the year for inter-annual rotational grazing;

[0008] S2, determine the number of inter-annual rotational grazing plots;

[0009] S3, determine the grazing pattern within the year;

[0010] S4. Determine the inter-annual rotational grazing method.

[0011] The step S1 specifically includes the following steps:

[0012] S11 Determine the annual grazing period for inter-annual rotational grazing, and determine seasonal grazing or year-round grazing according to the specific grassland type, as well as the specific grazing period and rest period under different grazing methods;

[0013] S111 Determine seasonal grazing or year-round grazing based on the specific type of grassland. Specifically, seasonal grazing is used for grasslands with low winter temperatures and heavy snowfall, such as meadow grasslands, while year-round grazing is used for grasslands with high winter temperatures and light snowfall, such as desert grasslands;

[0014] S112 determines the resting period and grazing period of the inter-annual rotational grazing. Generally, the resting period is carried out during the period when grassland plants turn green. The specific time of the greening period varies for different types of grasslands. It is carried out from the time when plants start to turn green in spring to the time when seedlings grow according to the growth law of grassland plants. For grasslands that adopt seasonal grazing, inter-annual rotational grazing is carried out during the rest of the plant growing season except the resting period, while for grasslands that adopt year-round grazing, inter-annual rotational grazing is carried out during the rest of the year except the resting period.

[0015] S12 determines the number of livestock grazing in the year for inter-annual rotational grazing, which is calculated based on the area of ​​pasture and the optimal grazing rate stipulated by local policies:

[0016] Total number of livestock grazing on grasslands during the year (N):

[0017] N=GA×OS

[0018] Among them, GA represents the total pasture area of ​​the ranch, and OS represents the optimal stocking rate stipulated by local policies;

[0019] The specific steps in step S2 are as follows: determine the number of inter-annual rotational grazing plots according to the grassland type, the number should be less than the number of plots determined by rotational grazing in most years, and it is best to select 2-4 plots for rotational grazing. Generally, four rotational grazing plots are set for grasslands with rich plant species and a high proportion of livestock preferred food species, such as meadow grasslands, while two rotational grazing plots are set for grasslands with scarce plant species and a low proportion of livestock preferred food species, such as desert grasslands;

[0020] The specific steps in step S4 are as follows: to ensure that the grass has enough time to recover, grazing should be carried out in different areas within the year, that is, each grazing area should be rotated only once; for example, in a grassland that is grazed for 10 months throughout the year except for the rest period, if it is divided into two rotational grazing areas, grazing should be carried out in each area for 5 months and the two areas should be rotated in sequence;

[0021] The specific steps in step S4 are as follows: determine the rotation order of the next year based on the rotation grazing order of each plot in the previous year, that is, the plot that was grazed first in the first year is grazed last in the second year, and so on in sequence; for example, in the case of a grassland that is grazed for 10 months throughout the year except for the grazing period, and is divided into two rotational grazing plots, the plot that was grazed in the first 5 months of the first year is grazed in the last 5 months of the second year, and the plot that was grazed in the last 5 months of the first year is grazed in the first 5 months of the second year, and so on every year thereafter, each plot is grazed alternately and rotated.

[0022] Compared with the prior art, the present invention has the following beneficial effects:

[0023] (1) For pastoral grasslands where female livestock are the main livestock group for year-round grazing, the present invention can better balance the nutritional differences between winter and summer pastures under traditional grazing, provide more high-quality pasture for winter pastures, and ensure that female livestock have relatively high-quality pasture under the physiological state of high nutritional demand, which is beneficial to the growth and reproduction of female livestock, greatly reduces the cost of supplementary feeding, and improves the economic benefits of herders.

[0024] (2) Each grazing area of ​​the present invention is grazed by livestock at different times of the year. This diversified disturbance can protect plants in different growth periods, which is beneficial to the maintenance of biodiversity over a long period of time. In addition, the inter-annual diversified disturbance of each area can enhance the resistance of plant communities, thereby enhancing the stability of the community under extreme climate events such as drought, which is beneficial to promoting the stable development of grassland productivity and grassland animal husbandry.

[0025] (3) Compared with the previous rotational grazing method that only allows plant communities to rest and recover for a month at most, the present invention greatly prolongs the rest and recovery time of plant communities, allowing plant communities to rest and recover for up to one year at most. It also provides sufficient recovery time for some species that cannot recover in the same year after being grazed. This is especially true for some grasslands with poor resources and poor resilience, and is more conducive to maintaining the health of grassland ecosystems and providing sustainable productivity.

