The effect of Opuntia ficus indica and forage legumes based diets on goat productivity in smallholder sector in Zimbabwe

Gusha, J.; Halimani, T. E.; Katsande, S.; Zvinorova, P. I.

doi:10.1016/j.smallrumres.2015.02.018

Cited by 33 publications

(30 citation statements)

References 10 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…The use of alternative food resources, which are readily available in socially vulnerable regions, can be adopted as a means of alleviating food shortages, especially during times of deficit [1]. Thus, in recent years, there has been a great deal of research interest into the use of spineless cactus for animal feed, and its different species and genotypes for the important role they play in the success of sustainable agricultural systems in arid and semi-arid areas worldwide.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Intake, digestibility, and performance of lambs fed spineless cactus cv. Orelha de Elefante Mexicana

Ferreira

Batista

Maciel

et al. 2020

Asian-Australas J Anim Sci

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Objective: To evaluate the effects of the carmine cochineal-resistant spineless cactus genotypes cv. Orelha de Elefante Mexicana (Opuntia) and Miúda (Nopalea) on the intake and digestibility of nutrients, ingestive behavior, performance, and ultrasound measurements of growing lambs.Methods: Thirty-six male (non-castrated) Santa Inês lambs were used, with an average age of 6 months and an initial average weight of 22.0±2.9 kg. They were distributed in a completely randomized design with 3 treatments (Tifton hay, Nopalea and Opuntia) and 12 replications, using initial weight as a covariate. The experimental period was 86 days, with the first 30 days used for the adaptation of the animals to the facilities, diets and management, and the remaining 56 days used for evaluation and data collection.Results: The intake and apparent digestibility of dry matter (DM), organic matter (OM), crude protein (CP), neutral detergent fiber (NDF), total carbohydrates (TC), non-fibrous carbohydrates (NFC), and total digestible nutrients (TDN) showed a significant difference (p<0.05) as a function of the diets, with the Nopalea treatment (p<0.05) increasing DM intake (g/kg and % body weight [BW]), CP, TDN, and TC digestibility, whereas the Tifton hay diet led to a high (p<0.001) neutral detergent fiber corrected for ash and protein (NDFap) g/d intake, NDFap (BW %) and digestibility of said nutrient. There was no effect of treatments (p>0.05) on feeding time, however, rumination time and total chewing time were higher (p<0.05) for animals fed Tifton hay. The performance of the animals was similar (p>0.05). For the ultrasound measurements, Nopalea promoted an increase in the final loin eye area, compared to Tifton hay.Conclusion: The use of spineless cactus variety Miúda leads to the greater intake and digestibility of nutrients. The evaluated carmine cochineal-resistant spineless cactus genotypes are alternatives for semi-arid regions as they do not negatively affect the performance of growing lambs.

show abstract

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Intake, digestibility, and performance of lambs fed spineless cactus cv. Orelha de Elefante Mexicana

Ferreira

Batista

Maciel

et al. 2020

Asian-Australas J Anim Sci

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Cactus (Opuntia ficus-indica) is a multi-purpose shrub used as a fence to delimit lands, while its edible fruits and young cladodes are used as food, its seed oil as cosmetics and cladodes and inedible fruits as feed (Atti et al ., 2006; Vieira et al ., 2008 a , 2008 b ; Abidi et al ., 2009 b ; Gusha et al ., 2014, 2015). The composition of CCs is variable, depending on many factors such as age, season, variety, soil type and growing and climate conditions (Mondragón-Jacobo and Pérez-González, 2001).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Chemical composition and in vitro digestibility of alternative feed resources for ruminants in Mediterranean climates: olive cake and cactus cladodes

