Utilizing wood ash as a fertilizer in agriculture is a viable alternative to the soil nutrients absorbed by the crops. The aim of this study was to assess the phytometric and productive features of Brachiaria brizanth...Utilizing wood ash as a fertilizer in agriculture is a viable alternative to the soil nutrients absorbed by the crops. The aim of this study was to assess the phytometric and productive features of Brachiaria brizantha (cv. BRS Piatã) fertilized with wood ash in the Brazilian Cerrado. The experiment was performed in a greenhouse, adopting a completely randomized design, and applying five rates of wood ash (0, 5, 10, 15 and 20 g·dm-3) with five replicates. The shoot plant parts were subjected to three successive cuts 30-day intervals each. The results were submitted to the analysis of variance and regression analysis at 5% probability. The wood ash rates between 13 to 17 g·dm-3 clearly produced the best results for plant height (102.24, 84.42 and 63.27 cm), leaf/stem ratio (1.61, 1, 78 and 1.94), and chlorophyll index (46.66, 41.93 and 38.39), respectively, during the first, second and third evaluations. A 94% increase in the shoot dry mass (2nd and 3rd evaluations) and root parts was noted for the wood ash rate of 20 g·dm-3, compared with the treatment involving wood ash fertilization. Wood ash affects the phytometric features, increases the chlorophyll concentration and thus the BRS Piatãgrass production in the Oxisol of the Brazilian Cerrado.展开更多
This study was planned to analyse the basis that make Brachiaria species with greater feeding value than Napier grass(Pennisetum purpureum) for lactating dairy cows.Forty lactating crossbred cows were stallfed on Brac...This study was planned to analyse the basis that make Brachiaria species with greater feeding value than Napier grass(Pennisetum purpureum) for lactating dairy cows.Forty lactating crossbred cows were stallfed on Brachiaria brizantha cv.Piata or Napier grass cv.French Cameroon supplemented(mixed on fresh matter basis) or unsupplemented with Desmodium distortum, a forage legume.All cows were fed on fresh matter basis under small-holder farming conditions.Results showed that B.brizantha cv.Piata had higher contents of dry matter(DM), crude protein(CP) and organic matter(OM), but lower contents of neutral detergent fibre(NDF) and acid detergent fibre(ADF) than Napier grass(P < 0.001).The legume supplementation increased intakes of CP and metabolizable energy(ME; P < 0.001), with higher effect on cows fed B.brizantha cv.Piata than on cows fed Napier grass.Average daily milk yield was lower on diets based on Napier grass than those based on B.brizantha cv.Piata(P < 0.001).The retention time of the particle phase of digesta in the digestive tract was longer on Napier grass(83.1 h) than on B.brizantha cv.Piata(62.8 h)(P < 0.05).It was concluded that in dairy cows, legume supplementation of B.brizantha cv.Piata increases nutrient intake, hence resulting in higher milk yields than supplementation of Napier grass.展开更多
文摘Utilizing wood ash as a fertilizer in agriculture is a viable alternative to the soil nutrients absorbed by the crops. The aim of this study was to assess the phytometric and productive features of Brachiaria brizantha (cv. BRS Piatã) fertilized with wood ash in the Brazilian Cerrado. The experiment was performed in a greenhouse, adopting a completely randomized design, and applying five rates of wood ash (0, 5, 10, 15 and 20 g·dm-3) with five replicates. The shoot plant parts were subjected to three successive cuts 30-day intervals each. The results were submitted to the analysis of variance and regression analysis at 5% probability. The wood ash rates between 13 to 17 g·dm-3 clearly produced the best results for plant height (102.24, 84.42 and 63.27 cm), leaf/stem ratio (1.61, 1, 78 and 1.94), and chlorophyll index (46.66, 41.93 and 38.39), respectively, during the first, second and third evaluations. A 94% increase in the shoot dry mass (2nd and 3rd evaluations) and root parts was noted for the wood ash rate of 20 g·dm-3, compared with the treatment involving wood ash fertilization. Wood ash affects the phytometric features, increases the chlorophyll concentration and thus the BRS Piatãgrass production in the Oxisol of the Brazilian Cerrado.
基金financial support from Swedish International Development Agency (Sida) funded project on "Climate smart Brachiaria grasses to improve livestock production in East Africa" through Biosciences for eastern and central Africa under International Livestock Research Institute (Bec A-ILRI),Nairobi,Kenyathe CGIAR Fund
文摘This study was planned to analyse the basis that make Brachiaria species with greater feeding value than Napier grass(Pennisetum purpureum) for lactating dairy cows.Forty lactating crossbred cows were stallfed on Brachiaria brizantha cv.Piata or Napier grass cv.French Cameroon supplemented(mixed on fresh matter basis) or unsupplemented with Desmodium distortum, a forage legume.All cows were fed on fresh matter basis under small-holder farming conditions.Results showed that B.brizantha cv.Piata had higher contents of dry matter(DM), crude protein(CP) and organic matter(OM), but lower contents of neutral detergent fibre(NDF) and acid detergent fibre(ADF) than Napier grass(P < 0.001).The legume supplementation increased intakes of CP and metabolizable energy(ME; P < 0.001), with higher effect on cows fed B.brizantha cv.Piata than on cows fed Napier grass.Average daily milk yield was lower on diets based on Napier grass than those based on B.brizantha cv.Piata(P < 0.001).The retention time of the particle phase of digesta in the digestive tract was longer on Napier grass(83.1 h) than on B.brizantha cv.Piata(62.8 h)(P < 0.05).It was concluded that in dairy cows, legume supplementation of B.brizantha cv.Piata increases nutrient intake, hence resulting in higher milk yields than supplementation of Napier grass.
