Visual Estimates and Clipping Plot Size for Evaluating the Forage Potential of Small Grain Varieties1

AbstractVisual estimates of the forage value of oat and barley strains were compared with forage yields in 1960 and 1961. Correlations between January estimates and forage yields were highly significant statistically but in the range of 0.40 to 0.50**. Combining January estimates with March estimates, and correlating these with total seasonal yields of forage, gave correlations of 0.55 to 0.66**. Values of this magnitude give considerable confidence in visual estimates for selecting desirable forage producing lines in a breeding program. Correlations between independent estimates of two individuals, were from 0.56 to 0.88**. Correlations of forage yields with 5‐rain yields of the same plots were near zero, suggesting that the evaluation of new strains, based largely on grain yields, fails to recover the best forage types.Forage samples from 0.1858, 0.3716, and 0.7432 m2 were compared in four seasons, 1959‐62. With a few exceptions, correlations of yields of different plot sizes were good. The coefficients of variability for the 0.1858 m2 plots were usually higher than those of the larger plots. With full stands and proper border protection, it appears that small areas can be utilized satisfactorily for determining forage yields of small grain varieties.