Forage Preservation.ppt
- 1. Forage Preservation: Silage and Hay making A.B.M. Khaleduzzaman, PhD Animal Nutrition Section, DLS Animal Nutrition Development and Technology Transfer Project (2nd phase), DLS
- 2. Forage preservation Why preserve forages? Forage preservation methods Is it worth it for you to do it on your farm? COST METHODS
- 3. WHY?? Seasonal fluctuation Natural foraging behavior Size of most animal operations today Quality of feed that is transportable Animal health Permits long-term storage
- 4. Seasonal fluctuation Two major feed shortage periods in Bangladesh: July-October: Most of the fields are under rice cultivation and all low lying areas are flooded March-April: The winter forages are finished and summer species are just sprouting Source: Akbar and Khaleduzzaman, 2009
- 6. Background The total DM intake (kg/d) was almost similar in three main seasons (summer, monsoon and winter) of the year but the DM intake (kg/d) from green forage was significantly higher in winter (7.91) than that in summer (2.32) and monsoon (0.41). Nutrient intake (kg/d) and milk yield (l/d) 0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 Winter Summer Monsoon Total DM intake Forage DM intake Milk yield Source: Ahmed, T. (2006) Inconsistent nutrient supply
- 7. Natural foraging behavior High forage diets lead to digestive tract health Healthier microbial populations in ruminant digestive systems Provides a more filling diet than diets high in concentrate
- 8. Animal production in the 21st Century Most operations are small or have more animals than land available for grazing Requires use of preserved forage to meet nutrient requirements of the animals
- 9. Feed Quality Forage, when preserved correctly can be a very high quality feed for animals at all stages of production
- 10. Animal Health High quality forage is healthy for the animals
- 11. Long-term storage Quality does decrease over time Microbial respiration Nonenzymatic chemical reactions Plant enzymatic activity If air and moisture can be controlled, silage quality will remain higher Moisture above 30% and air Enter into silage Leads to fungal growth and decreased quality!
- 12. Overall Objectives in Forage Preservation Year round fodder supply could minimize feed cost Want a stable product to minimize seasonal scarcity System to minimize losses associated with harvesting and processing Must meet transportation and storage needs/capacities
- 13. Methods of Forage Preservation Silage Hay Others
- 14. What is Silage? Forage which has been grown while still green and nutritious can be conserved through a natural ‘pickling’ process. Lactic acid is produced when the sugars in the forage plants are fermented by bacteria in a sealed container (‘silo’) with no air. Forage conserved this way is known as ‘ensiled forage’ or ‘silage’ and will keep for up to three years without deteriorating.
- 15. Ensiling process Selection of fodder: maize, napier Jumbo, sorghum fodder Wilting fodder Filling silo with chopped fodder Compacting i.e. remove air from the silo Sealing the silo 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 0 2 4 6 8 10 Wilting hour DM (%) Y = 1.5833x + 13.125
- 16. Ensiling process Silage: the product of fermentation of plant tissue Produced by microbial activity under anaerobic conditions Plant Sugars fermentation Organic Acids “pickled” plant material low pH
- 17. Ensiling conditions Factors affecting success: Anaerobic conditions Plant water content (70-72%) Plant DM content (28-30%) Fodder particle size (chopping 2-3 inches) Packing/sealing Storage Presence of readily fermentable carbohydrates
- 18. Silage phases Phase 1: Aerobic (pH 6.5-6.0) Phase 4: Continued lactic fermentation (pH 5.0-3.8) Phase 5: Stable Phase 2: Acetic acid Phase 3: Lactic Acid 69º F 90º F 85º F Temperature Change 6.0 4.2 4.0 3.8 pH change 0 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 22
- 19. Ensiling methods Earthen pit Bag silo Plastic drum Bamboo-made Fenced Chamber Wooden box Trench or Bunker silo
- 20. Ensiling method: Earthen pit
- 21. Ensiling methods: Plastic drum
- 22. Ensiling methods: Bag silo
- 23. Barriers to proper ensiling Aerobic Conditions by Internally trapped air External air in feed out phase Forage water content Undesirable fermentation Causes: Activity of clostridium species bacteria Favored by high moisture, high pH plus low levels of fermentable carbohydrates
