Term
| How much of the Earth's land surface is Grassland? |
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Definition
| over 46 million square kilometers and it extends over 30% of world land surface |
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Term
| What are the two groups of Grasslands? |
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Definition
Natural Grasslands
With more than 6,000 grass species and More than 14,000 legume species (forbs,browses & sedges)
Cultivated grasslands/pastures:
Temporary pastures
Permanent pastures |
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Term
| What are the advantages to feeding grasses? |
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Definition
Most grasses are palatable when immature
Ability to grow in harsh environments where herbivores can survive
Provide protective cover against soil erosion
Improves soil structure and conserves moisture
Serves as indicators for range condition
Natural pastures are good habitat for wildlife |
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Term
| What are the limiting factors of using natural pastures? |
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Definition
Pasture growths, Yields and Nutritive value are grossly affected by:
Precipitation
Photoperiodism
Temperature and humidity
Soil fertility
Genetic potential
Adoption to environment
Resistance to grazing pressure |
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Term
| Variations in nutritive values are based on? |
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Definition
AGE: nutrients bgin to degrade
SEASON: Wet grass contains more protein and usually wet pastures will provide better yeild. |
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Term
| What are the 2 types Cultived pastures? |
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Definition
Temporary pastures – They form part of rotation of crops
Permanent Pastures - Remains as grass indefinitely
either of these can also be subtyped as: Mixed pastures (grass + legumes)
Pure stand pasture (grass only or legumes only) |
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Term
| What are the steps involved in establishing a pasture? |
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Definition
Determine the soil fertility (soil testing)
Selection of species adopted to specific area
Know the seeding rate and sowing method
Seedbed preparation
Develop weed control program
Develop sound management plan to sustain production |
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Term
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Definition
Temperate grasses matures at a slower rate and their quality deteriorates less rapidly than that of Tropical grasses.
Lush grasses is highly palatable but can cause scouring to animals
Grasses are rich in Ca, mg, K but deficient in Phosphorus. |
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Term
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Definition
There are lesser cultivated legumes than grasses in terms of species
Legumes are higher in protein than grasses
Legumes are rich in Ca, mg, and Sulphur and lower than grass in manganese and zinc |
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Term
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Definition
Legumes have ability to grow in a symbiotic relationship with Nitrogen- fixing bacteria.
A mixed pasture of Grass + Legume is economical since grass will use Nitrogen provided by legume nodules |
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Term
| You can plant clovers in your pasture to? What do you have to watch out for in your animals? |
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Definition
supplement mineral contents- (Calcium, Phosphorus, magnesium, Copper and cobalt)
Reduce Nutritive value falling with age.
Rate of particle size reduction in the rumen is more rapid than that of grass.
Sheep and cattle consume 20% more DM than from grass of same
Metabolizable Energy content
Concentration of polysaccharides in clover is high (50g/kg Dry Matter.)
watch for BLOAT! |
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Term
| What are the common clovers used in mixed pastures and where are the used? |
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Definition
In cooler and wetter regions:
Red clover (Trifolium pratense)
White clover (Trifolium repens)
In drier regions:
Subterranean clover (Trifolium subterraneum) |
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Term
| What are included in Tropical and sub-tropical Shrubs and Tree legumes? |
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Definition
Leucaena (Leucaena leucocephala)
Cliricidia (Gliricidia sepium)
Trichanthera gigantea
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Term
| What are the characteristics of Leucaena (Leucaena leucocephala)? |
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Definition
Leaves,pods and flowers good source of protein and minerals
Crude Protein : 250 – 340 g/kg Dry Matter
Good source of B-carotene
should treat with heat to stop Mimosine posioning |
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Term
| What are the characteristics of Cliricidia (Gliricidia sepium)? |
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Definition
Thornless leguminous tree 10 – 12 meters high
Used as green forage supplement to low quality tropical forage
Crude Protein content: 18 – 30 %
Digestibility: 60 – 65%
Annual leaf Dry matter yield: 2 - 20 tons/ha/year |
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Term
| What are the characteristics of Trichanthera gigantea? |
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Definition
A shrub/small tree 5 -15 meters tall
Crude Protein content: 22%
Yield: 12 tons/ha/year DM
Can replace about 20 – 30 % of pig’s growing – finishing commercial diet |
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Term
| Nutritional disorders associated with legumes? |
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Definition
Bloat
Redgut
Severe infertility and post-natal deaths in lambs
Leucaena Toxic Mimosine Poisoning
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Term
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Definition
| Legumes (specifically clovers and lucerne) contain soluble leaf proteins that cause bloat in cattle and sheep. Bloat = retention of fermentation gases in a stable foam that stops eructation. Cannot belch! |
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Term
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Definition
| Sheep grazing on pure Lucerne pasture experience sudden death syndrome. It is caused by rapid passage of highly digestible feed through the rumen resulting into increased fermentation in the large intestine. The remedy involves supplementing the animal with hay. |
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Term
| What is Severe infertility and post-natal deaths in lambs? |
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Definition
This is caused by consumption of plants containing phyto-estrogens. The compounds have oestrogenic activity.
