The suitability of five species of Ficus, F. mucoso, F. thonningii, F. polita, F. religiosa and F. benjamina, for feeding ruminant livestock was studied. The nutritive and antinutritive components were determined and the acceptability of the forages to livestock was assessed using a cafeteria method in 8 adult small ruminants. Also, the degradation potential of the dry matter of the five Ficus species was investigated using 3 fistulated sheep. The crude protein (CP) content of the Ficus species varied significantly (p < 0.05), ranging from 130 to 180 g/kg DM. The content of neutral detergent fibre (NDF) also varied significantly (p < 0.05), ranging from 650 to 710 g/kg DM. The organic matter (OM) contents did not differ significantly (p > 0.05), having a mean value of 916 g/kg DM. The concentrations of tannin, saponin, phytic acid and oxalic acid were low. The acceptability of the forage was similar for four of the species but poor for F. polita. The extent of DM degradation varied significant among the Ficus species, the ranking order being F. benjamina > F. thonningii > F. mucoso > F. religiosa > F. polita.

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A field experiment was conducted in 2006 and 2007 to determine the agronomic performance and nutritive value of Sorghum almum for introduction in the derived savannah area of Nigeria. The experiment was arranged in a 2 · 4 factorial design with 2 plant spacings (0AE5 · 0AE5 m and 1AE0 · 1AE0 m) and 4 nitrogen (N) fertilizer levels (0, 60, 120 and 180 kg N ha )1 ). Plant height, tiller number, leaf proportion, biomass yield and nutritive value of the herbage were evaluated as part of the search for alternatives (especially drought tolerant) to local forages for dry season feeding of ruminants. Herbage yield data were tested for linear, quadratic and cubic trends to identify the optimal fertilizer levels for both spacings. Spacing · N interactions (P < 0AE05) were observed for plant height and tiller number in both years. Agronomic performance was marginally better in 2007 compared with 2006. The maximum dry-matter (DM) yield of 3500 and 3740 kg ha )1 for the more dense row spacing (0AE5 · 0AE5 m) was achieved at N fertilizer levels of 144 and 149 kg N ha )1 for 2006 and 2007 respectively. For the less dense (1AE0 · 1AE0 m) row spacing, the maximum DM yield of 3020 and 3240 kg ha )1 was achieved at 51 and 97 kg N ha )1 for 2006 and 2007 respectively. The crude protein content of the grass ranged from 61 to 89 g kg )1 DM, while the neutral detergent fibre (NDF) content ranged from 700 to 734 g kg )1 DM. The ability of S. almum to persist into the second year in this region is seen as a promising index as persistence is one of the characteristics of a good forage plant. Considering the exorbitant price of N fertilizer, less dense row spacing with N fertilizer rate in the range of 50-100 kg N ha )1 is hereby recommended for this region.