Quality Analysis of Summer-Annual Forages. I. Sample Preparation Methods and Chemical Characterization of Forage Types and Cultivars
1987
Fisher, D. S. | Burns, J. C.
The effects of sample preparation on the chemical composition and the subsequent estimation of nutritive value of silage from different sorghum (Sorghum bicolor L.) cultivars and millet (Pennisetum americunum L.) may alter experimental results and conclusions. The objectives of this study were to determine the differential effects of oven-drying, freeze-drying, and ensiling on the concentrations of the Van Soest fiber fractions, total N, and several carbohydrate fractions of summer-annual forages with major interest in cultivar rank. One millet, one corn (Zea mays L.), and eight sorghum cultivars, including one sudangrass [Sorghum sudanense (Piper) Stapf], one sorghum × sudangrass hybrid, two grain sorghums, two intermediate sorghums, and two forage sorghums, were ensiled. The study was conducted as a randomized complete block design with four replications and grown at two locations in two different years. The soil type was a fine-loamy, siliceous, thermic Typic Paleudult (Norfolk loamy sand) at Location 1 and a clayey, kaolinitic, thermic Typic Hapludult (Cecil clay loam) at Location 2. Neutral detergent fiber (NDF), acid detergent fiber (ADF), and apparent cellulose showed significant cultivar × sample preparation method interactions from both locations. Cultivars partitioned total nonstructural carbohydrates (TNC) differently between sugars and starch, with significant cultivar × sample preparation interactions occurring for total sugar, starch, and TNC from both locations. The interaction of cultivar and sample preparation can affect the results of cultivar comparisons. Oven-drying should not be used to prepare either fodder or silage samples for quality determinations.
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