Lecture Notes on Fodder Conservation and Silage Making

Flashcards covering key vocabulary and concepts related to fodder conservation, silage, and ensilage processes.

Fodder Conservation

Processes and practices to ensure fodder is available for livestock when natural pasture is deficient, transferring surplus forage production from peak season to deficit periods.

Reasons to Produce Fodder

Diminishing rangelands, droughts, intensive production systems, income generation, increasing animal and human populations, diversification of the economy, efficient use of resources.

Silage

The product formed when grass or other material of sufficiently high moisture content is compressed and stored in anaerobic conditions.

Ensilage

The process of silage making which takes place in a vessel or structure called a silo.

Silo

A vessel or structure used for ensilage.

Silage Making Process

Involves acid fermentation where bacteria produce lactic, acetic, and butyric acids from sugars, reducing pH and preventing spoilage microbes.

Efficiency of Ensilage

Judged by the properties of fermentation acids, with a higher ratio of lactic to acetic acid indicating greater efficiency.

Good vs. Poor Silage

Good silage is dominated by lactic acid, while poor silage is dominated by butyric acid.

When to Use Ensiling

When drying is not feasible or crops would deteriorate if allowed to dry.

Common Crops for Ensiling

Grasses, legumes, whole cereals (especially maize), and fruit residues.

Upright or Tower Silo

Cylindrical vertical structures best suited for mechanized production systems, but costly.

Trench Silo

Cheapest type of horizontal silo, easy to fill but difficult to remove silage, a simple excavation beneath the ground.

Bunker Silo

An above-ground silo with concrete retaining walls open at one end, costly to construct but easy to use.

Temporary Silos

Constructed from plastic films, baled hay, or other material that provides a retaining wall.

Stack Silos

Formed by stacking forage directly on the ground or a concrete slab, usually covered with plastic film.

Preferred Silo Types

Walled bunker and tower silos because they are easier to fill and have less wastage than pit (trench) silos.

Nutrient Losses During Ensilage

Respiration of plant material, air infiltration, fermentation, discharge of effluent, and aerobic deterioration.

Ideal Dry Matter Content for Grass

About 25% to reduce effluent losses but not too dry for compaction.

Dry Matter Losses in Silage

Respiration and fermentation (5-10%), effluent (0-7%), wastage (0-50%), secondary fermentation (0-5%).

Direct Cuts

The crop is cut, collected, taken to a silo, and ensiled.

Pre-Wilted

The crop is cut and left to wilt in the field, then collected, taken to a silo, and ensiled to give high DM and better quality silage but requires more labor.

Main Steps in Ensilage

Harvesting, silo filling, and sealing.

Factors Influencing the Ensilage Process

Wilting the crop, chopping, type of silo, and silage additives.

Lactic Fermentation

One of two basic fermentations during ensilage, producing lactic acid.

Clostridial (Butyric Acid) Fermentation

Secondary fermentation that occurs when lactic acid is insufficient, fuelled by a constant supply of oxygen.

Sequence of Events in Silage Fermentation

Crop respires, anaerobic conditions established, lactic acid bacteria multiply, pH decreases, static situation ensues, Clostridium bacteria predominate if lactic acid is insufficient.

Stages in Normal Fermentation

Ensiling, oxygen consumption, lactic acid production, pH drop, gradual temperature fall.

Determination of Silage Quality

Verify pH, test for lactic acid content, color criteria (greenish yellow for lactic acid silage), and smell (nice for lactic acid, evil for butyric acid).

Advantages of Silage

Not weather-dependent, harvested at an immature stage, high in quality, superior to hay in energy and CP content, feeds more livestock per unit area, forage harvesting can be mechanized.

Disadvantages of Silage

High DM losses, offensive colors and odors, difficulties in handling bulky material, cost of equipment, effluent problems, not easily marketable.