The effect of cutting management on seed yield, seed yield components, and seed quality of red clover (Trifolium pratense L.)

Abstract

Red clover (Trifolium pratense L.) is the second most important perennial forage legume in the Republic of Serbia, cultivated on 90-120.000 ha. The objective of this study was to determine the effects of cutting management on seed yield, some seed yield components, and seed quality of the NS red clover variety Una during the second and third year of growing. Five cutting managements with variable dates of initial cutting were tested in the 2019-2020 period. The first cutting was used for seed production in the C1 management and the second growth in the C2-C5 managements (C2-budding, C3-start of flowering, C4-mid of flowering, and C5-full flowering). In all cutting systems, significantly higher seed yields were achieved in the second year of growing. Unfavourable environmental conditions for pollinators as well as thinning of red clover crops in the third year of growing are the main reasons for low seed yields. The highest seed yield (539 kg/ha) was achieved in the C2 cutting management in the second year of growing. The cutting management had no significant effects on red clover seed quality.

Crvena detelina (Trifolium pratense L.) je druga po značaju višegodišnja krmna leguminoza u Republici Srbiji, koja se gaji na oko 90-120.000 ha. Cilj ovog istraživanja bio je da se utvrdi efekat različitih sistema kosidbe na prinos semena, najvažnije komponente prinosa semena i kvalitet semena NS sorte crvene deteline Una tokom druge i treće godine života. U periodu 2019-2020, testirano je pet različitih sistema kosidbe sa promenljivim datumima prvog otkosa. Prvi otkos je korišćen za proizvodnju semena u sistemu kosidbe K1, a drugi otkos u sistemima kosidbe od K2 do K5 (sa promenljivim datumima prvog otkosa za proizvodnju sena, zavisno od faze razvoja: K2-butonizacija, K3-početak cvetanja, K4-sredina cvetanja, K5-puno cvetanje). U svim sistemima kosidbe u drugoj godini života crvene deteline ostvareni su znatno veći prinosi semena. Nepovoljni ekološki uslovi za oprašivače, kao i proređivanje useva crvene deteline u trećoj godini života su glavni razlozi niskih prinosa semena. Najveći prinos semena (539 kg/ha) ostvaren je u sistemu kosidbe K2 u drugoj godini života crvene deteline. Sistem kosidbe nije imao značajan uticaj na kvalitet semena crvene deteline.