Nutritional Composition and In Vitro Ruminal Digestibility of Crabgrass (<i>Digitaria sanguinalis</i> (L.) Scop.) in Monoculture or Interseeded with Cowpea (<i>Vigna unguiculata</i> (L.) Walp) and Lablab (<i>Lablab purpureus</i> (L.) Sweet)
The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of interseeding crabgrass (CG) with two annual summer legumes on forage nutritional composition, dry matter (DM) yield, and in vitro fiber digestibility. The study was conducted as a randomized complete block design with four replicates per tre...
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| Format: | Article |
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MDPI AG
2023-07-01
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| Series: | Animals |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/13/14/2305 |
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| author | Matias Jose Aguerre Omar Manuel Peña Cesar Velasquez Gonzalo Ferreira |
| author_facet | Matias Jose Aguerre Omar Manuel Peña Cesar Velasquez Gonzalo Ferreira |
| author_sort | Matias Jose Aguerre |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of interseeding crabgrass (CG) with two annual summer legumes on forage nutritional composition, dry matter (DM) yield, and in vitro fiber digestibility. The study was conducted as a randomized complete block design with four replicates per treatment. Plots were randomly assigned to one of six forage mix treatments. Crabgrass, cowpea (CWP), and lablab (LL) were planted in monoculture or in mixtures, resulting in six treatments. Throughout the growing season (three cuts), CG had the highest biomass yield, followed by the CG grown in mixtures with CWP and LL, whereas the two annual legume monocultures had the lowest yield. Cowpea and LL planted in monocultures had the highest concentration of CP and fiber digestibility, while the CG monoculture had the lowest. Furthermore, growing CG in a mixture with CWP and LL boosted the CP concentration and fiber digestibility to intermediate levels to those observed between both legume monocultures and CG. Regardless of treatment, the highest forage quality and yield was observed in the first harvest, with a drastic decline in the following harvests. In conclusion, the benefits of mixing crabgrass with legumes might be less than expected and should be carefully evaluated by livestock producers, especially when considering the effects of DM yield, forage quality, and pasture seeding costs. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-11T01:22:28Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-60d230b7d4884eb3bbd69e35fdf10599 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-2615 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-11T01:22:28Z |
| publishDate | 2023-07-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Animals |
| spelling | doaj.art-60d230b7d4884eb3bbd69e35fdf105992023-11-18T18:00:28ZengMDPI AGAnimals2076-26152023-07-011314230510.3390/ani13142305Nutritional Composition and In Vitro Ruminal Digestibility of Crabgrass (<i>Digitaria sanguinalis</i> (L.) Scop.) in Monoculture or Interseeded with Cowpea (<i>Vigna unguiculata</i> (L.) Walp) and Lablab (<i>Lablab purpureus</i> (L.) Sweet)Matias Jose Aguerre0Omar Manuel Peña1Cesar Velasquez2Gonzalo Ferreira3Department of Animal and Veterinary Sciences, Clemson University, Clemson, SC 29634, USADepartment of Animal and Veterinary Sciences, Clemson University, Clemson, SC 29634, USADepartment of Animal and Veterinary Sciences, Clemson University, Clemson, SC 29634, USASchool of Animal Sciences, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USAThe objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of interseeding crabgrass (CG) with two annual summer legumes on forage nutritional composition, dry matter (DM) yield, and in vitro fiber digestibility. The study was conducted as a randomized complete block design with four replicates per treatment. Plots were randomly assigned to one of six forage mix treatments. Crabgrass, cowpea (CWP), and lablab (LL) were planted in monoculture or in mixtures, resulting in six treatments. Throughout the growing season (three cuts), CG had the highest biomass yield, followed by the CG grown in mixtures with CWP and LL, whereas the two annual legume monocultures had the lowest yield. Cowpea and LL planted in monocultures had the highest concentration of CP and fiber digestibility, while the CG monoculture had the lowest. Furthermore, growing CG in a mixture with CWP and LL boosted the CP concentration and fiber digestibility to intermediate levels to those observed between both legume monocultures and CG. Regardless of treatment, the highest forage quality and yield was observed in the first harvest, with a drastic decline in the following harvests. In conclusion, the benefits of mixing crabgrass with legumes might be less than expected and should be carefully evaluated by livestock producers, especially when considering the effects of DM yield, forage quality, and pasture seeding costs.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/13/14/2305digestibilitysummer annualslegumesgrasses |
| spellingShingle | Matias Jose Aguerre Omar Manuel Peña Cesar Velasquez Gonzalo Ferreira Nutritional Composition and In Vitro Ruminal Digestibility of Crabgrass (<i>Digitaria sanguinalis</i> (L.) Scop.) in Monoculture or Interseeded with Cowpea (<i>Vigna unguiculata</i> (L.) Walp) and Lablab (<i>Lablab purpureus</i> (L.) Sweet) Animals digestibility summer annuals legumes grasses |
| title | Nutritional Composition and In Vitro Ruminal Digestibility of Crabgrass (<i>Digitaria sanguinalis</i> (L.) Scop.) in Monoculture or Interseeded with Cowpea (<i>Vigna unguiculata</i> (L.) Walp) and Lablab (<i>Lablab purpureus</i> (L.) Sweet) |
| title_full | Nutritional Composition and In Vitro Ruminal Digestibility of Crabgrass (<i>Digitaria sanguinalis</i> (L.) Scop.) in Monoculture or Interseeded with Cowpea (<i>Vigna unguiculata</i> (L.) Walp) and Lablab (<i>Lablab purpureus</i> (L.) Sweet) |
| title_fullStr | Nutritional Composition and In Vitro Ruminal Digestibility of Crabgrass (<i>Digitaria sanguinalis</i> (L.) Scop.) in Monoculture or Interseeded with Cowpea (<i>Vigna unguiculata</i> (L.) Walp) and Lablab (<i>Lablab purpureus</i> (L.) Sweet) |
| title_full_unstemmed | Nutritional Composition and In Vitro Ruminal Digestibility of Crabgrass (<i>Digitaria sanguinalis</i> (L.) Scop.) in Monoculture or Interseeded with Cowpea (<i>Vigna unguiculata</i> (L.) Walp) and Lablab (<i>Lablab purpureus</i> (L.) Sweet) |
| title_short | Nutritional Composition and In Vitro Ruminal Digestibility of Crabgrass (<i>Digitaria sanguinalis</i> (L.) Scop.) in Monoculture or Interseeded with Cowpea (<i>Vigna unguiculata</i> (L.) Walp) and Lablab (<i>Lablab purpureus</i> (L.) Sweet) |
| title_sort | nutritional composition and in vitro ruminal digestibility of crabgrass i digitaria sanguinalis i l scop in monoculture or interseeded with cowpea i vigna unguiculata i l walp and lablab i lablab purpureus i l sweet |
| topic | digestibility summer annuals legumes grasses |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/13/14/2305 |
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