Native seed mixes for rangeland seeding, prairie restoration, or cultivated pasture can benefit from a greater variety of forbs that more closely reflect the original vegetation of the southern Great Plains. Fifteen native, perennial herbaceous legumes were collected in central Texas and evaluated for herbage production, mineral content, and fiber concentration of established plants in research plots over 2 years. Downy milk-pea (Galactia volubilis [L.] Britton) was productive, regardless of rainfall, whereas prairie acacia (Acacia angustissima [Mill.] Kuntze var. hirta [Nutt.] B.L. Rob.) and Illinois bundle-flower (Desmanthus illinoensis [Michx.] MacMill. Ex. B.L. Rob. Fernald) out-yielded others in year 3 when rainfall was the greatest. Herbage crude protein averaged approximately 100 g kg-1 for bush-clovers (Lespedeza spp.) compared to bundle-flowers (Desmanthus spp.), which exceeded 200 g kg-1; the latter also was high in herbage phosphorus. Herbage neutral detergent fiber ranged from 300 to more than 500 g kg-1, acid detergent fiber ranged from 140 to 360 g kg-1, and acid detergent lignin ranged from 36 to 140 g kg-1, a wide range from which to select if animal nutrition is a primary criterion. Seed production was evaluated within a subset of 8 entries submitted to periodic herbage removal or left intact throughout the season. Three bundle-flowers yielded the greatest mass and seed number, but were negatively affected by harvest, unlike prairie acacia. Herbage and seed characteristics indicate there are promising perennial herbaceous legumes in the southern Great Plains that can be included in native seed mixes. The Rangeland Ecology & Management archives are made available by the Society for Range Management and the University of Arizona Libraries. Contact lbry-journals@email.arizona.edu for further information. Migrated from OJS platform August 2020 Legacy DOIs that must be preserved: 10.2458/azu_rangelands_v58i6_interrante
Scholarly peer-reviewed articles published by the Society for Range Management. Access articles on a rolling-window basis from vol. 1, 1948 up to 5 years from the current year. Formerly Journal of Range Management (JRM). More recent content is available by subscription from SRM.