Production of dairy cows fed whole-crop cereals or ryegrass silages supplemented with a fixed amount of concentrate

Abstract

Feed intake and milk production responses to whole-crop cereal silages and ryegrass silage (RGS) supplemented with a fixed amount of concentrate were measured in three 4)/4 Latin square-designed experiment with three 17-day periods using 12 Holstein cows. Diets consisted of a fixed amount of concentrate (10 kg) and one of the following silages offered ad libitum : RGS, Mondego wheat silage (MWS), Alva wheat silage (AWS), and triticale silage (TS). Silage dry matter intake and milk yield were significantly higher for RGS. Milk composition was not affected by silage treatment. The whole-crop cereal silages tended to show higher milk concentrations of anteiso C15:0, iso C15:0, C16:1 and C18:1 and lower concentrations of C18:2 and C18:3. This study suggests better response of dairy cows to a single cut RGS than to whole-crop cereal silages harvested in an early stage of maturity.

Italian ryegrass silage in winter feeding of organic dairy cows: forage intake, milk yield and composition

“…The superiority of the Italian ryegrass diet is even more noteworthy since the control diet was superior in regard to energy and protein content and therefore should have promoted higher intakes 21. Previous studies under conventional agriculture conditions associated with high proportions of concentrates (45% of total diet DM) have shown higher intakes of Italian ryegrass silage as compared with corn silage and whole‐crop cereal silages 2, 3. When concentrates were increased to 55% of the total diet DM, no difference in forage intake between Italian ryegrass silage and whole‐crop wheat silage was observed 4…”

“…In contrast, van Dorland et al 28 observed lower proportions of short‐chain SFA and higher proportions of MUFA in milk fat from cows fed grass silage in comparison with grass/clover silages (red and white clover). When comparing Italian ryegrass silage and whole‐crop cereal silages, Cabrita et al 3 recorded higher levels of short‐chain SFA for the Italian ryegrass treatment but also higher proportions of the unsaturated long‐chain fatty acids C18:2 and C18:3. The n‐6/n‐3 fatty acid ratio in treatment RG was significantly higher than in treatment C. Nevertheless, with ratios below 2:1, milk fat from all cows was well below the recommendation of 5:1 given by DACH29 for human nutrition.…”

“…Compared with the standard value of 137 g crude protein kg −1 DM that DLG15 gives for silage from first‐cut Italian ryegrass in full ear emergence, the crude protein contents of both ensiled cuts of Italian ryegrass in the present experiment (85 and 118 g kg −1 DM respectively) can be considered rather low. However, crude protein contents as low as 100 g kg −1 DM and even lower have frequently been reported, both for silage produced from Italian ryegrass mown at a late vegetative stage (58–99 kg −1 DM)2, 3 and for fresh Italian ryegrass before ear emergence, when high biomass yields could be achieved 16. The difference in crude protein content between the second and the third cut of the present experiment might be related to the difference in regrowth period (38 and 29 days respectively), which was associated with different yields (1.4 and 0.9 t DM ha −1 respectively, data not shown), as well.…”

“…In conventional agriculture, Italian ryegrass ( Lolium multiflorum Lam.) is widely known as a high‐yielding, high‐energy forage that is well suited for the feeding of dairy cows, last but not least because of its ability to promote high forage intakes 2–5. In Austria, Italian ryegrass is rarely cultivated owing to its low frost resistance.…”

Environmental conditions affect the nutritive value and alkaloid profiles of Lupinus forage: Opportunities and threats for sustainable ruminant systems

“…The relatively high digestibility associated with the higher protein content of the studied lupin species than ryegrass and winter-cereal silages [ 59 , 60 ] makes them interesting forages to be used as sustainable protein sources in diets for ruminant animals, including for high-producing animals, namely, in diets based on maize silage for dairy cows. This assumes particular importance in the current context of Europe's high dependence on protein sources, making it highly vulnerable to the international market, and is in line with the measures that have sought to support European protein crops to address the imbalance between supply and demand for plant proteins [ 1 ].…”