The aim of the present experiment was to compare silage prepared from maize having a brown midrib (BMR) mutation with control (CTR) maize to identify their effects on enteric methane emission, digesta mean retention time (MRT), ruminal fermentation and digestibility. In addition, the utility of archaeol present in faecal samples was validated as a proxy for methane production. Seven German Hols...

The presented work studies the possibilities of using maize silage for biogas production in laboratory as well as in full-scale conditions. From the results of long-term operation of a mixed laboratory anaerobic reactor, it follows that processing of maize silage as a single substrate is an unstable process due to the low alkalinity of silage that has to be compensated by pH adjustment. Specifi...

The hydrolysis of lignocellulose is assumed to be the rate-limiting step in the anaerobic fermentation process. A fungal hydrolytic enzyme mixture was used to assess the enzymatic impact on different feedstocks for biogas production. The optimal conditions for enzymatic hydrolysis of rye grain silage, maize silage, grass silage, feed residues and solid cattle manure were determined in lab-scale...

Inoculation of maize silage with Lactobacillus buchneri (5 x 10(5) c.f.u. g(-1) of maize silage) prior to ensiling results in the formation of aerobically stable silage. After 9 months, lactic acid bacterium counts are approximately 10(10) c.f.u. g(-1) in these treated silages. An important subpopulation (5.9 x 10(7) c.f.u. g(-1)) is able to degrade 1,2-propanediol, a fermentation product of L....

It is well-established that altering the proportion of starch and fibre in ruminant diets can alter ruminal and post-ruminal digestion, although quantitative evidence that this reduces enteric methane (CH4) production in dairy cattle is lacking. The objective of this study was to examine the effect of varying grass-to-maize silage ratio (70 : 30 and 30 : 70 DM basis), offered ad libitum, with e...

The objective of this study was to investigate the nutritive value, in vitro dry matter degradability (IVDMD), and ensiling characteristics legume foliage–maize straw silages. For silage, proportion maize 20%:80% (maize–lablab (ML), maize–indigenous cowpea (MI), maize–Betswit (MB), maize–Dr Saunders (MD)). Maize alone (M) used as a control, making up five treatments. Silages were opened after 4...

Maize silage is a forage of high quality and yield, and represents the second 30 most important use of maize in the U.S. The Wisconsin Quality Synthetic (WQS) maize 31 population has undergone five cycles of recurrent selection for silage yield and 32 composition resulting in a genetically improved population. The application of high-33 density molecular markers allows breeders and geneticists ...

Effects of feeding grain and maize silage from a non-Bt maize and a variety of Bt maize that contains cry1F (event TC1507, event DAS-Ø15Ø7-1), a gene that provides maize with insect resistance, on the health and performance of dairy cows were evaluated. In a crossover trial, 20 lactating Holstein cows were assigned to each of 2 dietary treatment groups and fed diets containing whole-plant maize...

Quantification of the Nitrogen (N)-supplying capacity of organic manures provides an important insight into more effective N management practices. The aims of this study were to determine the potential N mineralization of cow manure (CM), poultry manure (PM), urea fertilizer (UF) and the combined use of cow manure + urea fertilizer (CM + UF) for silage maize (Zea mays L.) in a calcareous so...

The effects of high and medium feed value grass silage or maize silage (MS), each offered with a range of concentrate feed levels, and ad libitum concentrate on the performance of finishing lambs, which were either shorn or unshorn, were evaluated. Three silages were used: 1 medium feed value (MFV) and 1 high feed value (HFV) grass silage (DM digestibility [DMD] of 71.3% and 74.5%, respectively...