NUTRITIVE-VALUE OF SILAGE MADE OF WHOLE BARLEY CROP HARVESTED AT VARIOUS STAGES OF MATURITY

The chemical composition of silage from whole crop barley (Hordeum vul gare L.) harvested at head emergence, milk or dough stage of maturity was estimated and palatability and digestibility trials on sheep were conducted. Crude protein and ADF content in DM decreased with advancin g maturity from about 104 to 84 and 350 to 306 g/kg, whereas DM, ADL a nd N-free extractives increased at the same time from 222 to 317; 27 t o 39.6, and 439 to 522 g/kg, respectively. Palatability and voluntary intake of silage produced from barley harvested at milk and dough stag es of maturity were higher. The proportion of lactic acid to total aci ds was similar in all silages (0.85), the percent of NH3-N in total N decreased with advancing maturity from 13.3 to 10.0. Voluntary silage DM intake increased with maturity of barley, but digestibility of crud e fibre, NDF, ADF, ether extract and N-free extractives decreased. Sil age contained (per kg of DM): 103.8, 93.9, 83.7g of crude protein; 63. 8, 57.7, 51.4 g PDIN; 70.9, 67.6, 66.3 g PDIE and 0.68, 0.67, 0.70 UFL at head emergence, milk and dough stages of maturity, respectively. H arvesting of whole crop barley at milk or dough stage of maturity is r ecommended for silage making.