Trifolium spp. Contain isoflavones and Medicago spp. contains coumestans
The infertility is caused by a cystic glandular hyperplasia of the uterus that leads to poor penetration of sperm into uterus. |
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Term
| What is Leucaena Toxic Mimosine Posioning? |
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Definition
Leucaena contains a toxic amino acid called MIMOSINE.
In the rumen, mimosine is converted into dihydroxypyridine (DHP) a compound that has goitrogenic properties.
Goitrogen inhibits the iodination of tyrosine and hence interferes with synthesis of thyroxine
Addition of more iodine to the diet will not solve the problem. |
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Term
| What are the symptoms shown by the animal that has consumed large quantities of Leucaena? |
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Definition
Weightloss
Dysfunction of thyroid
Alopecia (loss of hair or wool) |
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Term
| What is the main advantage of planting legumes in the grass pastures? |
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Definition
| Legumes have symbiotic bactiera in nodes that afix nitrogen into the soil which feeds the grasses. |
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Term
| Temperate grass species: Lolium perenne |
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Definition
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Term
| Temperate grass species: Lolium multiforum |
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Definition
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Term
| Temperate grass species: Dactylis glomerata |
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Definition
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Term
| Temperate grass species: Poa specie |
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Definition
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Term
| Temperate grass species: Cynodon dactylon |
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Definition
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Term
| Temperate grass species: Festuca arundinacea |
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Definition
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Term
| Tropical and sub-tropical grass species: Cenchrus ciliarus
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Definition
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Term
| Tropical and sub-tropical grass species: Chloris gayana
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Definition
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Term
| Tropical and sub-tropical grass species: Pennisetum clandestinum
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Definition
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Term
| Tropical and sub-tropical grass species: Panicum maximum |
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Definition
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Term
| Tropical and sub-tropical grass species: Pennisetum purpureum
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Definition
| Elephant grass (Napier grass) |
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Term
| Temperate grass species: Perennial ryegrass |
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Definition
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Term
| Temperate grass species: Italian ryegrass |
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Definition
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Term
| Temperate grass species: Orchard grass |
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Definition
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Term
| Temperate grass species: Blue grass |
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Definition
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Term
| Temperate grass species: Bermuda grass |
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Definition
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Term
| Temperate grass species: Fescue |
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Definition
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Term
| Tropical and sub-tropical grass species: Buffelgrass |
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Definition
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Term
| Tropical and sub-tropical grass species: Rhodegrass |
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Definition
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Term
| Tropical and sub-tropical grass species: Kikuyu grass |
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Definition
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Term
| Tropical and sub-tropical grass species: Guinea grass |
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Definition
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Term
| Tropical and sub-tropical grass species: Elephant grass (Napier grass) |
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Definition
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Term
| Why would you wan to conserve forage? |
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Definition
Forage production fluctuates with season
Demand by animal is constant throughout the year
Nutritive value of plant diminishes with its maturity
Excess forage needs to be cut at right stage and conserved. |
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Term
| What is the method of sonserving forage called? |
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Definition
Haymaking: Is a method of conserving green forage(grass or legume) by reducing its water content from 85% to 15% through drying so it can be stored and easy to transport.
The green forage must be harvested at the optimum stage of maturity.
In the tropics, standing dried natural grass is harvested as hay (it has very low nutritive value) |
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Term
| What are the 3 levels of technologies used to conserve forage? |
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Definition
Manual
Simple mechanization using draught animal
Fully mechanized system |
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Term
| What are the steps of Haymaking? |
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Definition
Harvest the crop at the right stage of maturity(flowering stage)
Sun- cure the material
Collect the dry material and
1)Bale
2)Stack in the field
3)Store in the hayshed |
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Term
| Forage must be at what moisture content before you can store it? |
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Definition
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Term
| What are the problems associated with sun drying? |
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Definition
In cold countries the drying is slow
In tropical area the drying is too rapid and that leads to:
Bleaching (loss of carotene and vitamins.)
