Effect of drying methods on the nutritive value of selected leguminous trees and shrubs
2001
Atega, T.A. (Philippine Univ. Los Banos, College, Laguna (Philippines))
Large amounts of foliage are produced from fodder trees/shrubs especially after pruning of hedgerows in alley cropping. Feeding and conservation strategies are imperative to utilize these alternative feeds more efficiently thus, this study was conducted to determine the effect of drying methods as conservation strategy in the chemical compositions of seven fodder trees/shrubs (Glirecidia sepium, Samanea samen, Flemingia macrophylla, Stylosanthes guianensis, Leucaena leucocephala, Desmodium rensonii and Moringa oleifera). Samples for both the dry and wet seasons were also analyzed. Findings showed that the crude protein (CP) content of the leaf meals (including leaves and browseable stem) of the seven fodder trees/shrubs ranged from 15.66 to 30.85% with M. oleifera having the highest and S. guianensis, the lowest there was not much difference in the effect of drying methods and seasons on the CP content of the fodder. Among the seven fodder trees/shrubs, M. oleifera had the lowest fiber content (32.59-37.24%) and the highest digestibility value of 59.16-64.38%. Sun drying resulted in improvements of in-vitro dry matter digestibility while oven-drying and air-drying resulted in increases in fiber contents thereby decreasing digestibility.
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