Feeding Systems with Legumes to Intensify Dairy Farms - cgiar

As in Experiment 1, the consumption of fresh and ensiled C. argentea
was good and the percentage of rejection by animals was 10%, mainly
stems.
The experience with legume silage in the tropics is limited. In Cuba,
Ojeda (1999) found that grass/legume silage had good quality. Reagen
(1999) found that Cassia silage presented 12% CP and 58% IVDMD. In the
process of ensiling legumes, fermentation is mainly dominated by clostridia,
which can be attributed to the high buffer capacity, low soluble
carbohydrate content in water, and, to a less extent, to the low DM content
(Pezo et al., 1989). Kass and Rodríguez (1987), cited by Pezo et al. (1989),
observed a high amount of volatile nitrogen (ammonium) and low levels of
lactic acid in silage of Gliricidia sepium.
Conclusions
The following conclusions were reached:
• Cratylia argentea, used as a protein supplement during the dry season,
can substitute chicken manure completely in milk cows, while it
reduces the farmer’s dependency on off-farm resources and improves
the quality of the diet offered.
• The nutritional quality of the milk produced by cows on diets of fresh or
ensiled C. argentea is better in terms of fat and total solids.
• Profits were higher when milk production involved fresh and ensiled C.
argentea than when chicken manure was used because of the higher
production and better-quality milk.
• Additional studies should be conducted on milk quality and maximum
voluntary consumption of Cratylia. Different types of silos and silage
systems should also be studied.
References
González, D.; Kass, M.; Ojeda, F. and Wernli, C. 1990. Conservación de
Forrajes. In: Nutrición de rumiantes, guía metodológica de
investigación. Ruiz, M. E. and Ruiz, A. (eds). IICA. Red de Investigación
en Sistemas de Producción Animal en Latinoamérica. Instituto
Interamericano de Cooperación para la Agricultura (IICA), San José,
Costa Rica. p. 177-237.
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