- 24. Losses Involved in Ensiling Process Dry matter losses Fermentation Losses Minimal loss unless clostridial fermentation Protein breakdown Effluents losses Caused by excessive moisture Leaching of soluble nutrients out of silo Losses in digestible nutrients ODOR, CORROSIVE Surface Spoilage Exposed areas susceptible Horizontal silos more susceptible (cover with plastic)
- 25. Silage Additives Fermentation stimulants Molasses Makes up for lack of fermentable carbohydrates Microbial bacteria Silage innoculators – refined bacterial cultures About 1-2% better feed efficiency and fermentation in corn silage Fermentation inhibitors Direct acidification – mineral acids Bacterial inhibitors
- 26. Silage Additives… Nonprotein Nitrogen Add Nitrogen to the silage Used with cereal silages such as corn Corn silage energy:protein balance is off (more energy than protein) Addition of urea or anhydrous ammonia can bring N level up Ruminants are able to use NPN, but horses can’t Rumen microbes are able to produce protein from NPN that can then be absorbed in the small intestine by the animal In horses, protein is absorbed in the small intestine and microbes don’t come along until the large intestine
- 27. Silage evaluation Physical Appearance and Texture Silage Characteristics and Interpretation Leafy, soft texture Stemmy, fibrous; seed heads present Presence of mould or rotten silage Very wet; effluent seeping from stack Very dry, even brittle Likely to have high ME. Crude protein is probably high. If high proportion of stems/or seed heads are present, ME and crude protein are likely to be low. Crop cut too late. Air has entered the silage. DM has been lost and silage quality (ME content) will have declined during storage. Moisture easily squeezed out of he silage. Forage was ensiled at too low a DM content. There is a high risk of poor fermentation and significant losses (quality and quantity). Silage was ensiled at too high a DM content.
- 28. Silage evaluation Color Silage Characteristics and Interpretation Very dark olive green Light green to green/brown Pale green/straw yellow Light amber brown Brown Dark brown Weather damaged, and/or very wet silage with a poor fermentation. Sour or putrid aroma. Normal color range for grass, cereal and maize silages. Normal color range for wilted grass silages. Heavily wilted silages with restricted fermentation tend to be greener. Typical of late-cut grass and cereal silages. Can occur with low DM silages, Some heating has occurred during storage or due to aerobic spoilage during feedout. Some loss in digestibility and heat damage of protein. More common with wilted silages. More extensive heating.
- 29. Low-cost silo (Bangladesh experiences) Bamboo-mat Fenced Chamber (BFC) silo Polythene silo
- 30. Maize stover preparation Maize stover after harvesting maize were chopped into 2-3 cm particle size by using grass chopper 2% molasses (weight basis) was added to maize stover Maize stover silage preparation
- 31. Sampling silage samples Sampling silage sample in airtight polythene pack for fermentation and chemical analysis
- 32. Cost (BDT) of maize stover silage preparation in BFC and Polythene bag Parameters BFC (n=17) Polythene bag (n=7) Maize stover 17175.0 2475.0 Bamboo-mat 13540.0 00.0 Bamboo 7160.0 00.0 Polythene sheet 5667.0 1350.0 Brick and sand 10156.0 00.0 Molasses 8087.0 860.0 Silo preparation/Labor 12900.0 1050.0 Total cost 74685.0 5735.0 Cost/Silo 3382.9 191.8 Cost/kg silage 4.61 3.48
- 33. Maize stover silage from BFC and Polythene bag Silage from BFC Silage from Polythene bag
- 34. Chemical composition of maize stover silage from BFC, Polythene bag and Earthen pit Parameters Maize stover (fresh) Low-cost silo P- value BFC (mean ±SD) Polythene bag (mean ±SD) Earthen pit (mean ±SD) DM, % 31.00±1.37 30.20±1.04 29.40±1.29 30.30±1.15 0.267 CP, % 5.18±0.61 4.77±0.48 4.96±0.42 5.10±0.65 0.360 ADF, % 56.60±1.08a 50.40±1.64b 51.00±1.58b 51.60±2.30b 0.001 NDF, % 73.60±1.71 72.04±0.73 72.86±0.95 73.08±0.91 0.223 NEL(Mcal/ kg DM) 0.81±0.02a 0.98±0.03b 0.97±0.02b 0.95±0.02b 0.050 a,b,c Means of different superscript differ significantly.
