Satellite Symposium 2: Silage

Description

Maize is one of the main forages for dairy production and is a suitable material for silage making because of high fermentable carbohydrates, high counts of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) and low buffering capacity (BC) (Nishino et al. 2003; McDonald et al. 1991). Whole crop maize silage is high in energy but low in crude protein (CP). On the other hand, legumes are high in CP but difficult to conserve because of their low water soluble carbohydrates (WSC) and high BC. It might be possible that maize/legume bi-crop silage compensate for their negative points. Sesbania is a legume originated in tropical area and might be suitable for inter-crops with maize. Therefore, we investigated the fermentation characteristics of bi-crop silage from maize and sesbania.

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Fermentation Characteristics of Maize/Sesbania Bi-Crop Silage

Maize is one of the main forages for dairy production and is a suitable material for silage making because of high fermentable carbohydrates, high counts of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) and low buffering capacity (BC) (Nishino et al. 2003; McDonald et al. 1991). Whole crop maize silage is high in energy but low in crude protein (CP). On the other hand, legumes are high in CP but difficult to conserve because of their low water soluble carbohydrates (WSC) and high BC. It might be possible that maize/legume bi-crop silage compensate for their negative points. Sesbania is a legume originated in tropical area and might be suitable for inter-crops with maize. Therefore, we investigated the fermentation characteristics of bi-crop silage from maize and sesbania.