Crude Protein Yield Research Articles

Response of Switchgrass Grown for Forage and Bioethanol to Nitrogen, Phosphorus, and Potassium on Semiarid Marginal Land

A two-year nutrient omission trial was conducted on semiarid wasteland to determine the effects of nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and potassium (K) on the chemical composition and theoretical ethanol yield (TEY) of switchgrass (Panicum virgatum L.). The fertilizer treatments were the following: NPK, PK, NK, NP, and no nutrient inputs (CK). Results indicated that the crude protein (CP) content and protein yield of switchgrass aboveground biomass decreased significantly in the PK treatment (N omission) and the CK, compared with the NPK treatment. The omission of N, P, or K did not significantly affect the other feed and energy quality indicators. When averaged across the two years, the neutral- and acid-detergent fiber contents were lower in the NPK and NP treatments, but the CP, dry matter digestibility, dry matter intake, total digestible nutrients, net energy for lactation, and relative feed value were higher, indicating that the suitable application with combination of N and P was helpful to improve the forage quality of switchgrass. In PK and CK treatments, the contents of soluble sugar, cellulose, and hemicellulose were higher but that of ash was lower than that in other three treatments, indicating that no N application meant better quality of switchgrass aboveground biomass for bioethanol production. The TEY at NPK was 2532 L ha−1 in 2015 and 2797 L ha−1 in 2016; in particular, the TEY decreased significantly by 15.1% in PK, 14.7% in NK, 10.5% in NP, and 29.9% in CK in 2016. To conclude, N was the most limiting factor in switchgrass productivity and the combined N, P, and K nutrient supply management strategy is recommended based on the consideration of quality and quantity of switchgrass as forage and bioenergy feedstock on semiarid marginal land.

Ultrasound-assisted extraction and in vitro simulated digestion of Porphyra haitanensis proteins exhibiting antioxidative and α-glucosidase inhibitory activity

Peptides from natural materials have been reported owning potential for regulating oxidative stress and hyperglycemia for human body. In this study, peptides from a favorite food, Porphyra haitanensis, were prepared by consecutive procedures including ultrasound-assisted extraction, in vitro simulated gastrointestinal digestion and fraction. Subsequently, their relevant bioactivities were investigated by several in vitro methods, such as 1,1-diphenyl-2-pycrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging, ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP), and α-glucosidase enzyme inhibition assays. By single factor design experiment, the highest yield of crude protein was 3.42% extracted by alkaline solution for 20 min sonication at 35 °C. After digestion, peptides were mainly distributed in F2–F11 fractions by sephadex G-25, and the peak value was found in F5. The significant activities in three assays were displayed in F3–F7. As calculated by the polynomial curve fitting, a significantly positive correlation was found between the peptide contents and the DPPH radical scavenging rate, the FRAP value, and the α-glucosidase enzyme inhibitory rate (R2 = 0.8490, R2 = 0.7579, R2 = 0.9701, respectively). The results showed that these peptides possessed promising antioxidant activity and inhibitory activity on α-glucosidase. Therefore, peptides derived from P. haitanensis have potential anti-diabetic applications in pharmaceutical and functional food industries.

THE EFFECT OF DIFFERENT SOWING TIME AND HARVESTING STAGES ON THE HERBAGE YIELD AND QUALITY OF QUINOA (Chenopodium quinoa Willd.)

Knowing the proper sowing and harvesting periods in plants cultivated as roughage resource is very important for achieving high yield and quality performance. However, studies on sowing and harvesting times in quinoa grown for hay production are almost non-existent. In this study, the effects of different sowing (middle of March, end of March, beginning of April and middle of April) and harvesting (the end of vegetative stage, beginning of the flowering and the full flowering) periods on herbage yield and quality performance of quinoa’s Mint Vanilla variety were investigated. Research was conducted under irrigated conditions of Igdir during 2017-2018. The experimental design was split plot design with three replications. According to statistical analysis, higher plant height, dry matter and crude protein yields were obtained from plants sown at the end of March and harvested at full flowering. The highest crude protein ratio, dry matter digestible and relative feed value with the lowest neutral detergent fibre and acid detergent fibre ratios were observed in plants sown in the late period and harvested at the early period. As a result, crude protein and digestibility values were generally increased while dry matter and crude protein yields were decreased with late sowing and harvesting.

