Nutritional Value of Eastern Gamagrass Hay Compared with Alfalfa Hay
Abstract
Two experiments were conducted to determine the nutritional value of Eastern gamagrass hay in comparison with alfalfa hay. In Experiment I, first and second cutting alfalfa and Eastern gamagrass hays were fed to 16 lactating dairy cows in a switchback design to compare the energy value of the hays. Response criteria included feed intake, body weight change, and yield and composition of milk. In Experiment II, 12 mature wethers were utilized in a replicated 4x4 Latin square to evaluate the digestibility of the various nutrient components of first and second cuttings of alfalfa and Eastern gamagrass hay. Intake and chemical composition of the hays were determined. The various plant fractions analyzed were: dry matter (DM), crude protein (CP), acid detergent fiber (ADF), and neutral detergent fiber (NDF). Digestibility values were obtained for each cutting of the two hays by the total collection method.
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- OSU Theses [15752]