Transcript Forage Conservation

Forage
Conservation
Need for conservation
 Feeding during drought or floods
 Utilizing surplus forage
 Transport of feed
Methods of Conservation
 Hay
 Silage
 Haylage
Hay
 Grasses are cut at optimum growth stage
 Left in the field to dry
 Machine used to turn over grass to aid
drying (tedder)
 Dried grass swept in rows (windrow)
 Hay baler used to compress dried grass
– cubes or big round bales
 Can also be used to conserve rice straw
Big bale hay
Padi straw hay
Problems with making hay
 Need plenty of sunshine – 3 consecutive
days without rain
 Easily spoilt by moulds if not quickly dried
 Requires heavy investment in machinery
 Large storage area is required
 Can be a fire hazard
Haylage
 Forage that is baled at a higher moisture
content than dry hay and then stored in a
sealed plastic wrap.
 Because of the high moisture level and
air-tight environment, the forage ferments
and is preserved by acid production
during fermentation.
Advantages of Haylage
 Decreased curing time needed from cutting to
baling makes weather less of a factor in forage
harvesting.
 Potential for more timely harvest of large
quantities of forage.
 Decreased need for mechanical handling and
time curing to dry the forage reduces the loss
of leaves, the most digestible part of the plant.
 Potential for higher feed quality bale through
leaf preservation and possible nitrate
reduction.
Disadvantages of haylage
 Increased harvest cost per bale vs.
conventional cured hay.
 Disposal of used plastic wrap.
 More likely to spoil as compared to silage in
traditional silos.
 Risk of forage spoilage if integrity of wrap is not
maintained. Birds and rodents can puncture
plastic and holes must be covered.
 Transportation of bales is limited due to cost of
moving high-moisture bales.
How haylage is made
 The forage is cut as if for haymaking, but
is baled at 50 to 60% moisture rather
than at 18-20% moisture.
SILAGE
 Forage that is conserved by reducing pH
through natural anaerobic fermentation
Advantages of silage
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More palatable than hay
Not dependent on weather
Can be kept longer without deterioration
Not easily inflammable
Requires less storage area
Mechanised Silage Making
Principle of Silage
conservation
 Forages are conserved in an
environment of low pH (4.2) and
anaerobic conditions where biochemical
processes and activities of decomposing
aerobic bacteria and fungi are inhibited
Materials which can be
ensiled
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Grasses
Sorghum
Maize
Oil palm fronds
Crop byproducts (pineapple skin, cocoa
pods)
Factors required for good
silage
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Airtight – to provide anaerobic conditions
Moisture content in forage 65-75%
Adequate soluble carbohydrates (>3%)
Compaction of materials to exclude air
Not contaminated with foreign matter e.g.
soil
Silage making process
 Grass is cut at
optimum growth
stage
 Grass chopped up
Silage making process (2)
 Chopped grass filled in silo:
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Bunker silo
Pit silo
Tower silo
Container
 Chopped grass compressed to exclude air
 Silo is sealed airtight
 Left for at least 21 days to complete ensilation
Tower Silo
Phases of fermentation
Baled silage
Baled Silage in N.Z.
Baled
silage
Baled Silage
The Silager
 An invention in Institut Haiwan Kluang
 Able to mechanically compress silage in
a bin
Mechanical press
SILAGER II
collection
conveyor
Forage chopped
Entry for fresh fodder
Phase I
 Grass is put in silo
 Respiration
continues
 Oxygen is used up
 CO2 and heat is
released
 Temperature rises
Phase 2
 Acetic acid is
released
 pH declines from 6.0
to 4.2
Phase 3
 Lactic acid is
released
 Acetic acid declines
Phase 4
 Lactic acid
production continues
 Temperature
declines
 Bacterial activity
stops at pH 4.0
Characteristics of Good
Silage
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pH < 4.5
Lactic acid 3 -13%
Butyric acid < 0.2%
Colour: yellowish to brownish green
Odour: sweet smelling (vinegar smell)
Wetness – no seepage
Palatability – readily accepted by animals
Nutritive value – almost similar to original
material
Additional steps for
making good silage
 Chop the material to allow easy
compaction
 Use additives: corn, soybean, molasses
to increase soluble carbohydrates and
protein (esp. if < 3% soluble
carbohydrate)
 Use enzymes to aid fermentation
Silage additives
A. Stimulants aid in the growth of the lactic
acid bacteria and the production of their
acids so as to reduce silage pH at a
faster rate.
Silage additives
B. Inhibitors help to slow down unwanted
silage degradation. For example,
inhibitors may reduce mold growth or
reduce the breakdown of plant proteins.
Silage additives
Bacterial Inoculants are the main type of
silage additive used in the U.S (about
70% of all additives).
They contain inactive bacteria that become
active once they are put on the wet
forage.
Silage additives
 Sugars such as molasses, glucose, and
dextrose can be added to forage to
increase the lactic acid content of the
silage by supplying more food (sugar) for
the lactic acid bacteria to grow on.
Silage additives
 Enzymes are proteins that speed up the
break down of plant carbohydrates to
sugars
 Common sources of enzymes include,
Aspergillus oryzae, Aspergillus niger, and
Bacillus subtillus.