Variation in Nutrient Contents in Foliage of Terminalia arjuna Bedd. - Potential Fodder Species of Low Hills of Himachal Pradesh

The macronutrients (N, P, K, Ca and Na) concentration was studied in the leaves of Terminalia arjuna, the potential fodder species of low hills of Himachal Pradesh. The leaf samples were selected from leaf emergence (May month) to leaf senescence (April month). N, P and K contents decreased in the foliage of the species with the increase in the leaf age and leaf size whereas Ca concentration increased in the leaves throughout the growing season till the leaf fall. Na contents did not reveal any particular trend. The seasonal average of N, P, K, Ca and Na was 1.45, 0.194, 1.55, 4.39 and 0.19 per cent, respectively. Further, based on the seasonal average and seasonal nutrient trend, the optimum lopping time to harvest nutrient rich fodder for cattle is recommended as November and December months