Due to climate change and the expansion of cultivation areas through the use of reclaimed land, changes in the selection of Italian ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum L.) varieties are anticipated. This study was conducted to compare the growth characteristics before overwintering, productivity, and feed value of eight Italian ryegrass varieties with different maturing stages under the same cultivation conditions. The variety ‘Lm4ho’, a medium-maturing type, showed superior growth characteristics before overwintering, including plant height, leaf length, and leaf width. The heading date was advanced in all varieties, with a greater degree of advancement observed in varieties with earlier heading dates. When harvested at the heading stage of the early-maturing types, the dry matter yield of the medium-maturing types was not significantly different from that of the early-maturing types. However, when harvested at the heading stage of the medium-maturing types, the dry matter yield was higher than that of the early-maturing types. Specifically, ‘Lm4ho’ produced 2,518 kg/ha more than ‘Kowinearly’. The late-maturing variety IR901 and the medium-maturing varieties ‘Lm4ho’ and ‘Kowinmaster’ showed statistically superior dry matter yields. In terms of forage value, including crude protein (CP), total digestible nutrients (TDN), and relative feed value (RFV), the medium- and late-maturing types outperformed the early-maturing types. Notably, ‘Lm4ho’, ‘IR 901’, and ‘Hwasan 104’ were evaluated as suitable varieties for high-quality forage production. These results suggest that medium-maturing varieties may be suitable for double cropping in the central regions due to climate change. We propose that future breeding of Italian ryegrass should expand from focusing on cold tolerance and early-maturing varieties to include mediumand late-maturing varieties that consider both productivity and quality.

The experiment was conducted to determine the changes in seed productivity of Italian ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum Lam.) according to nitrogen fertilization levels in the southern region of Korea. Italian ryegrass (IRG) variety 'Green Call' was sown in the fall of 2021 in Jinju, Gyeongsangnam-do. The experiment consisted of three nitrogen fertilizer levels (100, 120, and 140 N kg/ha) with three replications using a randomized complete block design. Harvesting was done approximately 30 days after heading on May 18th. There was no difference in heading date among treatments, which occurred on April 18th. The longest IRG was observed in the 140 N kg/ha treatment, but there was no significant difference. No significant differences were observed in lodging, disease resistance, and cold tolerance among treatments, but lodging was severe in all treatments. The length of the spike averaged 44.95 cm, with no difference among treatments, and the number of seeds per spike was highest in the 120 N kg/ha treatment. Seed yield increased with increasing nitrogen fertilizer levels, averaging 3,707 kg/ha (as-fed basis). DM content of seed and straw averaged 76.95% and 62.19%, respectively, with no significant differences among treatments. The remaining straw after harvesting averaged 6,525 kg/ha on a dry matter basis, with the highest value observed in the 140 N kg/ha treatment. Overall, considering the results, the optimal nitrogen fertilizer application rate for seed production of Italian ryegrass in the southern region when sown in autumn was found to be 120 N kg/ha.

This experiment was conducted to breed a very early-maturing variety of Italian ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum Lam.) at the Grassland and Forage Crops Division, National Institute of Animal Science, RDA, Cheonan, Korea, from 2022 to 2023. The new variety, named “Earlybird,” is a diploid variety characterized by green leaf color, a semi-erect growth habit in late autumn/fall, and an erect growth habit in early spring. With a heading date of April 30, Earlybird is categorized as a very early-maturing variety. Compared to the “Kowinearly” control variety, Earlybird’s flag-leaf width is wider by 0.2 mm, its flag-leaf length is longer by 1.4 cm, and its plant height is greater by 10.5 cm. Additionally, Earlybird’s ear length is 1.4 cm longer than Kowinearly's, and it exhibits lodging resistance. Although the dry matter yield of Earlybird (7,469 kg/ha) is smaller than that of Kowinearly, the difference is not statistically significant. The total digestible nutrient and crude protein content of Earlybird are 63.5% and 8.6%, respectively, which are higher than those of Kowinearly by 1.8% and 0.3%, respectively. The neutral detergent fiber and acid detergent fiber content of Earlybird are 56.9% and 32.0%, respectively, which are lower than those of Kowinearly by 2.2% and 2.3%, respectively.

