Black oat as an alternative forage species for the US upper Midwest

Authors: Jaramillo, David; DUBEUX, JOSE - University Of Florida; BLOUNT, ANN - University Of Florida; CAVADINI, JASON - University Of Wisconsin; HARRISON, STEPHEN - Louisiana State University

Submitted to: Crop, Forage & Turfgrass Management
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 8/29/2023
Publication Date: 10/9/2023
Citation: Jaramillo, D.M., Dubeux, J., Blount, A., Cavadini, J., Harrison, S. 2023. Black oat as an alternative forage species for the US upper Midwest. Crop, Forage & Turfgrass Management. https://doi.org/10.1002/cft2.20249.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/cft2.20249

Interpretive Summary: The objective of this research was to evaluate the forage accumulation and nutritive value of 10 black oat breeding lines in central WI. Black oats might be especially attractive as a forage option in WI since they are more heat tolerant, and capable of providing forage resources during hot summers, when other cool-season grasses have reduced productivity. Thus far, this species has not been evaluated in the region. This research demonstrated that black oats have the potential to provide high quantities of forage, at least during the late-spring or early-summer. There were differences within the ten black oat lines evaluated in terms of forage accumulation and their nutritive value. This research will be useful to make further selections in plant breeding programs for future commercial release. In addition, this research will also be of interest to agronomists, researchers, and ruminant nutritionists that may be interested in evaluating ways to incorporate novel species into cropping systems and animal diets.

Technical Abstract: Black oat (Avena strigosa Schreb.) is a cool-season annual grass with Mediterranean origin. In contrast to other cool-season grasses, black oats are more heat tolerant and disease resistant, making them an attractive option for the U.S. upper Midwest, since they can be utilized to provide forage during summer, when there is decreased productivity of other cool-season forages. Black oats are recommended for USDA Plant Hardiness Zones 8b-10a, far away from the Upper Midwest (zones 2a-5b). The objective was to evaluate 10 black oat breeding lines (referred to as UF1 through UF10) for herbage accumulation, crude protein (CP), neutral detergent fiber (NDF), acid detergent fiber (ADF), and in vitro digestible organic matter (IVDOM) concentrations. The experiment was carried out on May-July 2021 and 2022 in Stratford, WI. Triticale (x Triticosecale Wittmack cv. ‘TriCal 342’) and ‘Legend 567’ oat (Avena sativa L.) were included as controls. Herbage accumulation differed by treatment (P = .002) and averaged 5900 lbs. acre-1 among the black oat lines. Crude protein concentrations ranged from 8.5 and 9.5%, in UF7 and UF3 black oat lines, respectively. The IVDOM concentrations were above 58% across all black oat lines. Results indicate black oats have the potential to provide forage resources during the early summer in the upper Midwest, but further studies are warranted to evaluate how to best manage this species into cropping or pasture systems in the region, in order to harvest forage of optimal nutritive value.