Performance of sheep on unburned and serially burned blanket bog in western Ireland.
Abstract
A heather-dominated blanket bog was burned in small patches annually for 5 yr. Sheep were stocked at 1 ewe/ha from the 2nd yr onward and their performance compared in the 5th yr with that of sheep grazing adjoining unburned ground. Heather regenerating on the burned area had a higher nutrient content than older unburned heather. Ground cover of burned and grazed heather was slower to increase than burned but ungrazed heather. Sheep on the burned area showed 15% greater lamb production and 32% greater liveweight production, due mostly to better lamb survival and growth rates. Growth rates of individual lambs were correlated with birth wt. which averaged 30% higher on the burned area.