Abstract
Sugarcane silage (SS) is generally susceptible to yeast action, resulting in dry matter losses due to high soluble carbohydrate concentration. We evaluated the effects of adding corn grain and microbial inoculant at ensiling on fermentative profile, losses, chemical composition and degradation of silages. Forty experimental silos (PVC tubing) were assigned at random to a 5 × 2 factorial arrangement with: (1) 5 corn additions at ensiling: CONT - straight sugarcane silage; GC2 - sugarcane with ground corn (processed through a 2 mm sieve) added at ensiling; GC8 - sugarcane with ground corn (processed through an 8 mm sieve) added at ensiling; WC - sugarcane with whole corn grain added at ensiling; and RCS - rehydrated corn ensiled without sugarcane; and (2) 2 microbial inoculant additions at ensiling: 0 and 8 mg of commercial inoculant per kg of feed. Corn grain was added at the rate of 100 g per kg of fresh sugarcane. Adding corn grain to sugarcane at ensiling improved SS fermentation and silage chemical composition. There was no benefit from grinding the grain before adding it to sugarcane. Microbial inoculant had little effect on SS fermentation. Studies comparing corn grain with other energy sources, e.g. molasses or cassava, for addition at ensiling sugarcane seem warranted along with feeding studies with livestock to assess intake and subsequent performance. The overall benefits of adding the energy sources at ensiling versus feeding them directly to animals with untreated sugarcane silage should be determined.
Highlights
In subtropical conditions, sugarcane generally produces higher dry matter (DM) yields per unit area and energy value at maturity than other tropical forages (Daniel et al 2013) and fresh sugarcane is traditionally fed to cattle during periods of low pasture availability (Santos et al 2010)
Forty experimental silos (PVC tubing) were assigned at random to a 5 × 2 factorial arrangement with: (1) 5 corn additions at ensiling: CONT - straight sugarcane silage; GC2 - sugarcane with ground corn added at ensiling; GC8 - sugarcane with ground corn added at ensiling; WC - sugarcane with whole corn grain added at ensiling; and Rehydrated corn grain silage (RCS) - rehydrated corn ensiled without sugarcane; and (2) 2 microbial inoculant additions at ensiling: 0 and 8 mg of commercial inoculant per kg of feed
The present study aimed to evaluate any benefits from the inclusion of corn grain, processed at different particle sizes, and bacterial inoculants at ensiling on fermentation, chemical composition and in situ degradation of DM and neutral detergent fiber (NDF) of Sugarcane silage (SS)
Summary
Sugarcane generally produces higher dry matter (DM) yields per unit area and energy value at maturity than other tropical forages (Daniel et al 2013) and fresh sugarcane is traditionally fed to cattle during periods of low pasture availability (Santos et al 2010). Sugarcane silage (SS) is generally susceptible to the action of yeast fungi owing to high soluble carbohydrate concentration, producing a typical alcoholic fermentation of soluble carbohydrates into ethanol, CO2 and water (Sá Neto et al 2013) and, increased DM losses (Pedroso et al 2008). Soluble carbohydrate concentration in the final product is lower and the level of fibrous components is higher than in the raw material, while ruminal degradation of the ensiled material is lower than that of fresh sugarcane. Incorporating corn grain with fresh sugarcane when making SS could reduce ethanol production and DM losses (Gómez-Vázquez et al 2011), while the use of other additives, e.g. inoculants, should help to inhibit epiphytic yeast populations and mitigate nutrient losses (Ávila et al 2014)
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