Utilization of Diet Components Fed Blended or Separately to Lactating Cows1,2

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Fifteen lactating Holstein cows individually were fed 61% concentrate, 27% corn silage, and 12% wilted grass silage separately or blended between 43 and 183 days postpartum to examine effects of blended diet on nutrient digestibility, energy and nitrogen partitions, and efficiency of diet utilization. Milk yield per unit intake of concentrate (or total diet) was 4% more when diet components were blended than when they were fed separately. Other differences in response of cows were not significant, but there was a trend, associated with the blended diet, for slightly more milk and higher efficiency of use of metabolizable energy for milk. Digestibility of energy, dry matter, and other diet nutrients was similar between treatments.