Publication Date
1989
Description
Wheat for silage in Israel is usually grown as a winter crop in a double-cropping system. In such a system, the wheat is harvested before it reaches maturity and the land is then ready for the summer crop. The periods between the various maturation stages of wheat are relatively short, especially in a warm climate. Ash bell (1984) and Ashbell et al. (1985) found that the greatest changes in nutritive components of the whole wheat plant occurred between the flowering and the milk ripening stages. During that period there is an increase in dry matter (DM) and water soluble carbohydrates (WSC) contents, with no marked decrease in digestibility. At the dough ripening stage DM yields are highest (Oltjen and Boisen, 1978), but the WSC decreases significantly and this might have an effect on the ensiling properties. Because of weather and management limitations there might be a gap between optimal and practical harvesting time for ensiling (Ashbell and Sklan, 1985); this might affect silage quality. The purpose of the present work was to follow changes in the chemical composition of the wheat plants development for a double-cropping system in a warm climate, and to examine the quality of silages prepared from wheat harvested at three maturation stages.
Citation
Ashbell, G and Weinberg, Z G., "Changes in the Chemical Composition of Wheat for Silage during Development in a Warm Climate" (2025). IGC Proceedings (1989-2023). 5.
https://uknowledge.uky.edu/igc/1989/session8/5
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Changes in the Chemical Composition of Wheat for Silage during Development in a Warm Climate
Wheat for silage in Israel is usually grown as a winter crop in a double-cropping system. In such a system, the wheat is harvested before it reaches maturity and the land is then ready for the summer crop. The periods between the various maturation stages of wheat are relatively short, especially in a warm climate. Ash bell (1984) and Ashbell et al. (1985) found that the greatest changes in nutritive components of the whole wheat plant occurred between the flowering and the milk ripening stages. During that period there is an increase in dry matter (DM) and water soluble carbohydrates (WSC) contents, with no marked decrease in digestibility. At the dough ripening stage DM yields are highest (Oltjen and Boisen, 1978), but the WSC decreases significantly and this might have an effect on the ensiling properties. Because of weather and management limitations there might be a gap between optimal and practical harvesting time for ensiling (Ashbell and Sklan, 1985); this might affect silage quality. The purpose of the present work was to follow changes in the chemical composition of the wheat plants development for a double-cropping system in a warm climate, and to examine the quality of silages prepared from wheat harvested at three maturation stages.