This study was conducted in Cheonan, the middle region of South Korea, to evaluate the forage characteristics of six medium maturing Italian ryegrass varieties: ‘Kowinmaster’, ‘IR 601’, ‘IR 602’, ‘IR 603’, ‘IR 604’ and ‘IR 605’. In growth characteristics, 'Kowinmaster' exhibited the earliest heading date on April 30, while 'IR 601' exhibited the latest on May 17. 'IR 601' exhibited the highest lodging resistance, and all varieties demonstrated excellent disease resistance, waterlogging tolerance, and cold tolerance. 'IR 603', 'IR 604', and 'IR 605' demonstrated above-average plant length, with 'IR 604' reaching the longest at 114.8 cm. In productivity, 'IR 602' and 'IR 605' produced the highest total dry matter yield, each exceeding 12,800 kg/ha. Regarding feed values, 'Kowinmaster' recorded the highest RFV and TDN at 119.18 and 66.07%, respectively, with 'IR 605' exhibiting the second highest. 'IR 604' and 'IR 601' demonstrated crude protein concentrations over 9%, with 'IR 604' exhibiting the highest at 9.74%. Analysis of monosaccharide content in Italian ryegrass revealed that 'IR 605' exhibited the highest glucose and fructose content at 23.35 g/kg and 50.70 g/kg, respectively. In summary, 'IR 602' exhibited the highest productivity, 'Kowinmaster' recorded the highest feed value, and 'IR 605' exhibited the highest glucose and fructose content. Therefore, 'IR 605' is considered the most outstanding variety due to its superior productivity, second highest feed value, and significant monosaccharide content.

The experiment aim to breed an early-maturing variety of Italian ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum Lam.). It was conducted at the Grassland and Forage Crops Division, National Institute of Animal Science, RDA, Cheonan, Korea, from 2022 to 2023. The new variety named “Oasis” is a diploid with green leaves and has a semi-erect growth habit in late fall, and an erect growth habit in early spring. With a heading date of May 10, Oasis is categorized as an early-maturing variety. Compared with the “Florida80” as a control variety, Oasis’s flag leaf was 1 mm wider and 2 cm shorter, while the plant length was 7.8 cm longer. Additionally, the ear of Oasis was 1.2 cm longer than that of Florida80, and it showed lodging resistance. The dry matter yield of Oasis (8,805 kg/ha) was higher than that of Florida80. The total digestible nutrient and crude protein contents of Oasis were 64.5%, and 9.3%, respectively, which were 1.1% and 0.6% higher than those of Florida80, respectively. The neutral and acid detergent fiber contents in Oasis were 54.2% and 30.8%, respectively, which was 1.9% and 1.4% lower than those of Florida80, respectively. These results indicate that Oasis has good dry matter yield in the most of region and especially, middle and northern region of South Korea.

This study was conducted to investigate the forage characteristics of very early-maturing Italian ryegrass (IRG) three cultivars within September, 2021 to July, 2022 in Cheonan, Korea. We used three different cultivars of Italian ryegrass in this study “Greenfarm” “Greenfarm2ho” and “Greenfarm3ho” The results of heading date in this study, “Greenfarm” was recorded 3 days earlier than the other two cultivars, and its lodge tolerance score was the highest among the three. However, in case of plant length, there was no significantly difference in whole cultivars, in addition disease resistance, insect resistance and cold tolerance were not significantly different in three cultivars. The forage productivity of “Greenfarm2ho” was recorded the highest, especially the 1st harvesting of “Greenfarm2ho” yielded significantly the highest and superior to other varieties. As a result of feed value analysis, three cultivars were generally superior to overseas varieties and in particular, “Greenfarm2ho” was recorded to have excellent value because of the lowest NDF and ADF content. On the other hand, there was no significant difference in crude protein content among three varieties. In case of the monosaccharides content "Greenfarm3ho” had significantly higher glucose content than other two varieties, therefore the “Greenfarm” has advantage for preparing high quality of silage. In contrast, there was no significant difference among three varieties in fructose content.

This experiment was conducted to investigate the change in the productivity of Italian ryegrass seeds according to the inter-row spacing in the southern region of the Korean Peninsula. Italian ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum Lam.) ‘Green Call’ variety was sown in Jinju, Gyeongnam in the fall of 2020 with three inter-row spacings (20, 30 and 40 cm). The experiment was arranged a randomized block design with three replications. The ryegrass was sown on October 17, 2020, and the harvest was on May 31, about 60 days from the first heading stage. There was no difference among treatments with an average of April 27th in heading stage. Plant height was significantly longer at 30 cm seeding interval and the shortest in 20 cm treatment. The length of the spike was the longest in the 40 cm seeding interval, and the number of seeds per spike was the highest in the 20cm seeding interval, but there was no significant difference among treatments. The seed yield was the highest at the 20 cm sowing interval (2,180 kg/ha), and decreased as the spacing increased. The dry matter content of seeds and straw was found to be 44.90% and 45.51% on average, and there was no significant difference among treatments. The amount of remaining straw after harvesting was found to be 7,506 kg/ha on average on DM basis, and was high at the 20 cm seeding interval. In view of the above results, it was found that it is most advantageous to sow at intervals of 20 cm when producing Italian ryegrass seeds through autumn sowing in the southern region.

