Effect of variety and harvest date on nutritive value and ruminal degradability of ensiled maize ears. Issue 5 (3rd September 2017)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Terler, Georg; Gruber, Leonhard; Knaus, Wilhelm Friedrich
• Is Part Of: Archives of animal nutrition. Volume 71:Issue 5(2017)
• Page Start: 333
• Page End: 346
• Publication Date: 2017-09-03
• Subjects: Harvest date -- maize ears -- nutrient content -- rumen degradation -- varieties; Animal nutrition -- Periodicals; Animal Nutrition -- Periodicals; Animal Feed -- Periodicals; 636.085205
• DOI: 10.1080/1745039X.2017.1358537
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1745-039X

Abstract

ABSTRACT: The nutritive value of whole crop forage maize is influenced by the proportion of ears and stover in the whole crop and by the nutrient composition and digestibility characteristics of the plant parts. An experiment investigating the impact of variety, harvest date and year on the nutritive value of ensiled maize ears was carried out in three consecutive years (2007, 2008 and 2010). Nine different maize varieties were harvested at three different maturity stages (50, 55 and 60% dry matter (DM) content in the ears). After harvest, ears and stover were ensiled separately and afterwards nutrient composition and ruminal nutrient degradability (organic matter (OM), crude protein (CP) and non-fibre carbohydrates (NFC)) were analysed. Variety had a significant influence on content of CP and effective ruminal degradability (ED) of OM at low passage rates, whereas ED of CP and NFC was not affected by variety. In contrast, harvest date and year significantly influenced nutrient composition and ruminal degradability of ensiled maize ears. The content of NFC increased and the content of fibre components as well as ED of OM, CP and NFC declined with processing maturity of the maize plants. At a passage rate of 5% h −1, ED of OM declined from 75.9% to 68.4%, ED of CP from 82.5% to 73.8% and ED of NFC from 88.0% to 82.3% between the early and late harvest date. The results of this study indicate that the nutrient composition and ruminal degradability of ensiled maize ears are affected mainly by maturity stage at harvest and by year, whereas variety has only little influence.