Application of targeted goat grazing in oil palm plantations: Assessment of weed preference, spatial use of grazing area and live weight change

Targeted goat grazing is a promising tool to control competing weeds in crop plantation systems without causing adverse effects on the environment. Here, we investigated the effectiveness of targeted grazing for weed control involving 11 Katjang crossbreed goats in a mature oil palm plantation. We a...

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Main Authors: Nobilly, Frisco, Raymond Maxwell, Thomas Manlit, Yahya, Muhammad Syafiq, Azhar, Badrul
Format: Article
Published: Malaysian Palm Oil Board 2021
Online Access:http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/95961/
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author Nobilly, Frisco
Raymond Maxwell, Thomas Manlit
Yahya, Muhammad Syafiq
Azhar, Badrul
author_facet Nobilly, Frisco
Raymond Maxwell, Thomas Manlit
Yahya, Muhammad Syafiq
Azhar, Badrul
author_sort Nobilly, Frisco
building UPM Institutional Repository
collection Online Access
description Targeted goat grazing is a promising tool to control competing weeds in crop plantation systems without causing adverse effects on the environment. Here, we investigated the effectiveness of targeted grazing for weed control involving 11 Katjang crossbreed goats in a mature oil palm plantation. We assessed the animal behaviour and management aspects including weed preference, spatial use of grazing area, and body weight change. Asystasia gangetica was the most preferred weed species, followed by Clidemia hirta. Time spent grazing on A. gangetica (45.83-282.91 s) and C. hirta (10.04-49.82 s) by the female goats were different between grazing days (p<0.05). Spatial use between edge and interior areas of grazing plots were not different (p=0.718), meaning goats grazed evenly throughout the grazing plots. Our results revealed that goats fed evenly on the diverse weed community throughout the grazing plots and maintained similar body weight (p=0.488) before and after grazing. Livestock integration with oil palm agriculture in the manner of targeted grazing should be promoted as a part of integrated pest management for reducing weeds. Targeted grazing might be the solution for environmentally sound weed management in sustainable oil palm plantations.
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institution Universiti Putra Malaysia
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publishDate 2021
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recordtype eprints
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spelling upm-959612023-03-14T03:55:16Z http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/95961/ Application of targeted goat grazing in oil palm plantations: Assessment of weed preference, spatial use of grazing area and live weight change Nobilly, Frisco Raymond Maxwell, Thomas Manlit Yahya, Muhammad Syafiq Azhar, Badrul Targeted goat grazing is a promising tool to control competing weeds in crop plantation systems without causing adverse effects on the environment. Here, we investigated the effectiveness of targeted grazing for weed control involving 11 Katjang crossbreed goats in a mature oil palm plantation. We assessed the animal behaviour and management aspects including weed preference, spatial use of grazing area, and body weight change. Asystasia gangetica was the most preferred weed species, followed by Clidemia hirta. Time spent grazing on A. gangetica (45.83-282.91 s) and C. hirta (10.04-49.82 s) by the female goats were different between grazing days (p<0.05). Spatial use between edge and interior areas of grazing plots were not different (p=0.718), meaning goats grazed evenly throughout the grazing plots. Our results revealed that goats fed evenly on the diverse weed community throughout the grazing plots and maintained similar body weight (p=0.488) before and after grazing. Livestock integration with oil palm agriculture in the manner of targeted grazing should be promoted as a part of integrated pest management for reducing weeds. Targeted grazing might be the solution for environmentally sound weed management in sustainable oil palm plantations. Malaysian Palm Oil Board 2021 Article PeerReviewed Nobilly, Frisco and Raymond Maxwell, Thomas Manlit and Yahya, Muhammad Syafiq and Azhar, Badrul (2021) Application of targeted goat grazing in oil palm plantations: Assessment of weed preference, spatial use of grazing area and live weight change. Journal of Oil Palm Research, 34 (2). pp. 289-299. ISSN 2811-4701 http://jopr.mpob.gov.my/application-of-targeted-goat-grazing-in-oil-palm-plantations-assessment-of-weed-preference-spatial-use-of-grazing-area-and-live-weight-change/ 10.21894/jopr.2021.0047
spellingShingle Nobilly, Frisco
Raymond Maxwell, Thomas Manlit
Yahya, Muhammad Syafiq
Azhar, Badrul
Application of targeted goat grazing in oil palm plantations: Assessment of weed preference, spatial use of grazing area and live weight change
title Application of targeted goat grazing in oil palm plantations: Assessment of weed preference, spatial use of grazing area and live weight change
title_full Application of targeted goat grazing in oil palm plantations: Assessment of weed preference, spatial use of grazing area and live weight change
title_fullStr Application of targeted goat grazing in oil palm plantations: Assessment of weed preference, spatial use of grazing area and live weight change
title_full_unstemmed Application of targeted goat grazing in oil palm plantations: Assessment of weed preference, spatial use of grazing area and live weight change
title_short Application of targeted goat grazing in oil palm plantations: Assessment of weed preference, spatial use of grazing area and live weight change
title_sort application of targeted goat grazing in oil palm plantations: assessment of weed preference, spatial use of grazing area and live weight change
url http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/95961/
http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/95961/
http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/95961/