Excreta Deposition on Grassland Patches. I. Forage Harvested, Nutritive Value, and Nitrogen Recovery

Livestock excreta deposition in grazed grassland is nonuniform and concentrated around shade, water, and supplement feeding locations. The consequences of repeated dung or urine deposition to grassland patches have not been well quantified in terms of effects on forage dry matter harvested (DMH), forage nutritive value, and nutrient recovery. These responses were measured on ‘pensacola’ bahiagrass (Paspalum notatum Flugge) swards treated with two excreta types (dung and urine) from two excreta source pastures (the Average and High management intensities based on N fertilizer and stocking rates) applied at four frequencies (0, 1,