[0026] (4) The present invention adopts an interannual rotational grazing method by reducing the number of rotational grazing plots and lowering the rotational grazing frequency within a year. This not only greatly improves the production and ecological functions of grasslands, but also is simpler to operate and has lower investment costs than previous rotational grazing technologies, and is suitable for large-scale promotion and application. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0027] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the inter-annual rotational grazing technology in Example 1.

[0028] Figure 2 This is a specific rotational grazing pattern diagram of the inter-annual rotational grazing technology in Example 1.

[0029] Figure 3 This is a comparison chart of the effects of free grazing and inter-annual rotational grazing on grassland plant diversity in Example 1. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0030] Example 1

[0031] A method of interannual rotational grazing in desert steppe (106°41′-108°54′ east longitude, 38°18′-40°11′ north latitude) Figure 1 , 2 , which comprises the following steps:

[0032] Step 1: Determine the specific grazing period and number of grazing livestock in the inter-annual rotational grazing. Specifically: first determine the grazing period in the inter-annual rotational grazing. The grassland in this area has a higher temperature and less snowfall in winter, so year-round grazing is adopted; further determine the specific rest period and grazing period in the inter-annual rotational grazing. According to the growth law of grassland plants in this area, rest grazing is carried out from the beginning of spring when plants begin to turn green to the growth of seedlings. Generally, rest grazing is carried out from April to June each year, that is, grazing is carried out from July each year to March of the following year; finally, determine the number of grazing livestock in the inter-annual rotational grazing. Each herder in this area owns about 5,000 mu of grassland (GA=5000). Local policies stipulate that the optimal grazing intensity is 1 sheep per 20 mu (OS=0.05). Calculate the number of grazing livestock (N):

[0033] N = 5000 × 0.05 = 250

[0034] Among them, GA represents the total grassland area of ​​the ranch, and OS represents the optimal grazing rate stipulated by local policies, that is, the number of sheep grazing by this herder is 250.

[0035] Step 2: Determine the number of inter-annual rotational grazing plots. Specifically, the grassland type in this area is desert steppe, with relatively scarce plant species and a low proportion of livestock's preferred food species, so two rotational grazing plots are set up.

[0036] Step 3: Determine the grazing method within the year. Specifically, the grassland plants in this area have relatively weak recovery capacity and the forage is used throughout the year. To ensure that the forage has enough time to recover, each grazing area is rotated only once, that is, the two grazing areas are divided into summer pasture and winter pasture for grazing from July to October and November to March of the following year respectively.

[0037] Step 4: Determine the inter-annual rotational grazing method, specifically: determine the rotation order of the next year based on the rotation grazing order of each plot in the previous year, that is, the plot that was grazed from July to October in the first year as a summer pasture will be grazed from November to March of the following year as a winter pasture in the second year; and the plot that was grazed from November to March of the following year in the first year will be grazed from July to October in the second year as a summer pasture, and so on every year thereafter, the inter-annual rotational grazing in the two plots can ensure that each plot has one year of rest and recovery time (such as Figure 2 shown).

[0038] Figure 3The figure shows the changes in plant diversity at different scales in grassland under different grazing rest modes at the end of the growing season in August 2024. Compared with the traditional year-round free grazing mode (F), the inter-annual alternating rotational grazing mode (R) of the present invention under the same grazing intensity can significantly improve the multi-scale plant diversity after allowing the grassland to recover for one consecutive year (plant α-diversity: F=2.917, R=4.126; plant β-diversity: F=1.086, R=1.322; plant γ-diversity: F=3.179, R=5.246).

[0039] Example 2

[0040] A method for inter-annual rotational grazing in a meadow steppe (44°40′–44°44′ north latitude, 123°44′–123°47′ east longitude) comprises the following steps:

[0041] Step 1: Determine the specific grazing period and number of grazing livestock in the inter-annual rotational grazing. Specifically: First, determine the grazing period in the inter-annual rotational grazing. The grassland in this area has a lower temperature and more snowfall in winter, so seasonal grazing is adopted. According to the growth law of grassland plants in this area, grazing is generally carried out from June to September each year; finally, determine the number of grazing livestock in the inter-annual rotational grazing. The optimal grazing intensity is usually 50% of the aboveground biomass removed. The grazing livestock are small-tailed Han sheep, and the daily feed intake is calculated according to 4% of their average body weight, that is, the number of sheep grazing (N):

[0042]

[0043] Among them, AB represents the average annual grass production of the pasture, and W is the average weight of the sheep. The grazing days are 120 days.

[0044] Step 2: Determine the number of inter-annual rotational grazing plots. Specifically, the grassland type in this area is meadow grassland, with rich plant species and a high proportion of livestock's preferred food species, so set up 4 rotational grazing plots.