- 35. Feed and nutrient intake (kg/cow/d) before and after silage feeding Parameters Before silage feeding (n=15) After silage feeding (n=15) P-value Feed intake, kg fresh Straw intake 13.12 12.12 0.200 Silage intake - 7.50 - Concentrate intake 3.70 2.70 0.011 Total DM intake, kg 15.13 14.83 0.189 DM intake/100 kg BW 4.32 4.23 0.210
- 36. Effect of silage feeding on milk production and income generation *Milk price was calculated at a rate of BDT 28.00 per liter. **Silage feeding increased a net income of BDT 15.7 per cow per day Parameters Before silage feeding (n=15) After silage feeding (n=15) P-value Feed cost, BDT/cow/d Straw cost 13.12 13.12 0.190 Silage cost - 34.50 - Concentrate cost 85.10 63.10 0.011 Total feed cost, BDT/cow/d 98.22 109.72 0.051 Total milk yield, L/cow/d 6.25 7.22 0.000 Milk fat, % 4.18 4.30 0.003 Total milk price, BDT/cow/d* 175.00 202.16 0.000 Income from milk, BDT/cow/d** 76.78 92.44 0.000
- 37. Hay making: Main phases 1. Curing 2. Packaging/bailing 3. Storage
- 38. Conditions for hay making Preferable fodder: legume (cowpea, matikalai, khesari, sunhemp etc.) Moisture condition: 15-18% DM condition: 82-85%
- 39. Curing Step One: Cutting
- 40. Curing Step 2: Tedding
- 41. Curing Step 3: Raking
- 42. Hay baling
- 44. Bale Wrapper
- 45. Hay Making: Bangladesh experiences
- 46. Hay Making: Bangladesh experiences
- 47. Hay Making: Bangladesh experiences
- 48. Losses during hay baling Nature of losses Shatter – straw leaves are most susceptible directly associated with water content! Several factors may affect the magnitude of losses during baling
- 49. Preservatives Mode of Action Applied either at or immediately after baling Designed to kill or retard microbial activity Some produce a favorable type of microbial activity Allows for baling at higher moisture levels
- 50. Types of Preservatives Organic Acid Based Contain propionic or acetic acid Kills microbes Microbial Based Carried over from silage fermentation agents Promote “favorable” microbial activity Produces compounds that later prevent mold NO PROVEN EFFECTIVENESS Older types Include agents such as salt (wet areas, mountain meadows) Urea Anhydrous ammonia (used on round bales)
- 51. Anhydrous Ammonia Kills microbes Protein Digestibility NH3OH Plastic Cover Open container
- 52. Storage Phase Moisture content Weather
- 53. Moisture during storage Water content must be below a critical level Based on Size and Density of package Small rectangular bales ≤ 20% (upper limit is 20%) Large Bales One-ton rectangular: ≤ 18% High density rectangular bales: ≤ 15% Cubes ≤ 12%
- 54. Consequences of excessive moisture Major Hazard = MOLD Produces toxins Heat loss: Fire Chemical heat damage (non-enzymatic browning)
- 55. Factors Affecting Loss Bale density: Denser less spoilage Affected by type of baler being used (some large round balers produce 2x the density) Fine-stemmed hays will produce denser bales Other field operations/techniques: Hay row formation uniform, proper size Operate rakes, balers in same direction hay was cut
- 56. Factors Affecting Loss Other field operations/techniques: (con’t) Moisture content at baling Bale wrapping Twine closer together decreases loss but increases cost Net wrap Use of preservatives Climate: Higher rainfall Rainfall distribution High humidity Temperature
- 57. Factors Affecting Loss Site selection: Close to feeding area Well-drained, upland site Hay/soil contact should be avoided Bale orientation/placement Large round bales – without sides touching, flat ends butted together Rows should run north/south
- 58. Factors Affecting Loss Protecting the tops of the bales: Cover bales – plastic sheeting, “caps”, fabric Secure cover firmly Protecting the bottoms of the bales: Held off the ground by something that doesn’t trap/hold water Wooden pallets, telephone posts, scrap pipe, cross ties Rock pads Prevent hay/soil contact
- 59. Things NOT to do Allow sides of round bales to touch No bales in standing water No storage under trees
- 60. Thank you all for patient hearing?