Editor’s Choice Articles

Forage legumes, besides their use as ruminant feed supplements, contribute to other agricultural, forestry and natural ecosystems’ sustainability around the world. Our objective in this summary is to emphasize that versatility in the face of biotic, abiotic and socio-economic variability is among the most important traits that forage legumes contribute to sustaining human populations in those diverse ecosystems. Forage legumes could contribute even more to agroecosystems if we 1. consider ecosystem services as well as food, feed and fuel production; 2. more fully exploit what we already know about forage legumes’ multiple uses; and 3. focus greater attention and energy exploring and expanding versatility in currently used and novel versatile species. To draw attention to the importance of this versatility to sustainable grasslands, here we review multiple legumes’ roles as forage, bioenergy, pulses (legume seeds for human consumption), pharmaceuticals and cover crops as well as environmental services, in particular soil health, C sequestration and non-industrial organic N. The major points we single out as distinguishing sustainable versatile forage legumes include (1) multiple uses; (2) adaptation to a wide range of edaphoclimatic conditions; (3) flexible economic contributions; and (4) how genomics can harness greater legume versatility. We predict that, because of this versatility, forage legumes will become ever more important as climates change and human pressures on sustainable agro-environments intensify. Full article

Automated head chamber systems (AHCS) are increasingly deployed to measure enteric emissions in vivo. However, guidance for AHCS-derived emissions data analyses pertains to confined settings, such as feedlots, with less instruction for grazing systems. Accordingly, our first objective in this experiment was to determine the utility of two data preprocessing approaches for grazing-based analyses. Using Pearson’s correlation, we compared “simple arithmetic” and “time-bin” averaging to arrive at a single estimate of daily gas flux. For our second objective, we evaluated test period length averaging at 1, 3, 7, and 14 d intervals to determine daily pasture-based emissions estimates under two experimental conditions: herd access to a single AHCS unit vs. two AHCS units. Unlike findings from the confinement-based literature, where slight improvements have been observed, time-bin averaging, compared to simple arithmetic averaging, did not improve gas flux estimation from grazing for CH₄ (p ≥ 0.46) or CO₂ (p ≥ 0.60). Irrespective of experimental condition, i.e., herd access to a single AHCS unit vs. two AHCS units, assessment of variability of diurnal emissions patterns revealed CH₄ flux on pasture had at least half as much variability for the same individuals acclimated in confinement. Using a 7-day test period length interval, aggregating gas flux data at 7 d at a time was adequate for capturing diurnal emissions variation in grazing steers, as no improvement was observed in the percentage of individuals with five of six time bins measured for a 14-day test period length interval. This analysis should provide insights into future research to standardize AHCS data preprocessing across experiments and research groups. Full article

The efficient use of water resources is a growing priority in multiple sectors, including the turfgrass industry. Nanobubbles (NB) represent an innovative technology that, by enriching solutions with various gases, offers significant benefits in several industrial areas. In crop irrigation, they have been shown to increase dissolved oxygen in the root zone and thereby boost yields. The objective of this study was to evaluate the impact of the use of oxygen NB in irrigation water on turfgrass quality, considering different levels of water restriction (0%, 30%, and 50% of daily crop evapotranspiration), compared to conventional irrigation. During the summer of 2024, trials were conducted using turf quality indices based on multispectral reflectance and RGB digital image analysis. The results showed that the use of NB allowed for a reduction in irrigation by 50% without compromising turf quality, reaching values similar to treatments without water restriction. In contrast, treatment with the same restriction but without NB (WNB50%) showed a deterioration in quality. This study shows NB as an innovative tool to optimize water use, with great potential for applications in landscape green areas, promote water use efficiency, and reduce the costs associated with irrigation. Full article

Recently, turfgrass has received scrutiny from the public in many parts of the United States due to the misconception that it has limited benefits and has negative impacts on the environment. These negative impacts are often associated with water and chemical usage during turfgrass maintenance. Even with these ill-advised concerns, turfgrass remains an important component of urban landscapes. Contrary to public opinion, turfgrass has numerous environmental, ecological, economical, social, and societal benefits. This review paper summarizes and highlights the benefits of turfgrass systems. Full article

Prosopis glandulosa (Mesquite), an invasive alien tree species, poses major threats to soil health, native vegetation, and biodiversity in South African rangelands. The negative impacts of Prosopis on socio-economic, environmental, and ecological resources outweigh the benefits. Most South African researchers are afraid that if left uncontrolled or poorly managed, it can cause severe land degradation, reduced agricultural productivity, indigenous-species shift, and ultimately the loss of biodiversity. Consequently, this will undermine key sustainable development goals related to food security and environmental conservation. In this review we conducted a systematic review, identifying 309 peer-reviewed articles from Google Scholar and Web of Science, screening and analyzing 98 of these, and ultimately reviewing 34 publications in detail. Three key research gaps were identified: (1) insufficient research focused on Prosopis invasion in South Africa; (2) limited integration and collaboration between the agricultural sector, environmental conservation sector, and governmental bodies; and (3) challenges in policy implementation within invaded areas. The study seeks to address these gaps by highlighting the impact of this alien invasive Prosopis species on land, biodiversity, and overall ecosystem stability. It also investigates policy issues surrounding invasive species and their control. Effective management of Prosopis within the country will not only control the spread but also support the broader objectives of environmental conservation, agricultural sustainability, and socio-economic development. Full article

Semi-arid regions present edaphoclimatic limitations for forage production, primarily affecting plant growth and development. Crops adapted to such conditions, like forage sorghum, and nutritional supplementation with nitrogen and molybdenum, can increase forage production. The objective of this study was to evaluate the interaction between nitrogen and molybdenum on the bromatological and structural components of forage sorghum (SF-15) cultivated in a semi-arid environment, with the hypothesis that nitrogen fertilization combined with molybdenum would enhance nitrogen use efficiency in sorghum. The methodology involved a 5 × 2 factorial experiment in a randomized block design (RBD) with increasing doses of nitrogen (urea) (0, 50, 100, 150, 300 kg ha⁻¹) and two doses of molybdenum (sodium molybdate): 0 and 160 g ha⁻¹, conducted over three cultivation cycles. At the end of each cycle, morphological variables were evaluated, and yield of natural mass (YNM), yield of dry mass (YDM), crude protein production (CPP), and bromatological components were determined. Morphometric characteristics were influenced by the interaction between cycle x nitrogen doses (N) and molybdenum doses (Mo). For productive characteristics, there was an interaction between cycle and nitrogen doses, with the first regrowth cycle and the dosage of 100 kg ha⁻¹ N showing the highest mean. Bromatological components were influenced by the N and Mo interaction. The study confirmed the synergistic effect between nitrogen and molybdenum. It is recommended to use 100 kg ha⁻¹ nitrogen fertilization for an average production of 10 t ha⁻¹ for SF-15 sorghum. Full article