Yemlik Kolza (Brassica napus L. ssp. oleifera Metzg)’da Bazı Tarımsal Özelliklerin Azotlu Gübrelemeye Göre Değişimi

Bu araştırma; farklı azotlu gübre dozlarının, yemlik kolza (Brassica napus L. ssp. oleifera Metzg)’da verim ve besin değeri üzerindeki etkilerini belirlemek amacıyla; Türkiye’nin Güneydoğu Anadolu Bölgesi’nde yer alan Siirt ili ekolojik koşullarında, 2019-2020 vejetasyon döneminde yürütülmüştür. Araştırmada, bitki materyali olarak yemlik kolzanın Lenox çeşidi kullanılmıştır. Çalışmada tarla denemeleri tesadüf blokları deneme desenine göre üç tekrarlamalı olarak kurulmuş olup; azot (N)’un 5 farklı dozu (N0= 0 kg N/da, N5= 5 kg N/da, N10= 10 kg N/da, N15= 15 kg N/da ve N20= 20 kg N/da) araştırmanın konusunu teşkil etmiştir. Azotlu gübre kaynağı olarak üre (% 46 N) kullanılmıştır. Araştırmada; bitki boyu, yan dal sayısı, sap kalınlığı, yeşil ot verimi, kuru ot verimi, ham protein (HP) oranı, HP verimi, asit deterjanda çözünmeyen lif (ADF) oranı, nötral deterjanda çözünmeyen lif (NDF) oranı ile bitkide toplam fosfor (P), potasyum (K), kalsiyum (Ca) ve magnezyum (Mg) oranları incelenmiştir. Araştırma sonuçlarına göre, toprağa artan miktarlarda uygulanan azotlu gübrelemeye bağlı olarak bitki boyu, yan dal sayısı, yeşil ot verimi, kuru ot verimi, HP oranı, HP verimi, P ve Ca oranı anlamlı derecede artarken, kuru otun içerdiği ADF ve NDF oranları azalmıştır. Çalışmada, azotlu gübre dozlarına göre yemlik kolzanın; bitki boyu 144.3-152.5 cm, yan dal sayısı 5.9-9.1 adet, sap kalınlığı 8.45-9.06 mm, yeşil ot verimi 2536.1-3409.7 kg/da, kuru ot verimi 459.1-643.4 kg/da, HP oranı % 8.68-11.21, HP verimi 39.79-65.41 kg/da, ADF oranı % 47.49-52.33, NDF oranı % 54.59-64.00, P oranı % 0.23-0.27, K oranı % 2.19-2.49, Ca oranı % 1.39-1.55 ve Mg oranı % 0.16-0.18 arasında değişim göstermiştir.

Optimizing the nutritional quality and phosphorus use efficiency of alfalfa under drip irrigation with nitrogen and phosphorus fertilization

AbstractAppropriate fertilization is an important management practice for optimizing the nutritional quality and increasing the phosphorus use efficiency (PUE) of field‐grown alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.). A 2‐yr field experiment in 2017 and 2018 in Xinjiang, China, involving fertilization with different amounts of N (0, 105, and 210 kg ha−1, referred to as N0, N1, and N2, respectively) and P (0, 50, 100, and 150 kg ha−1, referred to as P0, P1, P2, and P3, respectively) was established and resulted in the production of high‐quality alfalfa under drip irrigation. The crude protein (CP) content in the N1 treatment was greater than that in the N2 treatment under the P0, P2, and P3 treatments. Compared with that in the N1P0 and N2P3 treatments, the relative feed value (RFV) in the N1P2 treatment increased by 9−21% and 8−18%, respectively. The annual total CP yield in the N1P2 treatment was the greatest. Compared with that in the N1P3 treatment, the total PUE in the N1P2 treatment increased by 76.69−99.69%. At each clipping, the CP yield and PUE of alfalfa were significantly different between the N and P treatments. Therefore, we conclude that when N was applied at 105 kg ha−1 and P was applied at 100 kg ha−1, alfalfa presented the greatest nutritional quality and PUE under drip irrigation.

