scholarly journals The digestion of perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne cv. Melle) and white clover (Trifolium repens cv. Blanca) by grazing cattle

1988 ◽  
Vol 60 (1) ◽  
pp. 137-149 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. J. Ulyatt ◽  
D. J. Thomson ◽  
D. E. Beever ◽  
R. T. Evans ◽  
M. J. Haines
Keyword(s):  
Small Intestine ◽  
Perennial Ryegrass ◽  
White Clover ◽  
Trifolium Repens ◽  
Water Soluble ◽  
Soluble Carbohydrate ◽  
Derived Relations ◽  
Primary Growth

1. Pure swards of perennial ryegrass (Loliwn perenne cv. Melle) as a primary growth (May), trimmed primary growth (early June) and regrowth (late June), and white clover (Trifolium repens cv. Blanca) as a mature primary growth (July) and vegetative regrowth (August), were grazed by twelve Friesian steers (mean body-weights throughout experiment 152–231 kg) at daily allocation rates of forage which provided dry matter (DM) intakes ranging from 28 to 36 g/kg body-weight).2. Total nitrogen contents of the three ryegrasses declined with season (37–20 g/kg DM), but in vitro organic matter (OM) digestibilities were relatively constant (0.76–0.79). The clovers had higher N (average 366 g/kg DM) and lower fibre and water-soluble carbohydrate contents than the grasses, and in vitro OM digestibilities of 0.70 and 076 respectively.3. Duodenal digesta samples were obtained, using a portable sampling apparatus from the animals grazing the pasture, and estimates of the flow of nutrients into the small intestine were derived using two indigestible markers which were continuously infused into the rumen using a portable infusion apparatus. Forage intakes were calculated from estimates of faecal output of indigestible OM and the predicted in vivo OM digestibilities of the forages consumed. Coefficients of variation for OM flow to the small intestine and OM intake were 11.8 and 10.9 % respectively.4. The apparent digestion of OM in the rumen ranged from 722 to 741 g/kg digestible OM intake and from 681 to 711 g/kg digestible OM intake for the grass and clover diets respectively. Substantial losses of ingested N before the small intestine were measured on all diets except the regrowth ryegrass. Losses were 0.30 and 040 g/g N intake on the primary growth ryegrass and the regrowth clover respectively; N contents were 37 and 39 g/kg DM respectively.5. Comparison of the values obtained at pasture with that obtained when similar diets were offered to housed cattle (Beever et al. 1985) indicated that combined relations relating duodenal OM and non-ammonia-N (NAN) flows to OM and N intakes respectively could be established for each diet. For two diets (primary-growth grass and regrowth clover) the relations were curvilinear; for the remaining diets, the derived relations were linear.6. The effects of forage species, stage of maturity and variations in the stem: leaf ratio in the grasses, on nutrient supply in grazing animals are discussed, and a combined relation for all grazed and harvested forages examined in this and in a previous study reported by Beever et al. (1985) is established. The relation Y = 1.430 - 0.0169X (r072, residual sd 0.140). where Y is NAN flow/N intake (g/g) and X is N content in the crop (gfkg OM), indicates that net losses of N across the rumen will occur on diets which contain more than 25.5 g N/kg OM.7. Possible limitations in the techniques available to measure nutrient digestion and supply in grazing ruminants are discussed.

The assessment of herbage legume varieties. II. In vitro digestibility, water soluble carbohydrate, crude protein and mineral content of primary growth of clover and lucerne

1966 ◽  
Vol 66 (3) ◽  
pp. 351-357 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. Ellis Davies ◽  
G. ap Griffith ◽  
A. Ellington
Keyword(s):  
White Clover ◽  
Crude Protein ◽  
Dry Matter ◽  
Red Clover ◽  
Water Soluble ◽  
Soluble Carbohydrates ◽  
Soluble Carbohydrate ◽  
In Vitro Digestibility ◽  
Primary Growth

The primary growth of eight varieties of three species–white clover (3), red clover (4) and lucerne (1)–was sampled at fortnightly intervals and the percentage dry matter, in vitro digestibility, crude protein, water soluble carbohydrates, P, Ca, K, Na and Mg were determined.Differences between species were nearly always significant and the general order of merit was white clover, red clover and lucerne. The exceptions were for dry-matter percentage where this order was reversed, and red clover had the lowest Na and highest Mg content.

