Nutritional Status of Wood Melick (<i>Melica uniflora</i> Retz.) in a Natural Forest Stand in South-Western Poland
<i>Melica uniflora</i> Retz., commonly known as wood melick, is a grass species that is native to most of Europe. <i>Melica uniflora</i> grows in hardwood forests near <i>Fagus</i> species, providing vital food and shelter for forest wildlife. The nutritional stat...
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MDPI AG
2023-08-01
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/1999-4907/14/8/1605 |
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| author | Anna Paszkiewicz-Jasińska Barbara Wróbel Wojciech Stopa Zuzanna Jakubowska Aleksandra Steinhoff-Wrześniewska Waldemar Zielewicz |
| author_facet | Anna Paszkiewicz-Jasińska Barbara Wróbel Wojciech Stopa Zuzanna Jakubowska Aleksandra Steinhoff-Wrześniewska Waldemar Zielewicz |
| author_sort | Anna Paszkiewicz-Jasińska |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | <i>Melica uniflora</i> Retz., commonly known as wood melick, is a grass species that is native to most of Europe. <i>Melica uniflora</i> grows in hardwood forests near <i>Fagus</i> species, providing vital food and shelter for forest wildlife. The nutritional status of wood melick is not sufficiently recognized. The study aims to identify the intrapopulation variability of <i>Melica uniflora</i> plants collected from natural forest habitats in Poland in terms of nutritional status variability in relation to stage development and the course of weather conditions. The research was conducted for two consecutive years: 2021 and 2022, in the area of the Ślęża Massif, near the town of Sobótka in Lower Silesia voivodeship (Poland). The material for analyses was collected from 10 natural forest sites twice: in July (I) and October (II). The content of nutritive components: crude protein (CP), crude ash (CA), neutral detergent fiber (NDF), acid detergent fiber (ADF), acid detergent lignin (ADL), and water-soluble carbohydrates (WSC) was evaluated. Relative feed value (RFV), dry matter digestibility (DDM), dry matter intake (DMI), cellulose (CL), and hemicellulose (HCL) content were calculated based on ADF and NDF. <i>Melica uniflora</i> plants contained 75.2 g·kg<sup>−1</sup> DM of CP, 290.6 g·kg<sup>−1</sup> DM of CF, 120.0 g·kg<sup>−1</sup> DM of CA, and 25.9 g·kg<sup>−1</sup> DM of WSC. The content of NDF was 637.6 g·kg<sup>−1</sup> DM, ADF 407.5 g·kg<sup>−1</sup> DM, and ADL 58.0 g·kg<sup>−1</sup> DM. The nutritional status of wood melick depended on the course of weather conditions in the following years and its location, which changed during the growing season. Plants collected in the first year of the study contained more CL, NDF, and ADF fractions and less CA, ADL, and WSC. <i>Melica uniflora</i> plants harvested in June were characterized by higher CP (102.1 g·kg<sup>−1</sup> DM) and WSC (30.1 g·kg<sup>−1</sup> DM) content and lower content of remaining nutrients. It can be concluded that <i>Melica uniflora</i> plants can be a valuable source of these nutrients in the forage of forest animals. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T23:56:10Z |
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| spelling | doaj.art-58c08d428b614824b1f66958c517fc152023-11-19T01:09:15ZengMDPI AGForests1999-49072023-08-01148160510.3390/f14081605Nutritional Status of Wood Melick (<i>Melica uniflora</i> Retz.) in a Natural Forest Stand in South-Western PolandAnna Paszkiewicz-Jasińska0Barbara Wróbel1Wojciech Stopa2Zuzanna Jakubowska3Aleksandra Steinhoff-Wrześniewska4Waldemar Zielewicz5Institute of Technology and Life Sciences-National Research Institute, Falenty, 3 Hrabska Avenue, 05-090 Raszyn, PolandInstitute of Technology and Life Sciences-National Research Institute, Falenty, 3 Hrabska Avenue, 05-090 Raszyn, PolandInstitute of Technology and Life Sciences-National Research Institute, Falenty, 3 Hrabska Avenue, 05-090 Raszyn, PolandInstitute of Technology and Life