THE YIELD STABILITY AND QUALITY OF LEGUMES DURING TWO CONSECUTIVE, EXTREMELY DRY YEARS

This study highlights the effect of drought and ambient temperature on performance and herbage quality of legume monocultures and grass–legume mixtures. In a field experiment, the total dry matter yield, seasonal pattern of dry matter yield distribution, content of crude protein and crude fibre of monocultures of red clover and alfalfa and grass–legume mixtures were investigated during two consecutive dry years (2011?2012). Alfalfa cultivars Kamila and Tereza grown as monocultures or as mixtures with Festulolium braunii (cultivar Achilles) outperformed the red clover cultivars Fresko and Veles and provided a well-balanced total and seasonal dry matter yield during both years. Across all experimental years, crude protein content was significantly higher at alfalfa monocultures and mixture when compared with clover monocultures (P < 0.05). However, considerable lower content of crude fibre at clover monocultures in comparison with alfalfa ones was found. Responses of nutritive parameters of both legume species to weather variables were different. Crude protein content in red clover was independent of rainfall and temperature. In contrast, the crude fibre content correlated with temperature whereby the alfalfa monocultures showed stronger correlations (P < 0.05) than red clover monocultures.