Quantitative digestion of fresh herbage by sheep:V. The digestion of four herbages and prediction of sites of digestion

1979 ◽  
Vol 92 (3) ◽  
pp. 605-616 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. J. Ulyatt ◽  
A. R. Egan
Keyword(s):  
Organic Matter ◽  
Small Intestine ◽  
Organic Acids ◽  
Perennial Ryegrass ◽  
White Clover ◽  
Crude Protein ◽  
Water Soluble ◽  
Soluble Carbohydrate ◽  
Water Soluble Carbohydrate ◽  
Dietary Origin

SUMMARYThe extents and sites of digestion of organic matter (OM), and its constituent watersoluble carbohydrates, organic acids, pectin, cellulose, hemicellulose and crude protein have been studied in sheep prepared with re-entrant duodenal cannulas and fed four fresh herbage diets, Ruanui perennial ryegrass, Tama Westerwolds ryegrass, Pitau white clover and Fakir sainfoin, at each of two levels of intake.The water-soluble carbohydrate, organic acids and pectin of all diets were almost completely digested within the rumen. Some 10% of water soluble carbohydrate reached the duodenum on each diet, though this may not have been of dietary origin. Only on legume diets, where pectin concentration was higher, did measurable amounts of pectin reach the intestine, accounting for some 5% of the pectin.Hemicellulose and cellulose digestibilities differed between diets, being lowest for sainfoin, and next lowest for clover. Between 79 and 94% of digestible hemicellulose was digested in the stomach, but diet and intake had no significant effect on this partition. Of the digestible cellulose, 87–97% was digested in the stomach.Digestibility of N was lowest for sainfoin and highest for Tama ryegrass. There were no significant differences between herbage species or intake in the percentage of digested N digested in the stomach or intestines. The tannin contained in sainfoin had no effect on nitrogen digestion.Data from this and other studies reported in the literature were examined as a basis for establishing prediction equations whereby the partition of digestion of the major carbohydrate and nitrogenous constituents in stomach and intestines might be estimated from data obtainable from standard digestibility trials. Regressions were developed for predicting the amounts of OM, cellulose, and hemicellulose digested in the stomach. There are not yet enough suitable data available to predict the amount of nitrogen entering the small intestine.

scholarly journals The effect of forage species and stage of harvest on the processes of digestion occurring in the rumen of cattle

1986 ◽  
Vol 56 (2) ◽  
pp. 439-454 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. E. Beever ◽  
M. S. Dhanoa ◽  
H. R. Losada ◽  
R. T. Evans ◽  
S. B. Cammell ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Small Intestine ◽  
White Clover ◽  
Live Weight ◽  
Water Soluble ◽  
Soluble Carbohydrate ◽  
Late Season ◽  
Forage Species ◽  
Water Soluble Carbohydrate ◽  
Microbial N