Sciences-National Research Institute, Falenty, 3 Hrabska Avenue, 05-090 Raszyn, PolandInstitute of Technology and Life Sciences-National Research Institute, Falenty, 3 Hrabska Avenue, 05-090 Raszyn, PolandDepartment of Grassland and Natural Landscape Sciences, Poznań University of Life Sciences, Wojska Polskiego 28, 60-637 Poznań, Poland<i>Melica uniflora</i> Retz., commonly known as wood melick, is a grass species that is native to most of Europe. <i>Melica uniflora</i> grows in hardwood forests near <i>Fagus</i> species, providing vital food and shelter for forest wildlife. The nutritional status of wood melick is not sufficiently recognized. The study aims to identify the intrapopulation variability of <i>Melica uniflora</i> plants collected from natural forest habitats in Poland in terms of nutritional status variability in relation to stage development and the course of weather conditions. The research was conducted for two consecutive years: 2021 and 2022, in the area of the Ślęża Massif, near the town of Sobótka in Lower Silesia voivodeship (Poland). The material for analyses was collected from 10 natural forest sites twice: in July (I) and October (II). The content of nutritive components: crude protein (CP), crude ash (CA), neutral detergent fiber (NDF), acid detergent fiber (ADF), acid detergent lignin (ADL), and water-soluble carbohydrates (WSC) was evaluated. Relative feed value (RFV), dry matter digestibility (DDM), dry matter intake (DMI), cellulose (CL), and hemicellulose (HCL) content were calculated based on ADF and NDF. <i>Melica uniflora</i> plants contained 75.2 g·kg<sup>−1</sup> DM of CP, 290.6 g·kg<sup>−1</sup> DM of CF, 120.0 g·kg<sup>−1</sup> DM of CA, and 25.9 g·kg<sup>−1</sup> DM of WSC. The content of NDF was 637.6 g·kg<sup>−1</sup> DM, ADF 407.5 g·kg<sup>−1</sup> DM, and ADL 58.0 g·kg<sup>−1</sup> DM. The nutritional status of wood melick depended on the course of weather conditions in the following years and its location, which changed during the growing season. Plants collected in the first year of the study contained more CL, NDF, and ADF fractions and less CA, ADL, and WSC. <i>Melica uniflora</i> plants harvested in June were characterized by higher CP (102.1 g·kg<sup>−1</sup> DM) and WSC (30.1 g·kg<sup>−1</sup> DM) content and lower content of remaining nutrients. It can be concluded that <i>Melica uniflora</i> plants can be a valuable source of these nutrients in the forage of forest animals.https://www.mdpi.com/1999-4907/14/8/1605forest grasscrude proteincrude ashfiber fractionwater-soluble carbohydratescellulose |
| spellingShingle | Anna Paszkiewicz-Jasińska Barbara Wróbel Wojciech Stopa Zuzanna Jakubowska Aleksandra Steinhoff-Wrześniewska Waldemar Zielewicz Nutritional Status of Wood Melick (<i>Melica uniflora</i> Retz.) in a Natural Forest Stand in South-Western Poland Forests forest grass crude protein crude ash fiber fraction water-soluble carbohydrates cellulose |
| title | Nutritional Status of Wood Melick (<i>Melica uniflora</i> Retz.) in a Natural Forest Stand in South-Western Poland |
| title_full | Nutritional Status of Wood Melick (<i>Melica uniflora</i> Retz.) in a Natural Forest Stand in South-Western Poland |
| title_fullStr | Nutritional Status of Wood Melick (<i>Melica uniflora</i> Retz.) in a Natural Forest Stand in South-Western Poland |
| title_full_unstemmed | Nutritional Status of Wood Melick (<i>Melica uniflora</i> Retz.) in a Natural Forest Stand in South-Western Poland |
| title_short | Nutritional Status of Wood Melick (<i>Melica uniflora</i> Retz.) in a Natural Forest Stand in South-Western Poland |
| title_sort | nutritional status of wood melick i melica uniflora i retz in a natural forest stand in south western poland |
| topic | forest grass crude protein crude ash fiber fraction water-soluble carbohydrates cellulose |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/1999-4907/14/8/1605 |
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