Effects of grazing red clover (trifolium pratense) or perennial ryegrass (lolium perenne)/white lover (trifolium repens) pastures upon growth and venison production from weaner red deer (cervus elaphus)

Abstract

Forty‐four weaner red deer (Cervus elaphus) fawns (26 stags; 18 hinds) were used to investigate the effects of grazing pure red clover (Trifolium pratense) or perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne)/white clover (Trifolium repens) pastures upon growth and venison production, with the objective of the stags attaining a minimum target slaughter liveweight (92 kg liveweight; 50 kg carcass) by 12 months of age. The experiment commenced on 13 March and concluded on 26 November 1991. The deer were rotationally grazed on either red clover or perennial ryegrass/white clover pasture during autumn and spring (feed allowances 6, 7 kg dry matter (DM)/h per day, respectively). During winter, all animals were combined and grazed together on perennial ryegrass/white clover pasture, at a pasture residual DM of 1100 kg DM/ha. Pre‐grazing herbage mass for red clover and perennial ryegrass/white clover were respectively 3568 and 3706 kg DM/ha in autumn, and 2726 and 2150 kg DM/ha in spring, and 1736 kg DM/ha for perennial ryegrass/white clover in winter. Post‐grazing herbage mass for red clover and perennial ryegrass/white clover averaged respectively 1822 and 1882 in autumn and 1705 and 1334 in spring, and 1170 kg DM/ha for perennial ryegrass/white clover in winter. Total nitrogen (N) concentration and organic matter digestibility of both feed on offer and diet selected were higher in red clover than perennial ryegrass/white clover. Liveweight gain of red clover stags (237 versus 207 g/day) and hinds (197 versus 159 g/day) was significantly higher than that of perennial ryegrass/white clover animals in autumn (P < 0.01) and in spring (346 versus 281; 260 versus 188 g/day; P < 0.001). Weaner stags and hinds grazing red clover forage had significantly higher voluntary feed intake than the comparable animals grazing perennial ryegrass/white clover pasture in both autumn (P < 0.05) or spring (P < 0.001). By 12 months of age, stags grazing red clover were 6 kg heavier and hinds 7 kg heavier than animals grazing perennial ryegrass/white clover forage. All (100%) red clover stags attained the minimum target slaughter liveweight (92 kg liveweight; 50 kg carcass) by 12 months of age at the end of November, compared to 90% of perennial ryegrass/white clover stags. Carcass weights (kg) and dressing percentage (%) of red clover stags were significantly higher than those of perennial ryegrass/white clover stags (58.9 versus 53.3 kg, P < 0.01; 56.2 versus 52.4%, P < 0.001), but the carcass GR was not different (P > 0.05) either before or after being adjusted to equal carcass weight. It was concluded that early venison production from grazed perennial ryegrass/white clover pastures is possible, and that this can be further improved by inputs of red clover. Red clover offers very good potential as a special‐purpose forage for venison production. © 1994 Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.