Corn plant arrangement and its effect on silage quality

Revista Brasileira de Zootecnia

José Laerte Nörnberg¹  Fernando Reimann Skonieski¹  Concepta Margaret McManus Pimentel²  Julcemar Dias Kessler²  Gilmar Brüning²  Eduardo Bohrer de Azevedo²  Diego Bitencourt de David² 

[1] Universidade Federal de Santa Maria;Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul;

关键词: carbohydrate fractionation;    nutritional value;    protein fractionation;    row spacing;   

DOI  :  

来源: DOAJ

【 摘 要 】

This experiment was carried out to evaluate the effects of the row spacing between corn plants on silage quality. Different spacing between corn rows (40, 60, and 80 cm) was used, but the population of plants was maintained around 65,000/ha in all treatments. Analysis of variance was carried out and means were compared by Tukey's test at 5% of probability. A reduction in row spacing provided better spatial distribution of plants, but did not alter morphological composition or dry matter production. The corn with most equidistant spatial distribution (lowest row spacing) showed an increase in lignin concentration, neutral detergent fiber, and total carbohydrates, and showed a decrease in total digestible nutrients when compared with 80 cm row spacing. However, the organic digestibility matter was not affected by the treatments. The content and quality of protein were higher for 80 cm row spacing compared with the other levels; also, protein content was reduced as the spacing between rows became smaller. The only mineral affected was calcium, which had the lowest value at higher levels of spacing. Although differences were detected for many variables, the most appropriate spacing between rows should also take into account economic and practical aspects when choosing the best plant arrangement.

【 授权许可】

Unknown