Acknowledgements

Without my advisors, collaborators and funding sources I would not have made it this far. Thank you all and I am looking forward to more research opportunities with you! Additionally, I would like to thank my family and friends, who always keep me grounded.

My collaborators and advisors to date

Ankur R. Desai (University of Wisconsin), Valentin Picasso Risso (University of Wisconsin), Alison Duff (U.S. Dairy Forage Research Center), Kevin Panke-Buisse (U.S. Dairy Forage Research Center), Heathcliffe Riday (U.S. Dairy Forage Research Center), Ken Kalschur (U.S. Dairy Forage Research Center), Jorge Delgado (USDA-ARS), Doug Aubrey (University of Georgia), Joannès Guillemot (CIRAD, UMR Eco & Sols, Montpellier), Gregory Starr (University of Alabama), Christinia L. Staudhammer (University of Alabama), Julia A. Cherry (University of Alabama), Lindsay R. Boring (Warnell School University of Georgia, Joseph W. Jones Center, retired), Paul C. Stoy (Montana State University), Mathew Williams (University of Edinburgh), Thomas L. O’Halloran (Clemson University), Robert Anex (University of Wisconsin), Tim Crews (The Land Institute), John Grabber (U.S. Dairy Forage Research Center)

My funding sources to date

Technische Universität Dresden

Universität Potsdam

The University of Alabama - Tuscaloosa

The Jones Center at Ichauway, Georgia

Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education

Dairy Innovation Hub - The University of Wisconsin - Madison

Patagonia Provisions

US Alfalfa Farmer Research Initiative

My friends and family

my mum Leane, my dear sisters Julia and Elisabeth, my dad Hans-Jürgen and stepdad Jürgen, and my grandma Margot. Thank you. My friends Elena, Thomas, Paula, Rebecca, Rachel, Sara, Diego, Jenny, Angie, Abe, Bailey, Juliet, Malachi, Kendle, Alison, Kris, Sergio, David, Cat, Julie, Lauren, Walter, Katie, Nigel, Kim, Cathy, Ann Tyler, Lindsey, Neil, Pruthul, and many many more. Thank you for being my family while being far away from my own. Love you.