1. Pure swards of perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L. cv. Melle) or white clover (Trifolium repens L. cv. Blanca) were harvested daily as either primary growth (May-June) or mid- (July) and late- (August-September) season 4-week regrowths and offered to Friesian steers at two levels of feed allowance (18 and 24 g dry matter (DM)/kg live weight), to examine the effect of forage species and stage of harvest on nutrient digestion and supply.2. The early- and mid-season grasses had low nitrogen (23 g/kg DM) and high water-soluble carbohydrate (169 g/kg) contents whilst the late-season grass had a higher N content (28 g/kg). All clover diets had high N (average 45 g/kg) and low water-soluble carbohydrate (89 g/kg) contents, and DM digestibility on all diets ranged from 0.77 to 0.83 (mean of two feeding levels).3. Mean total rumen volatile fatty acid concentrations were significantly (P < 0.001) higher on the clover diets, whilst on the grass diets molar proportions of propionate showed a slight but not significant decline with advancing season and tended to be higher than those on the clover diets. Mean rumen ammonia concentrations were significantly (P < 0.001) lower on the early- and mid-season grasses (59 mg NH3-N/1) than the late-season grass (242 mg/l) and early-season clover (283 mg/l) which were all significantly (P < 0.01) lower than the mid-and late-season clovers (372 and 590 mg/l) respectively.4. Rates of organic matter (OM) and N digestion in the rumen were estimated using established nylon-bag techniques and found to be high on all diets, but significant effects due to forage species (clover > grass; P < 0.001) were detected, whilst overall potential degradability in the rumen exceeded 0.89 for both OM and N on all diets.5. Significantly (P < 0.001) more OM entered the small intestine of calves fed on white clover (10.2 g/kg live weight) than those fed on ryegrass (8.33 g/kg) and similar effects due to level of feeding (g/kg; low 7.9, high 10.6; P < 0.05) and stage of harvest (g/kg; early 8.3 v. mid 10.0, late 9.50; P < 0.05) were also detected. Non-NH3-N (NAN) flow (g/kg) to the small intestine was increased by forage species (grass 0.56, clover 0.69; P < 0.05) and stage of harvest (early 0.59 v. mid 0.65, late 0.64; P > 0.05) whilst NAN flow/N intake ranged from 0.96 to 1.65 g/g (mean 1.25) on the grass diets and from 0.64 to 0.84 g/g (mean 0.75) on the clovers (P < 0001).6. Microbial N flow to the small intestine averaged 0.72 of duodenal NAN (grass 0.76, clover 0.69). Efficiency of microbial N synthesis was high on all diets, (g/kg OM truly digested in the rumen; grass 33.5, clover 36.3), as was the estimated extent of in vivo feed N degradation (g/g N intake; grass 0.75, clover 0.79).7. A model is described to simulate the progress curves of the ratio, degraded N:degraded OM in the rumen for the six diets, using indices obtained in the present study. The results are ratified with the in vivo observations of N utilization in the rumen for the grass and clover diets.8. It is concluded that both forage species and stage of harvest can significantly influence the processes of rumen digestion and nutrient supply, but with the fresh forages examined in the present study, it would appear that the processes of digestion in the rumen greatly outweighed the passage of potentially digestible nutrients from the rumen.

scholarly journals The digestion of fresh perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L. cv. Melle) and white clover (Trifolium repens L. cv. Blanca) by growing cattle fed indoors

1985 ◽  
Vol 54 (3) ◽  
pp. 763-775 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. E. Beever ◽  
D. J. Thomson ◽  
M. J. Ulyatt ◽  
S. B. Cammell ◽  
M. C. Spooner
Keyword(s):  
Organic Matter ◽  
White Clover ◽  
Live Weight ◽  
Nutrient Supply ◽  
Metabolizable Energy ◽  
Water Soluble ◽  
Soluble Carbohydrate ◽  
Primary Growth ◽  
Water Soluble Carbohydrate

