Sustainable Forage Systems
Apply to Be a StudentRelease Date: Each September
Professional Accreditation: 30 Basis points
Lead Organisation: IBERS, Aberystwyth University
Learn to maximise the potential of grasslands for food production and ecosystem services.
The aim of the module is to consider, in detail, the principles and practices underpinning the husbandry of grassland and forages with an emphasis on sward species and management, livestock nutrition and wellbeing, and environmental sustainability. Students will benefit significantly from the research being conducted in this area at IBERS and so have the opportunity to be involved in the advances at the forefront of grassland and forage science.
It will achieve this by considering the following areas:
- Agronomy and utilisation of forages, including topics such as species morphology, sward diversity, establishment and management, soil health, and forage breeding.
- Forages for livestock nutrition, well-being and production, including topics such as nutrition from forages, emissions and resource efficiency, grazing and forage conservation, and product quality.
- Environmental impacts and resilience, including topics such as ecosystem services from multi-species swards, IPM, implementing change, modelling, and climate resilience and adaptation.
Assessments and Learning Outcomes for this module can be found HERE
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80% funding available |
Qualifications which this Module may be Used Towards
| PGCert Nuffield Farming Scholarship | Option |
|---|---|
| PGCert Livestock Science | Core |
| MSc Sustainable Agriculture | Option |
| MSc Agrifood Innovation | Option |
| MRes Agriculture | Option |
| MRes Agrifood Innovation | Option |
| Professional Doctorate in Agriculture | Option |
| Professional Doctorate in BioInnovation | Option |
List of Units
| Foundations of grassland systems | This first week looks at global and local challenges (climate change, bodiversity, food security) before exploing upland systems. Pasture species and their morphology are introduced |
|---|---|
| Grassland and Nutrient Use Efficiency (NUE) | Nutrient cycling and soil protection are examined with an indepth look at nitorgen fixing plants as well as soil carbon. |
| Sward diversity & multispecies swards | Pasture establishment; how management affects grassland composition. |
| Nutrition from forage (nutrient journey from soil to plant to animal to product) | This week explores the fundementals of forage nutrition, with a look at bioactive forages and secondary metabolites, and meat and milk quality linked to forages. |
| Emissions and Resource Efficiency | This week covers: Methane and nitrogen emissions: measurement and mitigation; feed efficiency and metabolic studies and finishes by looking at animal genetics for resource use efficiency. |
| Feed from Forage | Overview of homegrown protein for ruminants as well as other homegrown feed sources |
| Implementing Change in Agriculture | A detailed look at knowledge exchange in grassland-livestock systems with a focus on barriers and enablers. |
| Environmental Services | An exploration of ecosystem services from multi-species sward and agroforestry |
| Resilient Grasslands | We conclude the module with a look at: Climate resilience and adaptation in livestock systems; the role of digital tools in monitoring sust grasslands and modelling in sustainable farm management; Plant breeding for sustainable feed and forage resources (grass and legumes); and finally discuss global perspectives and future research priorities |
Tutors
| Tutors Name |
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| Dr Sarah Watson-Jones |