Comprehensive comparison of production performance of annual mixed legume-grass pastures

To screen for annual mixed soybean-grass grassland with higher comprehensive production performance in the Zhaosu Basin, Yili, Xinjiang, China, four mixed soybean-grass treatments of Vicia villosa + Avena sativa, V. villosa + triticale, V. sativa + A. sativa, and V. sativa + triticale (1 ꞉ 1, 2 ꞉ 1, 3 ꞉ 1 and 4 ꞉ 1, legume forage ꞉ grass) were designed to develop artificial grassland. Forage yield, forage nutrient yield, relative forage value, and interspecific compatibility were used as the indices to comprehensively evaluate the production performance. The production performance of the different treatments was comprehensively evaluated via principal component analysis and fuzzy evaluation. The results showed the following: 1) The forage, crude protein, ether extract, and P hosphorus yields of V. villosa + A. sativa were higher at a 1 ꞉ 1 mixing ratio; the CP and EE yields of both V. villosa + triticale and V. sativa + A. sativa were higher at a 3 ꞉ 1 mixing ratio; otherwise Neutral detergent fiber and Acid detergent fiber yields were lower, and P yield was higher. The yield performance of V. sativa + triticale was similar at 1 ꞉ 1 and 4 ꞉ 1 mixing ratios. 2) The results of both evaluation methods showed that the mixing ratios of 3 ꞉ 1 for V. sativa + A. sativa, 2 ꞉ 1 for V. sativa + triticale, 1 ꞉ 1 of V. villosa + A. sativa, and 4 ꞉ 1 of V. villosa + triticale produced higher overall production performance. Therefore, when the same evaluation indicators were used, the results of the two evaluation methods were similar. Higher comprehensive production performance can be achieved with a mixed-sowing method of V. sativa with triticale in a 2 ꞉ 1 ratio and V. villosa with A. sativa in a 1 ꞉ 1 ratio, which are suitable for promotion and demonstration in the Zhaosu Basin.