Influence of different extraction conditions on the detection of glycinin and β-conglycinin in model processed foods by ELISA

ABSTRACT The presence of undeclared soy proteins in food can cause severe reactions in soy allergic individuals. The extraction of target proteins from processed foods is a crucial step in allergen detection by immunoassays, as only successfully extracted target proteins can be detected by the specific antibodies. The effectiveness was studied of different conditions (type of buffer, temperature and time of incubation) on the extraction of total protein, and concentration of glycinin and β-conglycinin from different food matrices. The yields were determined using a soy protein isolate and three processed foods (sausage, bread and pâté) incurred with soy proteins. The yields were affected by the processing of analysed products and the composition and pH of the extraction buffers. Neutral and alkaline buffers (pH from 7.4 to 10.6) exhibited good protein extraction capacity and detectability of the specific target proteins. Denaturing additives and highly alkaline buffer (pH 12) extracted more crude protein but they were incompatible with the ELISA assay. Overall, the best results were obtained using phosphate (pH 7.4) and Tris/HCl (pH 8.5) buffers in the presence of 0.5 M NaCl. Crude protein yield of food extracts did not correlate with that of glycinin and β-conglycinin, whereas a good relationship was found between the yields of the two proteins.

Second Crop of Corn Cultivation and Soybean Agricultural Evaluation of Characters and Their Relationships

This research was carried out in the summer season of 1990-1991 vegetation in order to determine the most suitable sowing rates of corn and soybean to be grown in Cukurova ecological conditions. In the trial; LG 55 medium late hybrid corn and SA 88 soybean were used as materials. Sowing ratios subject to the experiment are 1 Corn (10,15,20 cm) + 1 Soybean (2.5 and 5.0 cm) and 2 Corn (10,15,20 cm) + 2 Soybean together with pure corn (70cmx20cm) and soybean parcels (35cmx5.0cm). (2.5 and 5.0 cm) mixture threads were included. Accordingly, each block consists of 14 plots and four repetitive random blocks were run according to the trial pattern. In the co-cultivated corn, there is a significant and positive relationship between plant height, first cob height and crude protein yield, and a negative significant relationship between peak tassel emergence and the number of days of ripening. In the co-cultivated soybean significant and positive relationship between the number of branches in the soybean and the number of beans, important and positive relationship between grain yield and crude protein yield and there was a significant and negative relationship between 50% of the number of days of flowering of the same character. Findings obtained showed that in co-cultivation system studies, plant height in corn, the height of the first cob, number of branches in soybean, number of broad beans, and number of seeds in broad beans have vegetative features that should be emphasized. Keywords: Corn, soybean, co-cultivation, grain yield, correlation coefficients DOI: 10.7176/JSTR/6-04-09

Assessment and Evaluation of the Major Ruminant Feed Resources in Bedele Woreda, Oromia, Ethiopia

The study was conducted to assess the available feed resource in Bedele district and evaluate the nutritional quality of the major ruminant feeds. Semi-structured and pre-tested questionnaire was used in data collection on the available feed resource. . Representative samples of feed resources commonly used in ruminant animal feeding in the study area during the months of December- February were collected monthly and subjected to laboratory chemical analysis. All the data collected were analysed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) (version 20).The results obtained indicated that natural pasture and crop residue were the major basal diets in the study area, during the study period. The highest crude protein of 13.44% was recorded from brewery by product and the lowest (1.17%) from maize stover. The highest fibre contents of 78.2 and 80.03% were recorded from teff straw and maize stover respectively. The total livestock population and annual feed dry matter yield of the study area was estimated to be about 715.01 TUL and 1198.41 tons respectively. The annual total crude protein yield of the study area was estimated at 0.55 tons. At an estimated annual dry matter and crude protein requirement of 1630.23 and 17.87 tons, there is negative dry matter (481.81 tons) and Crude protein (17.32 tons) balance in the study area. The annual metabolisable energy yield of the study area was estimated to be about 0.53% of the annual requirement indicating that strategic supplementation with protein and energy concentrate during the study area is appealing. Keywords : Ruminant, Feed Resources, Nutritional Quality, Bedele Wereda. DOI: 10.7176/JBAH/10-7-04 Publication date: April 30 th 2020

Influence of oat and spring pea mixtures on forage characteristics in different environments