This study was conducted at the National Institute of Animal Science (NIAS) from 2010 to 2017 to develop a late-maturing variety with high productivity for cultivation in the southern region of South Korea. The new variety of Italian ryegrass, ‘IR901’, was a late-maturing variety, and its heading date was 22 May, 17 days later than that of the control variety ‘Kowinearly’. ‘IR901’ had a flag leaf width of 11.2 mm, flag leaf length of 31.8 cm, and plant length of 103 cm on its heading date. The combined average dry matter yield of ‘IR901’ in all three adaptability evaluation regions (Cheonan, Pyeongchang and Haenam) was 7,747 kg/ha, which was similar to that of the ‘Kowinearly’ variety (7,734 kg/ ha). However, the average dry matter yield over three years in Cheonan and Pyeongchang was 82% and 96%, respectively, compared to that of the control, which was most likely because of the poor cold tolerance of ‘IR901’. By contrast, in Haenam, in the southern region, the average dry matter yield of ‘IR901’ was 19% higher than that of the ‘Kowinearly’ variety. The proportions of crude protein (CP), total digestible nutrients (TDN), acid detergent fiber (ADF), and neutral detergent fiber (NDF) in ‘IR901’ were 8.6%, 59.7%, 36.9%, and 54.8%, respectively; the proportions were 0.2% lower, the same, the same, and 2.5% lower than those in the ‘Kowinearly’ variety. The determined in vitro dry matter digestibility (IVDMD) of ‘IR901’ was 72.2% higher than that of ‘Kowinearly’ (67.2). In general, of the two varieties, the forage quality of ‘IR901’ was marginally superior to that of ‘Kowinearly’.

To investigate the domestic seed production potential of Italian ryegrass, it was sown in autumn in the southern region and harvested in the spring of the following year to investigate the productivity and quality of seeds and straw. Italian ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum Lam.) ‘GreenCall’ variety was sown in Jinju, Gyeongnam in the fall of 2020 with three seeding rates (20, 30 and 40 kg/ha). The experiment was arranged consisted of a randomized block design with three replications. The ryegrass was sown on October 17, 2020, and the harvest was on May 31, about 60 days from the heading stage. The heading stage of Italian ryegrass was April 28, and there was no difference among treatments. Plant height was significantly shorter in the 40 kg/ha seeding treatment group, and there was no significant difference in the remaining treatments. The resistance of lodging, disease, and cold did not show significant differences among treatments. Spike length and number of seeds per spike were highest at 20 kg/ha seeding amount, and there was no difference in the remaining treatments. The seed yield was the highest at 1,956 kg/ha in the 20 kg/ha seeding rate, and there was no difference in the 30 and 40 kg/ha seeding rates. The dry matter content of seeds and straws was 45.60 and 41.83% on average, and there was no significant difference among treatments. The amount of remaining straw after seed harvesting was found to be 7,689 kg/ha on average on a dry basis, and it was high in the 40 kg/ha sowing area, but there was no significant difference among treatments. According to the above results, it was found that it is most advantageous to sow at 20 kg/ha when producing Italian ryegrass seeds through autumn sowing in the southern region.

This study was carried out to compare the DMY (dry matter yield) of IRG (Italian ryegrass) in the southern coastal regions of Korea due to seasonal climate scenarios such as the Kaul-Changma (late monsoon) in autumn, extreme winter cold, and drought in the next spring. The IRG data (n = 203) were collected from various Reports for Collaborative Research Program to Develop New Cultivars of Summer Crops in Jeju, 203 Namwon, and Yeungam from the Rural Development Administration (1993 – 2013). In order to define the seasonal climate scenarios, climate variables including temperature, humidity, wind, sunshine were used by collected from the Korean Meteorological Administration. The discriminant analysis based on 5% significance level was performed to distinguish normal and abnormal climate scenarios. Furthermore, the DMY comparison was simulated based on the information of sample distribution of IRG. As a result, in the southern coastal regions, only the impact of next spring drought on DMY of IRG was critical. Although the severe winter cold was clearly classified from the normal, there was no difference in DMY. Thus, the DMY comparison was simulated only for the next spring drought. Under the yield comparison simulation, DMY (kg/ha) in the normal and drought was 14,743.83 and 12,707.97 respectively. It implies that the expected damage caused by the spring drought was about 2,000 kg/ha. Furthermore, the predicted DMY of spring drought was wider and slower than that of normal, indicating on high variability. This study is meaningful in confirming the predictive DMY damage and its possibility by spring drought for IRG via statistical simulation considering seasonal climate scenarios.