1. Pure swards of perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L. cv. Melle) or white clover (Trifolium repens L.cv. Blanca) were harvested daily at three and two stages of growth respectively, and offered to housed cattle. The grass diets comprised primary growth (May) and two later regrowths of contrasting morphology (i.e. leaf: stem values of 1.54 and 2.84 respectively), and were characterized by high contents of water-soluble carbohydrate and neutral- detergent fibre and comparable in vitro dry matter (DM) digestibilities (mean 0.80). Total nitrogen content was higher on primary growth grass (34 g/kg DM) than on regrowths (23 g/kg DM) but lower than values obtained for the two clover diets (38 and 43 g/kg DM, respectively). The clover diets had lower water-soluble carbohydrate contents than the grasses, comparable cellulose, but lower neutral-detergent fibre contents and in vitro DM digestibilities of 0.70 and 0.77 respectively.2. The experiment lasted from May until August, during which time a total of twenty-one young Friesian steers (initial average live weight 130 kg) were used to determine both nutrient supply to the small intestine (twelve animals) and apparent digestibility (nine animals). Each diet was offered at three levels of DM intake (i.e. 18, 22 and 26 g/kg live weight). A further six steers, all fed at the rate of 22 g DM/kg live weight, were used to determine the metabolizable energy contents of the five diets by means of open-circuit calorimetry.3. The three grass diets and the later-cut clover had, as intended, quite similar in vivo organic matter digestibilities, but that of the earlier-cut clover was lower, and this was associated with a large number of flower heads in this crop at the time of feeding.4. On the clover diets, proportionately less of the ingested organic matter appeared to be digested in the rumen (0.40) compared with the grass diets (0.58) (P < 0.001). On the high-N primary grass and the clover diets, substantial rumen losses of N were detected (P < 0.01) compared with regrowth grasses.5. The metabolizable energy content of the primary growth of grass was 12.2 MJ/kg DM, whilst the values for the other two grass diets were lower (11.6 MJ/kg DM), despite no marked decline in overall energy digestibility. Values for the two clover diets (mean 10.5 MJ/kg DM) were considerably lower than all values noted for the grasses.6. The amount of absorbed non-ammonia-N expressed per MJ metabolizable energy averaged 1.24 g/MJ on the grass diets, with no apparent seasonal effects, compared with 1.79 g/MJ on the two clover diets.7. Reasons for variations in nutrient supply and the consequence of considerable rumen losses of ingested N on the high-N diets are discussed, and the contribution that white clover can make to overall protein supply in grazing ruminants is established.

Nutrients in ryegrass (Lolium spp.), white clover (Trifolium repens) and kikuyu (Pennisetum clandestinum) pastures in relation to season and stage of regrowth in a subtropical environment

1998 ◽  
Vol 38 (3) ◽  
pp. 227 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. J. Fulkerson ◽  
K. Slack ◽  
D. W. Hennessy ◽  
G. M. Hough
Keyword(s):  
Dairy Cows ◽  
Perennial Ryegrass ◽  
White Clover ◽  
Trifolium Repens ◽  
Growing Season ◽  
Water Soluble ◽  
Pennisetum Clandestinum ◽  
Tiller Stage ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Kikuyu Grass

