Production, Nutritional Quality and In-Vitro Digestibility of the Whole Corn Plant as Forage Feed for Ruminant in Two Seasons

Abstract

Corn crop biomass is potential to be used as ruminant’s feed. This research aimed to study production, nutritional quality, and in-vitro digestibility of whole of corn plants planted in a different season as forage for ruminant feed. Planting maize seeds was carried out with a spacing of 25x50 cm with a planting depth of 3 to 5 cm. Corn crop biomass is harvested at 50 to 60 days after planting at 10 cm above the ground. This research was conducted in a randomized block design, consisting of two groups of season planting (dry and rainy season). Each group consisted of 5 replications with an experimental plot area of 400 m2 for each replication. The variables observed were production, nutrient content, and in-vitro digestibility. Productions data were analyzed using a t-test. There was no significant difference between fresh and dry matter productions planted in the dry and rainy seasons. Fresh productions were 19.35 and 17.36 t/ha while DM productions were 6.35 and 6.33 t/ha for the rainy and dry season, respectively. The nutritional quality and in-vitro digestibility were almost similar both in the rainy and dry seasons. Crude protein contents were 9.83 and 9.04% for the rainy and dry seasons, respectively. The ADF content was 33.41 and 36.60% for the rainy and dry season, respectively, while NDF content was 56.89 and 58.63%, respectively. The IVDMD and IVOMD were 49.35 to 51.78% and 48.42 to 50.96%, respectively. It can be concluded that the whole corn plant can be used as a forage source with good quality as ruminant feed.