AbstractForage mixtures including oat (Avena sativa L.) and spring pea (Pisum sativum L. spp. sativum) provide opportunities to optimize forage production with increasing forage quality, relative to single species stands. Under different climate scenarios, adjusting seeding rates of these mixtures may produce variable results in forage quantity and quality. We conducted a 2‐yr study at three study sites to evaluate forage characteristics within mixtures of oat and spring pea stands across a semi‐arid to subhumid precipitation gradient. At the western‐most and driest location (219 mm March–June precipitation), the oat monoculture produced 16−19% more total biomass than seeding treatments with mixtures of oat and spring pea. In contrast, at the moderate‐precipitation site (255 mm precipitation), no differences in total biomass were detected for the oat monoculture and seed mixtures of oat and spring pea. Large variation at the wettest site (339 mm precipitation) limited our ability to detect differences for total biomass production across treatments, but weed pressure in Year 2 of the study reduced forage production. Typically, crude protein (CP) concentration decreased linearly (P < .01) as spring pea decreased in the seeding rate, but CP concentration and total CP yield varied for the seeding rate treatments at the different study sites. Environmental condition may influence the benefit of substituting spring pea into a properly managed oat forage crop to increase forage quality. The contribution of spring pea forage in the total forage biomass of mixtures may be limited, especially in drier conditions.

Fodder quality improvement and enrichment of oats with Cu through biofortification: a technique to reduce animal malnutrition

Enrichment of oats fodder with copper (Cu) through biofortification is gaining importance, as Cu deficient fodders lead to various health hazards and problems among animals. To achieve these objectives, the present study was undertaken to enhance the Cu content in oats fodder through biofortification. For this, two trails were conducted separately at research farm of Department of Soil Science, PAU, Ludhiana (location-I) and KVK, Tarn Taran (location-II) during rabi season of 2017-18. The results of two investigations revealed that the treatment (T9) comprising two foliar application of Cu @ 0.2% sprayed at 60 and 90 days of sowing effected oats growth which recorded maximum enrichment of Cu, green fodder yield (405 q ha−1), dry fodder yield (95.8 q ha−1), plant height (141 cm) and Cu uptake (856.3 g ha−1) in oats fodder. However, when three foliar application of Cu @ 0.2% sprayed at 60, 90 and 110 days of sowing (T9), plant height increased upto 12% over control. Copper content in fodder increased to 21 from 7.7 mg kg−1, both green and dry fodder increased by 28.9%. On the other hand fodder quality parameters viz. crude protein (8.7%) and crude protein yield (8.3 q ha−1) were recorded highest with foliar application of Cu @ 0.2% at 60 and 90 days after sowing. Thus, it can be concluded that foliar application of Cu @ 0.2% at 60 and 90 days of sowing enhanced the oats yield and quality which will certainly improve livestock production.

Forage production and soil water balance in oat and common vetch sole crops and intercrops cultivated in the summer-autumn fallow season on the Chinese Loess Plateau

Abstract Integrating forage crops into traditional wheat and maize cropping systems is a potential alternative for increasing fodder supply while maintaining sustainable grain production on the Loess Plateau of China. This study was conducted to evaluate the biomass and crude protein production as well as the soil water balance and water use efficiency of oat (Avena sativa L.) and common vetch (Vicia sativa L.) intercrops compared to sole crops. Field experiments were conducted during the fallow season after wheat harvesting (mid-July to late October) in 2011 and 2012. Five cropping patterns were tested: sole oat (SO), sole common vetch (SV), and three intercrops of oat to common vetch in rows of two to one (I21), one to one (I11), and one to two (I12). Rainfall in the middle and late growing season in 2011 was abundant, but the early season was very dry. Rainfall in 2012 was less than average but distributed similarly with the long-term pattern. When harvested in late September, I21 showed the greatest aerial biomass and crude protein yield of 3.20 and 0.36 t ha−1, respectively, in 2011, and SO showed the greatest biomass and crude protein yield of 5.70 and 0.51 t ha−1, respectively, in 2012. When harvested one month later, the crude protein content of common vetch maintained a large value, while that in oat was reduced by 21 %–29 %. I21 still showed the greatest biomass and crude protein yield in 2011, and in 2012, SO had the highest biomass yield of 7.74 t ha−1 while SV showed the highest crude protein production of 0.65 t ha−1. The land equivalent ratio was above unity in all intercropping systems in 2011 and below unity in all systems in 2012. The soil water in the 0−120 cm layer in all treatments was fully recharged in 2011, but depleted in 2012, and the depletions in SV and I12 were significantly less than that of the other treatments (P