Summary. On the subtropical north coast of New South Wales, Australia, kikuyu grass (Pennisetum clandestinum), biennial ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum) and mixed perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne)–white clover (Trifolium repens) pastures grazed by dairy cows were plucked pregrazing to simulated grazing height, every 2 weeks for 2 years to determine seasonal changes in various nutrients and in sacco organic matter and nitrogen (N) degradability. Changes in nutrients during regrowth were determined in the ryegrass component of a mixed perennial ryegrass–white clover pasture by sequentially cutting pasture at 3- or 4-day intervals to 5 cm stubble height and non-structural carbohydrates in kikuyu by cutting at 4-day intervals in February–March. There was a significant effect of season on water-soluble carbohydrate (WSC) and crude protein (CP) content of perennial ryegrass with regrowth time, resulting in an 8-fold fall in the CP : WSC ratio from the 1 to 3 leaves/tiller stage of regrowth in mid winter, a 2-fold difference in mid spring but with no discernible difference in late spring. The metabolisable energy (ME) values for biennial ryegrass exceeded 11.9 MJ/kg dry matter (DM) from July to September and then fell markedly to <10 MJ/kg DM in November, coinciding with reproductive development. In perennial ryegrass–white clover pastures, mean ME was above 11 MJ/kg DM from May to September, but fell to < 9 MJ/kg DM in December while in kikuyu, the mean ME, over the recognised growing season, was 8.5 MJ/kg DM but in winter it was 9.5 MJ/kg DM. Fibre content in all pasture types showed a significant seasonal trend with the content of acid detergent fibre (ADF) in biennial ryegrass at 17% from May to August while the mean neutral detergent fibre (NDF) content was 37%. In perennial ryegrass–white clover, the mean ADF was <21% from May to August. The NDF content of kikuyu grass was about 60% during the growing season but 40% in winter. The calcium (Ca) : phosphorus (P) ratio in perennial ryegrass rose from <1 : 1 at the 1 leaf/tiller stage to 2.2 : 1 at the 3 leaves/tiller stage of regrowth due to a simultaneous fall in P and a rise in Ca. A fall in potassium (K) and a rise in magnesium (Mg) and Ca content in perennial ryegrass gave a very significant linear fall in K/(Mg + Ca), on a percentage basis, from 8 at the 1 leaf/tiller stage of regrowth, to 2.5 at the 3 leaves/tiller stage of regrowth. In kikuyu, the level of P changed significantly with season falling as the species became dormant. A fall in P and a rise in Ca content resulted in a high Ca : P ratio (2.5 : 1) in spring. The findings of this study give some insight into the reason why the content of various nutrients change in pasture and the implication of this for providing a balanced diet to dairy cows. A knowledge of these changes should provide the opportunity to balance nutrients in pasture by adjusting time of grazing and/or providing supplements of appropriate quality.

The impact of hexose partitioning in sheep in vivo

2001 ◽  
Vol 2001 ◽  
pp. 157-157 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. R. Moss ◽  
C. J. Newbold ◽  
D.I. Givens
Keyword(s):  
Methane Production ◽  
Short Chain Fatty Acids ◽  
Water Soluble ◽  
Soluble Carbohydrate ◽  
Carbohydrate Source ◽  
Fermentation Products ◽  
Water Soluble Carbohydrate ◽  
The Impact

Methane production represents an important sink for hydrogen within the rumen Beever (1993) suggested that the partitioning of fermentable dry matter (DM) between microbial synthesis and fermentation products would alter the pattern of hydrogen production and hence methanogenesis. This hypothesis was investigated in vitro using a range of diets varying in carbohydrate source (Moss et al., 2000). Methane production (moles) increased as the proportion of DM fermented to short chain fatty acids (SCFA) increased and this was related to decreasing water soluble carbohydrate (WSC) to cell wall (NDF) ratio of the diet. The objectives of the current study was to design diets with a range of WSC:NDF ratios and to measure the impact on hexose partitioning and methane production in sheep in vivo.

scholarly journals Condensed Tannins in White Clover (Trifolium repens) Foliar Tissues Expressing the Transcription Factor TaMYB14-1 Bind to Forage Protein and Reduce Ammonia and Methane Emissions in vitro

2022 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marissa B. Roldan ◽  
Greig Cousins ◽  
Stefan Muetzel ◽  
Wayne E. Zeller ◽  
Karl Fraser ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Nitrous Oxide ◽  
Transcription Factor ◽  
White Clover ◽  
Trifolium Repens ◽  
Condensed Tannins ◽  
Animal Health ◽  
Methane Emissions ◽  
Nitrous Oxide Emissions