Excessive loss of feafy parts of plant. |
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Term
| What are the factors that influence Hay Quality? |
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Definition
Stage of maturity at harvest time
Leafness (depends on handling method at cutting)
Quantity of seed heads at harvest (the more the better)
Courseness of stems (the less the better)
Absence of foreign materials
Richness in green color (carotene)
Moisture content at storing. |
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Term
| Does drying have an effect on the composition and digestibility of grass? |
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Definition
| No, There is no significant change in composition or digestibility between green plant and hay from the same grass specie and field (see table below). |
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Term
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Definition
Is the material produced through series of processes by which chopped forage of high moisture content is fermented under anaerobic condition.
Silage making is less weather dependent than haymaking.
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Term
| What are the steps involved in making silage |
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Definition
1)The high moisture content forage is harvested at flowering stage. 2)Wilted(drying) (to 30% dry matter)3)Silage is copped
4)it is stored under anaerobic condition in order for fermentation to take place.
The storage could take place in a pit, tower, bunker-type, trench or plastic silo. |
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Term
| What do you have to wilt silage to in terms of DM? |
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Definition
| Must be wilted to 30% dry matter |
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Term
| What is the Chemical reaction that takes place in a silo? |
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Definition
Sugar + O2 =CO2 + H2O + Heat
The cut Plant material continues to respire by using the oxygen trapped in the forage mass. |
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Term
| What does the Elimination of Oxygen in the pit do? |
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Definition
Enables the Lactic acid bacteria to convert plant sugars (water soluble carbohydrates) into mixture of acids and other compounds
Ideally, fermentation produces Lactic acid in sufficient quantity to quickly reduce the pH in the pit
At a stable low pH , microbial activities of the undesirable bacteria are inhibited and hence long term preservation of silage is achieved
The pH achieved will depend on the amount of water soluble CHO and Dry Matter content of the ensiled material. Final pH for good silage is 4.0 |
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Term
| What are some other acids/compounds found in silage? |
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Definition
Acetic acid by enterobacteria
Propionic acid
Butyric acid
Ethanol derived from the activities of lactic acid bacteria and yeasts. |
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Term
| What is the GE of Ethanol? |
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Definition
| Ethanol has Gross Energy of 29.8 MJ/kg, hence GE per unit of such silages are higher than those of parent material of equal weight. |
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Term
| What causes nutritive losses in silage? |
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Definition
Field losses during wilting:
Water soluble CHO & Proteins hydrolyzed to amino acids.
Oxidation:
Continuous let-in of oxygen in the ensiled material causes tremendous loss of dry matter
Fermentation:
Acetic acid bacteria fermentations yield gases such as CO2 Hydrogen and ammonia which leads to excessive loss of nutrients.
Effluents:
Soluble nutrients are lost through effluent: The lower the DM of ensiled forage the higher the effluent. The ideal DM % for wilted material should be 30% |
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Term
| What are the silage additive that will sitmulate fermentaion? |
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Definition
Fermentation Stimulants: encourages growth of lactic acid bacteria
Sugar rich materials (molasses)
Inoculants (freeze –dried cultures of homofermentative lactic acid bacteria)
Enzymes (cellulases, hemicellulases) – degrade plant cell wall to release sugars to be used by lactic acid bacteria. |
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Term
| What are the silage additive that will inhibit fermentaion? |
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Definition
Fermentation inhibitors: inhibit microbial growth
Acids - (HCL, H2SO4, Formic acid)
Formalin (40% solution of formaldehyde in water) |
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Term
| What are the silage additive that will add Calcium? |
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Definition
| Limestone to increase calcium level and act as buffer. |
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Term
| What are the silage additive that will add crude protein? |
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Definition
| Urea or any other NPN source such as anhydrous ammonia to increase crude protein content of silage. |
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Term
| What are the Nutritive properties of silage? |
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Definition
Nitrogenous components in the silage are mainly in a soluble non-protein wheras most of total Nitrogen in fresh forage is present as Protein
Nitrogenous components in the silage are mainly in a soluble non-protein wheras most of total Nitrogen in fresh forage is present as Protein.
Addition of glucose or sucrose to silage will increase microbial protein synthesis in the rumen |
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Term
| When silage is fed ad libitum to ruminants, the animal feed intake is? |
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Definition
reduced by 30% as compared to when fed fresh or as hay. The feed is bulky
Ensiling has much greater depressing effect on intake by sheep than by cattle.
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Term
| What are the Factors that affect Silage Quality? |
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Definition
Physical and chemical properties of ensiled forage
Wilting condition
Harvesting process
Efficiency of fermentation process
Maintenance of anaerobic condition inside the pit/silo
Management during feeding |
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Term
| What properties are used to Evaluate silage quality? |
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Definition
Smell (no objectionable odors)
Molds (Free from molds)
Color (Green in color)
Texture (firm with no slimness)
Ph (how close to 4)
Butyric acid (less than 0.1%)
Volatile N as a % of total N (less than 11%) |
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