Genetic parameters for efficiency of crude protein utilisation and its relationship with production traits across lactations in grazing dairy cows

ABSTRACT The objective of the study was to estimate genetic parameters of efficiency of crude protein utilisation (ECPU) and its genetic correlation (r G) with other production traits across lactation in grazing dairy cows. Data were originated from 467 (2016–17 season) and 460 cows (2017–18 season) representing Holstein-Friesian (F), Jersey (J) and their crosses (F×J), from two New Zealand farms. The ratio between crude protein yield in milk and crude protein intake is defined as ECPU. (Co)variance components between ECPU and other traits were estimated using bivariate random regression models (RRM) that included fixed effects of herd-test-date, parity, calving date, proportion of F, and F×J heterosis, with random effects of animal additive genetic, and within-lactation permanent environment. Estimates of heritability (h2 ) of daily ECPU ranged from 0.02 to 0.41. Estimates of r G between daily ECPU and milk yield traits were strong and positive throughout lactation suggesting that selection for milk production traits improves ECPU of dairy cows. Daily r G between ECPU and mid-infrared predictions of milk urea (MU) concentration were mostly negative during lactation confirming that cows with high ECPU had genetically lower MU. Estimates of genetic relationships between ECPU and fertility traits are required to assess implications of including ECPU in breeding objective.

Effect of Potassium and Boron Fertilization on Growth, Forage Yield and Quality of Berseem Trifolium alexandrinum L

The field experiment was conducted during rabi season of 2017-18 at the Forage Research Farm of Chaudhary Charan Singh Haryana Agricultural University, Hisar with the objective to study the effect of potassium and boron fertilization on growth, forage yield and quality of berseem. Treatment combinations comprised of four potassium levels i.e. 0, 20, 40 and 60 kg K2O ha-1 and four levels of boron i.e. 0, 2, 4 kg B ha-1, and 0.2% B spray at flowering initiation and at 50% flowering. The experiment was laid out in split plot design and replicated thrice. Growth characters improved with the application of potassium and boron. Maximum green fodder (444.24 q ha-1) and dry matter yields (55.32 q ha-1) were obtained when berseem was fertilized with 40 kg K2O ha-1. Crude protein yield was highest with 60 kg K2O ha-1 (10.29 q ha-1) and digestible dry matter at 40 kg K2O ha-1 (37.19 q ha-1). Incremental dose of applied boron resulted in a significant improvement in green fodder and dry matter yields upto 2 kg B ha-1. Significant interaction effects of potassium and boron on total green fodder and total dry matter yields indicated better effects with the combination of 40 kg K2O ha-1 and 2 kg B ha-1.

EFFECT OF CUTTING INTERVALS ON YIELD AND QUALITY OF THE GREEN FODDER TRICHANTHERA GIGANTEA

This study was aimed to determine the effect of cutting intervals on leaf yield and quality of the green fodder Trichanthera gigantea used as feed material, mostly in poultry and rabbit diets, in order to improve farm animal products (such as meat and egg). This study included five different formulas (NT) representing five different cutting intervals, namely: NT1: 40 days, NT2: 50 days, NT3: 60 days, NT4: 70 days and NT5: 80 days of cutting intervals. All treatments were allocated in a complete block randomized design; each treatment was repeated 5 times. The other factors such as plantation density, cutting height and fertilizer dosage were similar among the treatments. The obtained results showed that from NT1 to NT5, the leaf dry matter yields were 7.34, 12.13, 12.41, 11.94 and 11.80 tons/ha/year, respectively; crude protein yields were 1.88, 3.13, 3.06, 2.78 and 2.69 tons/ha/year. When the cutting intervals increased from 40 to 80 days, the proportion of dry matter in the fresh leaves increased from 12.91% to 21.04%, crude protein proportion on dry matter decreased from 25.56% to 22.77%; crude fiber proportion on dry matter increased from 9.92% to 12.50%. Based on statistical analysis of dry matter yield and leaf chemical composition of green fodder T. gigantea, it is recommended that the most suitable cutting intervals for Trichanthera gigantea should be 50 – 60 days.

