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Effect of maize silage maturity on digestibility and energy balance of lactating cows

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 November 2017

J.D. Sutton ,
S.B. Cammell ,
D.E. Beever ,
R.H. Phipps  and
D.J. Humphries
J.D. Sutton
Affiliation:
Centre for Dairy Research, Department of Agriculture, University of Reading, Earley Gate, Reading RG6 6AT, UK
S.B. Cammell
Affiliation:
Centre for Dairy Research, Department of Agriculture, University of Reading, Earley Gate, Reading RG6 6AT, UK
D.E. Beever
Affiliation:
Centre for Dairy Research, Department of Agriculture, University of Reading, Earley Gate, Reading RG6 6AT, UK
R.H. Phipps
Affiliation:
Centre for Dairy Research, Department of Agriculture, University of Reading, Earley Gate, Reading RG6 6AT, UK
D.J. Humphries
Affiliation:
Centre for Dairy Research, Department of Agriculture, University of Reading, Earley Gate, Reading RG6 6AT, UK
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Extract

Increasing maturity at harvest of maize silage has been shown to affect feed intake and milk production in Holstein-Friesian cows (Phipps et al., 1998). The purpose of the present experiment was to determine whether the milk production response was related to improvements in the efficiency of feed energy utilisation.

Four multiparous Holstein-Friesian cows (mean live weight 620 kg) fitted with permanent cannulas in the rumen and proximal duodenum were given diets based on maize silage and grass silage (3:1 DM ratio) offered ad libitum plus 8.7 kg DM/day of a concentrate (254 g crude protein (CP)/kg DM) starting 5-10 weeks post-calving. The maize silage was harvested at four different stages of maturity as defined by DM content and ensiled without additives. The grass silage was a first-cut perennial ryegrass (260 g DM/kg, 519 g neutral detergent fibre (NDF)/kg DM, 146 g CP/kg DM).

Type
Programme
Information
Proceedings of the British Society of Animal Science , Volume 1999 , 1999 , pp. 32
Copyright
Copyright © The British Society of Animal Science 1999

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References

Phipps, R.H., Sutton, J.D. and Beever, D.E. 1998. The influence of maize silage maturity on forage intake and milk production of Friesian-Holstein dairy cows in the United Kingdom. Journal of Dairy Science: 76, Supplement 1: 251.Google Scholar