Herbage components in nitrogen‐fertilized and legume‐containing double‐cropped annual and perennial forages in eastern Nebraska

Diverse perennial circular systems that focus on grazing offer many environmental benefits. However, the use of annual forages may be necessary where perennial pastures have declined. Our study sought to evaluate herbage components in a double‐cropped annual forage experiment with triticale [× Triticosecale Wittm. ex A. Camus ( Secale × Triticum )] and pearl millet [ Pennisetum glaucum (L.) R. Br.] as well as in a perennial forage experiment with smooth bromegrass ( Bromus inermis Leyss.). Each experiment included three replications of N‐fertilized (FERT) and legume‐containing (LEG) pasture treatments with a common set of data collected in spring and summer during the 2021–2022 and 2022–2023 production years. In the annual forage experiment, forage mass was greatest in FERT pastures during the summer of 2023 when June and July precipitation was 4.88 inches above the 30‐year average; otherwise, it was similar between FERT and LEG pastures. In the perennial forage experiment, FERT pastures tended to produce more forage—especially in spring—due to declining legume populations in the LEG pastures, which were last seeded in 2010. Weedy grasses added greatly to herbage mass in summer in the annual forage experiment but contributed little in the perennial forage experiment. Because of variable precipitation, practitioners can expect the year and season to greatly influence the mass and distribution of forage. Double‐cropped annuals may produce more forage in spring one year and more in summer the following year. Perennial pastures with smooth bromegrass will produce more forage in spring but will lag behind fertilized pastures if they contain ≤15% legumes.