Assessment of yield, quality and nitrogen index of Agrostietum capillaris grassland as affected by fertilizations

Managing N, P and K inputs in semi-natural meadow production systems is important for achieving maximum yields in livestock farming. The objective of the present study was to estimate the effect of different NPK levels (N0P0K0, N50P50K50, N100P50K50, N100P100K100, N150P100K100 and N200P150K150 kg ha-1 yr-1) on the yield, quality and nitrogen nutrition index (NNI) in a grassland community of Agrostietum capillaris (semi-natural meadow) in western Serbia. The study was conducted during the seasons of 2005-2008. The values of the investigated parameters, except for the unit N uptake, were the highest in 2004/2005 due to favorable climate conditions. The levels of nitrogen significantly increased all of the studied parameters compared to the control treatment, except for unit N uptake. Mineral fertilizers at N200P150K150 provided the highest green forage yield (25.12 t ha-1), dry matter yield (8.12 t ha-1), crude protein yield (876.3 kg ha-1), nitrogen uptake (140.2 kg ha-1) and nitrogen nutrition index (70.2%), and the lowest unit N uptake (0.0022 kg N kg DMY-1). The use of mineral fertilizers increased green forage yield, dry matter yield and crude protein yield, increasing fertilizer from lowest to highest rate increased fresh and dry matter yield, as well as protein yield. Based on the results of the study, monitoring of nutrition indices would be necessary in order to increase productivity and economic benefits.

FEED QUALITY TRAITS OF BAGASSE OF SOME SWEET SORGHUM GENOTYPES

This study was conducted to determine some feed quality characteristics of silage made from bagasse after juice extractioning of stalks of sweet sorghum (Sorghum bicolor var. saccharatum (L.) Moench). The research was carried out from June to November in 2016 and 2017. Twenty one sweet sorghum genotypes were used as treatments were used under randomized complete block design with four replications According to the two-year averages; there were statistically significant differences in sweet sorghum genotypes in terms of all examined characteristics. According to the research results, digestible dry matter yield (DDMY), crude protein yield (CPY), dry matter intake (DMI) ratio, relative feed value (RFV), digestible dry matter (DDM) ratio and net energy (NEI) were ranged from 6472.3 – 16500.5 kg ha-1, 418.0 – 996.3 kg ha-1, 1.775 – 3.050%, 73.5 – 162.8, 53.43 – 69.84% and 1.225 – 1.575 Mcal kg-1 KM respectively. While UNL-hybrid-3, Thesis and Smith genotypes can be recommended for silage quality characteristics. No41 and Gulseker genotypes performed poorly in terms of silage quality.

MUŞ MERKEZE AİT KIYIBAŞI KÖYÜ MERASININ VERİM VE KALİTESİNİN BELİRLENMESİ

This study was carried out in order to determine the hay yield and quality of the rangelands of Kiyibasi Village rangeland in the central district of Mus. In this study; hay yield, crude protein yield, crude protein content, crude ash content, acid detergent fiber (ADF), neutral detergent fiber (NDF), digestible dry matter (DDM), dry matter intake (DMI) and relative feed value (RFV) properties were investigated. In the study; hay yields ranged between 30.37 kg/da and 55.97 kg/da according to the rangeland aspects and rangeland aspects have been found to be statistically significant 1% in terms of hay yield. The highest crude protein content of hay in the rangeland was found to be in the East (14.37%) and statistically in the same group in the South and West aspects. Crude protein yield ranged between 3.31 kg/da and 7.68 kg/da according to rangeland aspects and it was found to be statistically significant 1% in rangeland aspects. As a result of the research; crude ash, NDF, ADF, DDM, DMI ratios and RFV were determined between 6.4-8.7%, 57.0-59.8%, 21.2-34.0%, 62.4-72.3%, 2.00-2.10% and 102.0-112.5, respectively.

