Abstract
In semi-arid areas, forage crops for grazing are suitable for extensive, marginal lands because they can sustain competitive meat or milk production, they protect against soil erosion risks, and they can form the basis of an alternative sustainable agriculture. Drought is the main limiting factor to plant growth in these lands, seriously affecting total herbage production and seasonal availability of forage. Recent research work looking for new cultivars of some annual self-reseeding pasture crops (annual rye grass, lupin and subterranean clover) with an enhanced capacity for herbage or seed production under water stress, has demonstrated the difficulties in obtaining new cultivars of well adapted crops with substantial yield improvement under drought conditions. New management strategies for improving pasture availability for grazing and self-reseeding ability have been tested (also at farm level) showing clear possibilities for enhancement of herbage production and a more regular seasonal distribution in drought-prone environments.
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