Integrated Agronomic Practices to Enhance Forage Productivity and Quality of Blue Panicum (Panicum antidotale Retz.) under Saline and Arid Conditions in the South of Morocco

Soil salinity and drought are the two major challenges agriculture is facing in marginal environments, such as desert areas, which limit the growth and productivity of traditional cultivated crop species. In the Sahara Desert of the southern region of Morocco, livestock is the major agricultural activity, and forage supply is severely affecting livestock production. Blue panicum (Panicum antidotale Retz.) is an alternative salt-tolerant crop recently introduced to Morocco’s Sahara to enhance forage availability for livestock. The aim of this study was to increase the productivity and nutritional quality of blue panicum through the use of integrated agronomic practices, such as planting methods (bed or flat), crop establishment (direct seeding, transplantation, and rhizome propagation), organic and/or mineral amendments, and grass–legumes intercropping. The preliminary results showed that in the highly saline conditions, the combined application of organic amendments, seedling transplanting, and bed planting method gave the highest production (56 t/ha/year) of fresh biomass, which is higher than 50% compared to the control. This study suggests that in the southern region of Morocco and the Sahara Desert, the adoption of the blue panicum with integrated agronomic practices sustains livestock production.