Abstract
Alfalfa silage is one of the main roughages in the production of dairy cow, which can provide nutrition with high quality to improve milk quality and production. Sucrose additions have been widely used to improve the silage quality. In this study, the effects of sucrose on the fermentation quality and bacterial communities of alfalfa silage were investigated here using 0, 0.5, and 1% sucrose ensiling treatments for 15, 30, and 60 days. The ensiling time significantly decreased the crude fiber content and increased the ammonia nitrogen, acetic acid content, and the relative abundance of Enterococcus in the silages. The 1% sucrose-treated silage at 60 days had the lowest neutral detergent fiber acid, acid detergent fiber, and crude fiber content and the highest relative feed value. Moreover, sucrose-treated silage contained less acetic acid, propionic acid, and butyric acid, and had a lower pH than the controls for each duration. Enterobacteriaceae, Klebsiella, and Enterococcus were the dominant genera in all groups, and the relative abundance of Enterococcus and Lactobacillus was higher in the 1% sucrose-treated group than in the control. These results suggested that sucrose supplementation could improve alfalfa silage quality and increase its beneficial bacterial content.
Highlights
Alfalfa is a perennial legume plant with a high nutritional quality and good palatability, and has been widely planted in China (Sengul and Sengul, 2008; Xu et al, 2020)
The neutral detergent fiber (NDF) and Acid detergent fiber (ADF) content was comparable among the three groups at 15 days and significantly decreased (p < 0.05) in the AS2 silage at 30 and 60 days
The lowest NDF and ADF content was recorded in the AS2 silage at 60 days, with values of 399 and 261 g/kg Dry matter (DM), respectively
Summary
Alfalfa is a perennial legume plant with a high nutritional quality and good palatability, and has been widely planted in China (Sengul and Sengul, 2008; Xu et al, 2020). Alfalfa silage is one of the main roughages in the production of dairy cow, which can provide nutrition with high quality to improve milk quality and production. Sucrose additions have been widely used to improve the silage quality (Heinritz et al, 2012; Sun et al, 2020) because sucrose can increase the supply of substrates for the growth of lactic acid bacteria (Heinritz et al, 2012). Lactobacillus plantarum addition is not favored in practical processing due to its difficulty in conservation and high price
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
