Seasonal and Diurnal Variation in Water-Soluble Carbohydrate Concentrations of Repeatedly Defoliated Red and White Clovers in Central Kentucky

Nonstructural carbohydrates of pasture plants, comprising water-soluble carbohydrates (WSCs) and starch, may contribute to excessive consumption of rapidly fermentable carbohydrates by grazing horses. Seasonal and diurnal variation in WSCs were studied in red (Trifolium pratense L.) and white clovers (Trifolium repens L.) subjected to a typical management regime of rotationally grazed horse pastures. Two red and two white clover cultivars from monoculture plots were harvested after 4 weeks of growth from April to October of 2015, in the morning and afternoon of each harvest date. Water-soluble carbohydrates were quantified for each harvest, and starch was quantified for two harvests. Mean monthly WSC concentrations ranged from 80 to 99 mg/g (freeze-dried weight basis), whereas mean starch concentrations were 31 and 40 mg/g. In September, white clover had 14% more WSCs than red clover (P < .0001). Water-soluble carbohydrate concentrations were 10% higher in the afternoon than in the morning (P < .0001). Starch concentrations were 290% higher in the afternoon than in the morning (P < .0001), and nonstructural carbohydrate concentrations in the afternoon averaged 150 mg/g. Further studies are needed to determine whether the mixed grass-legume pastures of central Kentucky accumulate enough nonstructural carbohydrates to present risk factors for equine metabolic or digestive dysfunction.