Persistency, yield, and silage quality of Festulolium cultivars over a consecutive five-year period under a mild Atlantic climate

Festulolium are hybrids between species within the Lolium and Festuca genera. They are attractive candidates for hybridisation due to their complementary characteristics in the context of forage production and environmental challenges, with Lolium exhibiting greater digestibility and Festuca possessing superior resilience to abiotic stress. To establish the extent of the representation of these characteristics in different Festulolium hybrids, a five-year field experiment was undertaken in a mild Atlantic climate. Four alternative species combinations and six pure species (controls) were evaluated for dry matter yield and persistency from 2014 to 2018, and various nutritional parameters in the first silage cut were measured from 2015 to 2017. Festulolium hybrids derived from L. multiflorum were found to group with both Lolium and Festuca pure species for a mean ground score to evaluate persistency (P < 0.05). Hybrid types of the L. perenne lineage were found to have ground score values more alike to their Lolium component and distinct from the F. pratensis pure species. In terms of dry matter yield, the majority of L. multiflorum hybrids observed formed a higher yielding group with the tetraploid L. multiflorum pure species and distinct from diploid F. pratensis pure species, whereas all other hybrid types and controls shared groups in common. For the nutrient content parameters including dry matter digestibility, water soluble sugars, and buffering capacity, Lolium pure species exhibited more favourable values, whereas hybrids were largely found to display intermediate to low values. Festuca pure species consistently exhibited poorer values with the exception of crude protein content where F. pratensis displayed the highest values and also the 2017 measurement of buffering capacity. In conclusion, the Festulolium hybrids shared characteristics with both parental types, but they often showed a greater likeness to the Lolium component.