Hydroponics Technology of Fodder Barley Production Used to Improve Feeding Livestock in Arid Regions of Tunisia

Abstract

Background and Objective: In Tunisia, the deficiency of feeding livestock increased by drought. Sprouting barley is a solution to feeding ruminants. This study was conducted to enhance the evolution of chemical composition, in vitro gas production, organic matter digestibility and metabolizable energy in four sprouting barley cultivars. Materials and Methods: Daily sampling was assessed to determine dry matter concentration and nutritional value on the 8th and 12th days with comparison to the original barley grains.Although, in vitro gas production and its parameters of sprouting barley were estimated using rumen fluid. Results: The crude protein, Fe, Zn, N, Ca, Mg and K contents were significantly higher (p<0.05) on the 8th day of germination for all cultivars followed by a gradual decrease on the 12th day. There was a 20 and 26% increase in the yield of dry matter of sprouts barley on the 8th and 12th day of germination, respectively compared to the original barley grain. Concentrations of neutral detergent and acid detergent fibre increased as days of development increased and remained highest on the 12th day at 36.47 and 16.24%, respectively. The highest gas production (78 mL/0.2 g), organic matter digestibility (94%) and metabolizable energy (3.8 Mcal gG 1 ) values were recorded (p<0.05) in fodder barley cv "Ardhaoui" harvested at 8 days of germination and the lowest (61 mL/0.2 g, 75%, 2.78 Mcal kgG 1 ) in sprouting barley "Rihane" sampled at 12 days. The gas production (75 mL/0.2 g), OMd (88.6%) and ME (3.2 Mcal kgG 1 ) values of original barley grain were similar to barley sprouting "Rihane" and "Souihli" sampled on the 8th day of germination. Conclusion: The barley sprouting cv "Ardhaoui" was the most suitable candidate as regards energy and protein contents followed by Rihane-Souihli and Arbi, thus it could be suggested to improve the quality of ruminant's diet, especially in the arid regions of Tunisia.