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Fermentation and degradation in the rumen of dairy cows fed on diets consisting of silage from an intensively managed sward and silages from semi-natural grasslands

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  07 July 2004

M. H. BRUINENBERG ,
H. VALK ,
P. C. STRUIK  and
A. M. VAN VUUREN
M. H. BRUINENBERG
Affiliation:
Wageningen University and Research Centre, Animal Sciences Group – Nutrition & Food, P.O. Box 65, 8200 AB Lelystad, The Netherlands Wageningen University and Research Centre, Department of Plant Sciences, Crop and Weed Ecology, P.O. Box 430, 6700 AK Wageningen, The Netherlands Present address: Nutrient Management Institute NMI b.v., P.O. Box 250, 6700 AG Wageningen, The Netherlands. Email: [email protected]
H. VALK
Affiliation:
Wageningen University and Research Centre, Animal Sciences Group – Nutrition & Food, P.O. Box 65, 8200 AB Lelystad, The Netherlands
P. C. STRUIK
Affiliation:
Wageningen University and Research Centre, Department of Plant Sciences, Crop and Weed Ecology, P.O. Box 430, 6700 AK Wageningen, The Netherlands
A. M. VAN VUUREN
Affiliation:
Wageningen University and Research Centre, Animal Sciences Group – Nutrition & Food, P.O. Box 65, 8200 AB Lelystad, The Netherlands
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Abstract

To assess the effect of grassland management on the ruminal digestion of silages, four lactating dairy cows, fitted with a rumen cannula, were fed diets consisting of concentrates and different grass silages. The grass silages consisted of intensively managed grass (IM) in variable proportions replaced by silages harvested from a ‘species-poor’ grassland managed to stimulate nesting of birds (SPP) or from a grassland managed to increase plant species diversity (SPR). The roughage part of the diets was composed completely of IM (100IM), or 200 g/kg (in dry matter) of IM replaced by SPP (20SPP) or 600 g/kg of IM replaced by SPP (60SPP), or SPR (60SPR). The pH in the rumen was highest on 60SPR and lowest on 100IM and 20SPP (P<0·05), whereas volatile fatty acids (VFA) concentrations were lowest on 60SPP and 60SPR and highest on 100IM (P<0·05). No differences in the ratio non-glucogenic: glucogenic volatile fatty acids were observed among the diets. The NH3 concentration was highest on 100IM and 20SPP and lowest on 60SPR (P<0·05), reflecting differences in CP intake. The concentration of uric acid in the urine (mg per kg metabolic body weight) was highest on 100IM (P<0·05). Rumen pool size of OM and DM did not differ among treatments, but pool size of NDF and IADF were highest on 60SPR (P<0·05). Passage rate was high on 100IM and 60SPR, but no significant differences with the other treatments were established. Also, no significant differences were observed in rates of degradation. Clearance rate of large particles was highest on 60SPP and differed significantly from 60SPR (P<0·05) only. No differences were observed in clearance rate of small particles. In conclusion, for most rumen fermentation characteristics measured in the study, no noticeably aberrant behaviour of the silages from semi-natural grassland was observed.

Type
Research Article
Information
The Journal of Agricultural Science , Volume 142 , Issue 1 , February 2004 , pp. 79 - 88
Copyright
© 2004 Cambridge University Press

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