[0045] Step 3: Determine the grazing method within the year. To ensure that the grass has enough time to recover, each grazing area is rotated only once, that is, the four grazing areas are grazed in June, July, August and September respectively;

[0046] Step 4: Determine the inter-annual rotational grazing method, specifically: determine the rotation order of the next year based on the rotation grazing order of each plot in the previous year, that is, the plot grazed in June of the first year will grazed in July of the second year, the plot grazed in July of the first year will grazed in August of the second year, the plot grazed in August of the first year will grazed in September of the second year, and the plot grazed in September of the first year will grazed in June of the second year, and so on every year thereafter, conduct inter-annual rotational grazing in the four plots.

[0047] The embodiments described above are only descriptions of the preferred modes of the present invention, and are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention. Without departing from the design spirit of the present invention, various modifications and improvements made to the technical solutions of the present invention by ordinary technicians in this field should all fall within the protection scope determined by the claims of the present invention.

Claims

1. An interannual rotational grazing method for optimizing livestock production and grassland ecology, characterized in that: The inter-annual rotational grazing method comprises the following steps: (1) Determine the specific grazing period and number of grazing livestock during the inter-annual rotational grazing; (2) Determine the number of rotational grazing plots between years; (3) determine the grazing pattern during the year; (4) Determine the inter-annual rotational grazing method.

2. The inter-annual rotational grazing method for optimizing livestock production and grassland ecology according to claim 1, characterized in that: The process of determining the specific grazing period in the year for inter-annual rotational grazing in step (1) is as follows: ① Determine seasonal grazing or year-round grazing based on the specific type of grassland. Specifically, seasonal grazing is used in grasslands with lower temperatures and more snowfall in winter, while year-round grazing is used in grasslands with higher temperatures and less snowfall in winter; ② Determine the rest period and grazing period of the year for inter-annual rotational grazing. Rest period should be carried out from the time when grassland plants begin to turn green to the time when seedlings grow. For grasslands with seasonal grazing, inter-annual rotational grazing should be carried out during the rest of the plant growing season except the rest period. For grasslands with year-round grazing, inter-annual rotational grazing should be carried out during the rest of the year except the rest period.

3. The inter-annual rotational grazing method for optimizing livestock production and grassland ecology according to claim 2, characterized in that: In step (1), the number of grazing livestock is determined according to the following formula: N = GA × OS; Among them, N represents the total number of livestock grazing on the pasture during the year, GA represents the total pasture area of ​​the pasture, and OS represents the optimal grazing rate stipulated by local policies.

4. The inter-annual rotational grazing method for optimizing livestock production and grassland ecology according to claim 3, characterized in that: In the step (2), the number of rotational grazing plots is 2-4.

5. The inter-annual rotational grazing method for optimizing livestock production and grassland ecology according to claim 4, characterized in that: In the step (2), when the grassland is a meadow grassland, the number of rotational grazing areas is set to 4.

6. The inter-annual rotational grazing method for optimizing livestock production and grassland ecology according to claim 4, characterized in that: In the step (2), when the grassland is a desert grassland, the number of rotational grazing areas is set to 2.

7. The inter-annual rotational grazing method for optimizing livestock production and grassland ecology according to claim 5, characterized in that: In the step (3), the four grazing plots are grazed in June, July, August and September respectively.

8. The inter-annual rotational grazing method for optimizing livestock production and grassland ecology according to claim 6, characterized in that: In the step (3), the two grazing areas are divided into a summer pasture and a winter pasture, the summer pasture is grazed from July to October, and the winter pasture is grazed from November to March of the following year.

9. The inter-annual rotational grazing method for optimizing livestock production and grassland ecology according to claim 7, characterized in that: In step (4), when the grassland is a meadow grassland, the rotation order of the next year is determined according to the rotation grazing order of each plot in the previous year, that is, the plot grazed in June of the first year is grazed in July of the second year, the plot grazed in July of the first year is grazed in August of the second year, the plot grazed in August of the first year is grazed in September of the second year, and the plot grazed in September of the first year is grazed in June of the second year, and so on every year thereafter, the four plots are grazed in rotation.

10. The inter-annual rotational grazing method for optimizing livestock production and grassland ecology according to claim 8, characterized in that: In step (4), when the grassland is a desert grassland, the rotation order of the next year is determined according to the rotation grazing order of each plot in the previous year, that is, the plot used as a summer pasture for grazing from July to October in the first year is grazed from November to March of the following year as a winter pasture in the second year; and the plot used as a winter pasture for grazing from November to March of the following year in the first year is grazed from July to October in the second year as a summer pasture, and so on every year thereafter, the two plots are alternately grazed each year.

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