Effects of water supply on biomass yield, root/shoot ratio and water use efficiency of forage crops in intercropping systems

Rainfall is limited and unevenly distributed across different seasons in the sub-humid but drought-prone area on Loess Plateau, China. Understanding the effects of water supply on the growth of forage crops is of great significance for guiding forage cultivation. Pot experiment was carried out in a shelter in this study. There were five cropping patterns, including monoculture of common vetch, oat and maize, oat/common vetch intercropping, and oat/maize intercropping. There were three water supply levels, including high (low limit of 70% field capacity), medium (low limit of 55% of field capacity) and low (low limit of 40% of field capacity) water. The results showed that land equivalent ratio in the oat/common vetch intercropping group were 1.20, 1.21 and 1.19 at the high, medium and low water supply levels, respectively, and those in the oat/maize intercropping were 1.17, 1.11 and 1.03. Such results indicate that all of the intercropping systems had yield advantages compared with all monoculture. Among the five planting patterns under the same water supply level, the total dry matter yield of maize monoculture was the highest, and that of common vetch monoculture was the lowest. Yields of dry matter and crude protein of oat increased with the decreases of water supply, while common vetch and corn monoculture showed opposite trends. On per plant basis, intercropping increased dry matter yield and crude protein yield of oat, while decreased the yield of common vetch and maize, oat showed an intercropping advantage. Compared with the high water treatment, dry matter yield of the oat/common vetch intercropping increased insignificantly by 4.1% and 4.8% respectively compared with that in the treatments of medium water and low water, whereas dry matter yield of the oat/maize intercropping was significantly reduced by 8.0% and 13.0% respectively. Compared with high water treatment, root/shoot ratio of the oat/common vetch intercropping was significantly increased by 33.4% and 58.4% under the treatments of medium and low water respectively. However, medium and low water supply significantly reduced root/shoot ratio in the oat/maize intercropping. Compared with high water treatment, water use efficiency of the oat/common vetch intercropping significantly increased by 11.7% and 12.9% under the treatments of medium and low water respectively, while water use efficiency of oat/maize intercropping was not affected by water application. In summary, yield of forage maize monoculture and oat/forage maize intercropping were higher, but they were sensitive to water shortage and had low yield stability. Under insufficient water conditions, yield stability, crude protein production and water use efficiency in oat/common vetch intercropping system were greater. Consequently, we suggest this system should be used in the study area.

Carcass traits in broilers fed diets containing L-glutamine and organic zinc

The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of L-glutamine and organic zinc in diets for broilers on the parameters of carcass and meat yields, chemical composition and nutrient deposition in poultry carcasses at 21 days of age. Ross chicks (n=630) were distributed in a 2 x 3 + 1 completely randomized design, using levels of 1 and 2% L-glutamine with 0, 90 and 120 mg organic zinc/kg feed and a control diet, totaling seven treatments and five repetitions, with 18 birds each. The combination of L-glutamine and organic zinc did not influence the parameters evaluated. However, zinc supplementation alone interfered in a linearly increasing way with breast yield, in a linearly decreasing way with abdominal fat, and protein content in the carcass. Still, independently, regarding the chemical composition of poultry carcass, the level of 2% L-glutamine provided a higher concentration of dry matter and ash. Likewise, it showed the highest ash deposition. Supplementation of 2% L-glutamine in broiler diets improves the dry matter and the ash content in poultry carcasses and the inclusion of organic zinc positively interferes with the yield of breast, abdominal fat and crude protein

Yield and qualitative evaluation of fodder maize (Zea mays L.) under potassium and zinc based integrated nutrient management

Nutritional deficiency, including that potassium and zinc, is one of the critical factors that hinder the quality fodder production in India, which can only be solved with integrated nutrient management approach. This experiment was conducted during the Kharif season of 2019 to find out the effect of potassium, zinc, plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) and farmyard manure (FYM) application to the quality aspect of fodder maize. The experiment was conducted in Randomized Block Design (RBD) with nine treatments with standard (100%) and reduced (75%) rate of the recommended dose of potassium (RDK) along with inclusion and exclusion of zinc foliar spray, PGPR and FYM. The experiment results revealed that application of 100 % RDK+PGPR+ YM (5 t ha−1) + two-time spray of 0.5% Zn resulted in higher green fodder yield (t ha−1), dry fodder yield (t ha−1), dry matter and ash content, increased crude protein (CP) content and yield with a concomitant decrease in fibre fractions over other treatments and control. The conclusion from the experiment can be drawn that the combined application of potassium, zinc, PGPR and FYM can result in quality production of fodder maize.