This experiment was conducted to compare the seed productivity of Spring sown Italian ryegrass(Lolium multiflorum Lam.) depending on the seeding rates(20kg/ha, 30kg/ha, 40kg/ha) in Gangwon region. The experiment was a randomized block design with three replications. The test plots were located in alpine areas of about 600 m above sea level in Gangwon province. The tested Italian ryegrass variety was ‘Greencall’ developed by the National Institute of Animal Science, RDA. Italian Ryegrass was sown on March 26, 2020, and the seed harvesting was on the 60th day(2 July) from heading date. The heading date was May 8 with no difference, There were no significant differences in the agronomic characteristics including plant height. 30kg/ha seed rate was the highest at 146.8 seed/spike and 40kg/ha seed rate was the lowest at 114.7 seed/spike for the number of seeds per spike. The number of spikes per unit area was the highest in 40kg/ha at 886/m2 and the lowest in 20kg/ha at 750/m2. The yield of seed and straw was the highest in 40kg/ha at 1,288kg/ha and 2,970kg/ha respectively, but there was no difference. From the above results, the production of Italian ryegrass seeds through spring sowing in the Gangwon region is not much than autumn seeding, requiring the input of various technologies to increase productivity in the future, and it is desirable to determine the production cost through economic analysis was evaluated.

This experiment was conducted to study on the growth characteristics and seed productivity of Italian ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum Lam., IRG) planted in the Spring in Gangwon Highland according to the seeding distance (20, 30 and 40 cm). The field was located in highland around 600 m above sea level. The experimental design was randomized block design with three replication and the tested IRG variety was ‘Greencall’ developed by National Institute of Animal Science (NIAS). IRG was sown on March 26, 2020, and harvested on July 2. The plant height was the shortest at 80.5 cm in the 40 cm seeding distance plot (P<0.05), and there was no significant difference between the 20 and 30 cm seeding distance. The number of spike per square meter (m2) was significantly higher in the 20 cm seeding distance plot than that of 40 cm (937 vs. 571). The dry matter (DM) content of seed and straw after harvesting was 49.70 and 33.36 % on average, and there was no significant difference between treatments (P>005). However, there was a significant difference in the fresh and DM yield of seeds and straw (P<0.05). DM yield of seeds was significantly higher in 20 cm distance than that of 40 cm, and the yield of straw was the same trend. On the other hand, there was no significant difference in DM yield between 20 cm and 30 cm and also in the feed value of straw after seed harvesting among seeding distance. The average CP, ADF, NDF, and TDN contents were 6.91, 36.76, 61.75 and 59.86%, respectively, and the RFV value was 91. Considering the above results, the production of Italian ryegrass seeds sown in the spring in the highlands of the Gangwon is lower than that of autumn sowing, but it is judged that it needs to be reviewed in case it is unavoidable. In the future, there should be an economic analysis and the development of technology that can increase production.

This experiment was conducted to compare the seed productivity of the Italian ryegrass(Lolium multiflorum Lam.) varieties sown in the spring in Gangwon region. The experiment was randomized block design with three replications. The Experimental field was located in alpine areas of about 600 m above sea level in Gangwon province. The tested Italian Ryegrass varieties were ‘Greenfarm’, ‘Greencall’ and ‘Kowinearly’ developed by National Institute of Animal Science, RDA. Italian Ryegrass varieties were sown on March 26, 2020, and the harvest was on the 60th day of mean heading date, July 2. The heading date of Kowinearly was May 8, but Greenfarm and Greencall was May 4. The plant length was the largest in the Kowinearly variety. However, the Kowinearly suffered severe lodging. There was no significant difference in the length of spike among varieties, and the number of seeds per spike was the lowest in Greenfarm at 118.5 seed/spike. As for the seed weight per spike, the Greenfarm variety was significantly lower at 0.56 g/spike, but the 1,000 seed weight was the heaviest in the Greenfarm at 2.5g.. The number of spike per unit area was the highest in Greenfarm at 906/m2. The dry matter content of seeds was the highest in Greenfarm at 54.3%, and for straw, Kowinearly was the highest at 35.3%. Seed productivity was not significant among varieties, and the average was 1,493 kg/ha. The yield of straw after seed production was also not significant among varieties (P>0.05), and the average was 3,172 kg/ha. From the above results, the production of Italian ryegrass seeds through spring sowing in the Gangwon region is not much than autumn seeding, requiring the input of various technologies to increase productivity in the future, and it is desirable to determine the production cost through economic analysis was judged.

