Original scientific paper
The Effect of Semi-Natural Grassland Cutting Height on the Nutritive Value of Fermented Forage
Marina Vranić
; University of Zagreb, Faculty of Agriculture, Department of Field Crops, Forage and Grassland, Svetošimunska cesta 25, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
Krešimir Bošnjak
; University of Zagreb, Faculty of Agriculture, Department of Field Crops, Forage and Grassland, Svetošimunska cesta 25, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
Goran Kiš
; University of Zagreb, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Department of Animal Nutrition and Dietetics, Heinzelova 55, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
Tomislav Mašek
; University of Zagreb, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Department of Animal Nutrition and Dietetics, Heinzelova 55, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
Diana Brozić
; University of Zagreb, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Department of Animal Nutrition and Dietetics, Heinzelova 55, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
Anja Novak
; University of Zagreb, Faculty of Agriculture, Svetošimunska cesta 25, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
Krešimir Krapinec
; University of Zagreb, Faculty of Forestry and Wood Technology, Department of Forestry, Institute of Forest Protection and Wildlife Management, Svetošimunska cesta 25, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
Abstract
The objective of this study was to determine the nutritive value of fermented forage from semi-natural grassland harvested at 3 cutting heights: (i) cutting height 2 cm, (ii) cutting height 6 cm and (iii) cutting height 13 cm.
Fresh forage was wilted separately according to investigated treatments for 24 hours before ensiling into experimental silos. After 35-day fermentation, the ensiled forage dry matter (DM) was determined while the chemical composition, fermentation quality and biological quality parameters were predicted by NIR spectroscopy. The following parameters were predicted: corrected DM (CDM), crude protein (CP), organic matter (OM), neutral detergent fiber (NDF), acidic detergent fiber (ADF), metabolic energy (ME), fermentable ME in ME (FME/ME), NH3-N, sugar residues, the digestibility of the OM in the DM (D-value) and CP degradability.
Ensiled forage cut at 13 cm above the ground level had significantly lower OM content (P < 0.05) but higher ME, and D-value (P < 0.05) in comparison with forage cut at 2 or 6 cm above the ground level.
The CP content was significantly affected by the cutting height (P < 0.001). The CP content was the highest at forage cut at the highest residual stubble height and was getting lower as the cutting height decreased (P < 0.001).
Cutting at 2 cm above the ground level resulted in forage lower in sugar residues (P < 0.05) in comparison with cutting at higher residual stubble height (6 cm and 13 cm).
It was concluded that the higher cutting height promotes higher nutritive value of fermented forage from semi-natural grassland compared to the quality of fermented forage defoliated at the lower cutting height.
Keywords
cutting height; semi-natural grassland; fermented forage; nutritive value
Hrčak ID:
284044
URI
Publication date:
30.9.2022.
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