Improvement of yield and botanical composition in meadows: effects of N fertilisation, irrigation on locations having different water table levels.

Meadows dominated by native herbaceous species and having a high water table are an important source of feed for livestock in semi-arid regions of Turkey. This research investigated the effects of nitrogen fertilisation (ammonium sulfate) on two meadows having different water table levels and different soils. Dry matter production was 8868 kg ha–1 at location 1 and 7276 kg ha–1 at location 2. The application of 225 kg N ha–1 increased the crude protein content of the forage from 7.1 to 10.8%. A level of 150 kg ha–1 (CP 9.6%) is recommended as a result of this study. Crude protein yield increased from 303 to 1113 kg ha–1 with the highest rate of nitrogen application. The percentage of grasses in the forage averaged 92.5% and the weeds averaged 7.5%. Increasing nitrogen fertilisation resulted in an increase in the grass percentage and a decrease in the proportion of weeds. The differences in water table depth between location 1 and location 2 were not consistent between the years, and these differences influenced the irrigation applications which were applied according to soil moisture criteria.