Etude de la production et de la valeur de prairies naturelles conduites en Agriculture biologique en Auvergne : premiers résultats

The yield and value of natural grasslands managed under the principles of Biological Agriculture in Auvergne. First results

Two sets of trials on biological agriculture were set up at the experimental INRA stations of Clermont-Ferrand-Theix, at Orcival (Puy-de-Dôme), the other at Redon (Ille-et-Vilaine). One of the aims of these trials was to fertilize meadows with compost only. The productivity of these native meadows and the value of the forages produced was monitored for three years.
Several tendencies were observed : grass began to grow at a later date in Auvergne, the effect of the compost dressing showed in the subsequent year, the vegetation changed, the crude protein and phosphate contents shrank, the feeding value was maintained, etc. These observations ought however to be confirmed over greayer lengths of time. Various aspects are being discussed, such as the necessity of maintaining a certain level of white clover, the amounts of compost available on the farm, the N, P, K balances on the various fields, etc.