Grazing ruminants contribute to global climate change through enteric methane and nitrous oxide emissions. However, animal consumption of the plant polyphenolics, proanthocyanidins, or condensed tannins (CTs) can decrease both methane emissions and urine nitrogen levels, leading to reduced nitrous oxide emissions, and concomitantly increase animal health and production. CTs are largely absent in the foliage of important temperate pasture legumes, such as white clover (Trifolium repens), but found in flowers and seed coats. Attempts at enhancing levels of CT expression in white clover leaves by mutagenesis and breeding have not been successful. However, the transformation of white clover with the TaMYB14-1 transcription factor from Trifolium arvense has resulted in the production of CTs in leaves up to 1.2% of dry matter (DM). In this study, two generations of breeding elevated foliar CTs to &gt;2% of DM. The CTs consisted predominantly of prodelphinidins (PD, 75–93%) and procyanidins (PC, 17–25%) and had a mean degree of polymerization (mDP) of approximately 10 flavan-3-ol subunits. In vitro studies showed that foliar CTs were bound to bovine serum albumin and white clover proteins at pH 6.5 and were released at pH 2.-2.5. Using rumen in vitro assays, white clover leaves containing soluble CTs of 1.6–2.4% of DM significantly reduced methane production by 19% (p ≤0.01) and ammonia production by 60% (p ≤ 0.01) relative to non-transformed wild type (WT) controls after 6 h of incubation. These results provide valuable information for further studies using CT expressing white clover leaves for bloat prevention and reduced greenhouse gas emissions in vivo.

Effect of extracts of Dactylis glomerata on the in vitro digestion of Trifolium repens

1972 ◽  
Vol 12 (57) ◽  
pp. 361 ◽  
Author(s):  
J Clark ◽  
K Santhirasegaram
Keyword(s):  
White Clover ◽  
Trifolium Repens ◽  
Dry Matter ◽  
Dactylis Glomerata ◽  
In Vitro Digestion ◽  
Water Soluble ◽  
Metabolic Inhibitor ◽  
Dry Matter Digestibility ◽  
In Vitro Technique

White clover (Trifolium repens) was fermented in the presence of detergent extracts of thirty-two cocksfoot (Dactylis glomerata) cultivars and eight other pasture species, using a two stage in vitro technique. The in vitro dry matter digestibility of white clover was not depressed by the presence of the detergent extracts to any practical extent. The small depression observed was probably due to the presence of water soluble components of the pasture species. The presence of a detergent-soluble, metabolic inhibitor in cocksfoot cultivars, or the eight other pasture species, was not exhibited using the method described. The in vitro dry matter digestibility of white clover in the presence of detergent extracts of cocksfoot was not correlated with the digestibility values of the cocksfoot samples from which the extracts were made. This suggests that the wide variation observed in the digestibility of the cocksfoot cultivars (54 to 80 per cent) was not due to the presence of any detergent-soluble, inhibiting substances.

Perennial ryegrass endophytes in Galicia, Northwest Spain

1997 ◽  
Vol 129 (2) ◽  
pp. 173-177 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. A. OLIVEIRA ◽  
G. E. ROTTINGHAUS ◽  
J. COLLAR ◽  
P. CASTRO
Keyword(s):  
Perennial Ryegrass ◽  
Crude Protein ◽  
Total Yield ◽  
Water Soluble ◽  
Soluble Carbohydrate ◽  
Endophyte Infection ◽  
Sib Families ◽  
Rust Susceptibility ◽  
Water Soluble Carbohydrate

Fifty-six half-sib families of perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne), derived from wild populations in Galicia, were examined for the presence of perennial ryegrass endophytes; 28 were endophyte-infected (E+) and 28 were endophyte-free (E−). All families were established in spaced-plant nurseries and trial plots at two locations in Galicia, in 1992. E+ families had a significantly (P<0·05) higher first cut, spring and total yield than E− families at one location in the third year after planting. At this location, water deficit was about 75% higher than at the other location in all three years of study. Endophyte did not affect crown rust susceptibility or forage quality (crude protein, water-soluble carbohydrate and in vitro digestibility). Ergovaline alkaloid concentration in the 28 E+ families varied from 0 to 0·55 μg/g dry matter (DM) (mean 0·15), with 14 families containing levels of ergovaline >0·1 μg/g DM. Thus endophyte infection may benefit the host in drought-prone areas of Galicia, with an increased chance of E+ plants being favoured by either natural or artificial selection.

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