Abstract: Seven Avena nuda and thirteen Avena sativa cultivars were evaluated in western Jilin Province of China to compare forage yield, grain yield, and the main agronomic and forage quality traits. The data analysis combined the techniques of gray correlation and cluster analysis to identify the agronomic and nutritional quality traits which best predict high yield and forage quality in an oat cultivar. The results showed that forage yield at heading and anthesis stages and the grain yield at maturity of A. sativa were superior to that of A. nuda, however, A. sativa had higher acid and neutral detergent fiber concentrations which decreased its forage quality. Although there was no difference in crude protein (CP) content between A. nuda and A. sativa, the rapid decline in CP after flowering indicated the forage quality would have been significantly reduced during crop maturation. For A. sativa, the forage yield was negatively correlated with grain yield and CP, which indicated there were trade-off relationships between high grain yield and high forage quality. However, this did not apply to A. nuda. According to the integrative analysis of agronomic and forage quality traits at the grain filling stage, the cultivars A. sativa Tianyan No.1 and A. nuda Baiyan 16 were the best performing forage oat cultivars, and could be widely planted for forage in this region.

Key words: Avena sativa, Avena nuda, forage yield, forage quality, crude protein