This study was conducted at the National Institute of Animal Science from 2010 to 2017. As a variety that is sufficiently productive in the southern regions to replace imported varieties and sufficiently cold-resistant to be cultivated in the central-northern regions, "IR605" was developed and submitted to the Korea Seed & Variety Service in an application for protection. The novel Italian ryegrass variety "IR605" is a diploid with green leaves, a semi-erect growth habit before wintering, and an erect growth habit in the spring. "IR605" was a medium maturing variety with a heading date of around May 15th. "IR605" had a flag leaf width of 9.9 mm, flag leaf length of 26.7 cm, and plant length on the heading date of 100 cm, which was approximately 5 cm longer than "Kowinearly." The stem thickness and ear length of "IR605" are 0.08 mm thicker and 0.5 cm longer than those of "Kowinearly", respectively. The cold-resistance of "IR605" was weaker than that of "Kowinearly", but strong enough to be cultivated in Pyeongchang, Gangwon province. The dry matter yield of "IR605" (9,308 kg/hectare) was 20% higher than that of "Kowinearly", which was further pronounced in the southern region of Haenam, where there was a 52% increased (p < 0.05). The in vitro dry matter digestibility of "IR605" was 68.4% at which was slightly higher than that of "Kowinearly", The total digestible nutrients was 58.5%, which was slightly lower than "Kowinearly". Overall, the feed quality characteristics of "IR605" were similar to those of "Kowinearly".

This experiment was conducted to breed a very early maturing variety of Italian ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum Lam.) in Grassland and Forage Crops Division, National Institute of Animal Science, RDA, Cheonan 2015-2017. The new variety of Italian ryegrass, ‘Green call 2ho’ is a diploid variety with green in leaf color and has semi-erect growth habit in late autumn and erect growth habit in early spring, ‘Green call 2ho’ was in heading date as a early-maturing variety April 24. Also ‘Green call 2ho’ was narrower by 2 mm in flag leaf width, longer by 2.5 cm in flag leaf length and shorter by 3 cm in plant height than those of the control variety, ‘Florida 80’, respectively. ‘Green call 2ho’ was also thicker by 0.33 mm in stem thickness and strong in winter hardness. Dry matter (DM) yield (11,688 kg/ha) of ‘Green call 2ho’ was 7% higher than that of ‘Florida 80’. Total digestible nutrient (TDN), crude protein (CP) and relative feed value (RFV) of ‘Green call 2ho’ were 61.3 %, 9.8 % and 98.2, respectively which are 2.6, 0.6, and 8.4 % higher, respectively than those of ‘Florida 80’, respectively. Acid detergent fiber (ADF) and neutral detergent fiber (NDF) of ‘Green call 2ho’ were 34.9 and 58.5 % which are 3.3 and 2.7 % lower than those of ‘Florida 80’, respectively.

본 시험은 추위에 강하고 생산성이 우수한 이탈리안 라이그라스 품종을 육성하기 위하여 2009년부터 2017년까지 국립축산과학원 초지사료과에서 수행되었다. 이탈리안 라이그라스 신품종 그린콜은 2배체 작물로 엽색은 녹색이며, 월동전 초형은 반직립형, 봄의 초형은 직립형이다. 그린콜은 4월 25일경에 출수하는 극조생종 품종이고 지엽폭이 8 mm, 지엽길이는 24.9 cm 이며, 출수기의 초장은 96 cm로 플로리다 80호 보다 5 cm 정도 짧다. 줄기 두께는 플로리다80호 보다 0.14 mm 굵고 이삭 길이는 플로리다 80호와 대등하다. 그린콜의 건물수량은 11,592 kg/ha로서 대조품종인 플로리다 80호에 비하여 약간 높았다. 상대적 사료가치는 그린콜이 96.7인데 비해 수입종인 플로리다 80호는 89.8로 다소 높고 가소화양분총량 (TDN)이 60.8 %로서 플로리다 80호에 비해 2.1% 높았고, 산성세제불용섬유 (ADF)와 중성세제불용섬유 (NDF)는 각각 35.5 및 58.9 %로서 대조 품종 보다 약간 낮았다.