et al. 2019

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Olive cake (OC) and cactus cladodes (CCs) are two alternative feed resources widely available in Mediterranean areas. Their use in ruminant diets was assessed according to their chemical composition, secondary compound levels and digestibility. The effects of the olive oil extraction period and process, and CCs age and sampling period were evaluated. OC was collected monthly, from November to January, from mills using either a mechanical press or 2-phase or 3-phase centrifugation processes. CCs were collected fortnightly according to age (young and mature) from April to June. Two-phase OC had the lowest content of dry matter (DM), the highest nitrogen-free extract (NFE) and total and hydrolysable tannins and was more rapidly fermentable. Mechanical press OC was the least digestible. OC DM, protein and NFE were affected linearly by the extraction period. Gas production (GP), in vitro digestibility parameters and dry and organic enzymatic digestibility changed with the extraction period. Therefore, OC chemical composition and in vitro digestibility depended mainly on the extraction process and period. Compared to mature CCs , young CCs contained more water, protein, ether-extract and phenolic compounds, but less ash and fibre. GP and digestibility parameters were not affected by age, but in vitro organic matter digestibility and microbial biomass production were higher in young cladodes. CCs chemical composition, GP and digestibility parameters were influenced by the collection period. Due to its limited nutritional quality, OC should be enriched in nitrogen, while CCs could be considered as highly valuable forage in ruminant diet.

show abstract

“…The low water availability in arid and semiarid environments, and especially in dry seasons, compromising forage supply, has been the main barrier for the increasing of animal productivity (Gusha et al, 2015). In view of this, it is necessary to use adapted forage species to these conditions in order to ensure the food safety of the herds.…”

Section: Adapted Species To the Brazilian Semiarid (Bsa): Forage Cactmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…It is also found in the Mediterranean basin and semiarid regions of North America, South America and the African continent (Consoli et al, 2013). The plant has high water use efficiency due to its photosynthetic metabolism CAM (Crassulacean Acid Metabolism), producing up to four to five times more dry matter for each millimeter of precipitation, when compared to other species (Gusha et al, 2015), besides having a high water storage capacity (Scalisi et al, 2016).…”

Section: Adapted Species To the Brazilian Semiarid (Bsa): Forage Cactmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, it has a high content of mineral matter as well as non-fibrous carbohydrates, standing out as an energetic food (Ben Salem and Smith, 2008). Despite having a high acceptability and a high digestible energy content, the forage cactus is sometimes not readily accepted by ruminants due to the presence of thorns, and its exclusive supply can cause diarrhea due to its low fiber content (Gusha et al, 2015), decreased fat content in milk, low dry matter intake and consequent weight loss (Ben Salem and Smith, 2008). However, many studies have shown that the addition of forage cactus to the ruminant diet, replacing grass silage and hay (e.g.…”

Section: Adapted Species To the Brazilian Semiarid (Bsa): Forage Cactmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Practices for the improvement of the agricultural resilience of the forage production in semiarid environment: a review

Souza¹,

Silva²,

Souza³

et al. 2019

Amaz. Jour. of Plant Resear.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Water scarcity, climatic conditions and low availability of fodder produced in Caatinga are some of the main problems faced by farmers in the Brazilian semiarid region. Therefore, the objective of this paper is to review some agricultural resilience practices that aim to increase forage production in the Brazilian semiarid. Several studies have shown that the use of fodder plants tolerant to this type of environment is essential to improve the production of ruminant feed. Among these, we highlight the forage cactus, which is rich in water, energy and minerals and highly tolerant to water deficit. Millet, in turn, is another plant that adapts to this environment, presenting better nutritional characteristics, besides being a more fibrous vegetable, and can be associated with cactus in the diet of the herds. This association can be done through the intercropping, which allows the simultaneous cultivation of two or more species in the same area, aiming at the most efficient use of available natural resources. The use of irrigation events with minimal and regular water use in cactus crops has been shown to be a very promising practice. However, the scarcity of this resource in semiarid regions, adding to this increasing salt concentrations in the springs, requires proper management. Additionally, other agricultural resilience practices, such as mulching, can directly contribute to reducing the need for irrigation, conserving soil moisture, decreasing soil thermal amplitude, improving its chemical, physical and biological properties, contributing to improved agricultural yields.

show abstract

The effect of Opuntia ficus indica and forage legumes based diets on goat productivity in smallholder sector in Zimbabwe

Cited by 33 publications

References 10 publications

Intake, digestibility, and performance of lambs fed spineless cactus cv. Orelha de Elefante Mexicana

Intake, digestibility, and performance of lambs fed spineless cactus cv. Orelha de Elefante Mexicana

Chemical composition and in vitro digestibility of alternative feed resources for ruminants in Mediterranean climates: olive cake and cactus cladodes

Practices for the improvement of the agricultural resilience of the forage production in semiarid environment: a review

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About