Feedipedia
Animal feed resources information system
Feedipedia
Feedipedia

Sponsored by

Adisseo

Automatic translation

Did you find the information you were looking for? Is it valuable to you? Feedipedia is encountering funding shortage. We need your help to keep providing reference-based feeding recommendations for your animals.
Would you consider donating? If yes, please click on the button Donate.
Any amount is the welcome. Even one cent is helpful to us!

Madibela et al., 2002. Livest. Res. Rural Dev., 14 (4): 1-6

Document reference 
Madibela, O. R. ; Boitumelo, W. S. ; Manthe, C. ; Raditedu, I., 2002. Chemical composition and in vitro dry matter digestibility of local landraces of sweet sorghum in Botswana. Livest. Res. Rural Dev., 14 (4): 1-6
Abstract 

Sweet sorghum is a variant of grain sorghum (Sorghum bicolour (L) Moench, grown in Botswana for edible juicy sweet stem instead of grain. Suitability of sweet sorghum as forage for livestock was investigated by evaluating twelve local landraces for chemical composition and in vitro dry matter digestibility (IVDMD). The samples were collected from a randomised complete block design trial that had three replicates. Samples of whole plant and parts (leaf and, stalk and panicle) were analysed for crude protein, calcium, phosphorus, neutral detergent fibre (NDF), acid detergent fibre (ADF), acid detergent lignin (ADL), neutral detergent bound nitrogen (NDF-N), IVDMD and ash.

The different landraces had similar chemical composition and in vitro dry matter digestibility. Neutral detergent fibre was significantly different among the landraces and was highest in Moitshopari (645 g/kg) and lowest in Botala landrace (550 g/kg). IVDMD averaged 78% and was not significantly different among landraces. Leaf had significantly higher calcium, ADF, NDF, NDF-N, Ash  and phosphorus. Crude protein tended to be different between plant parts. There was a significant interaction between landrace and plant parts for phosphorus only.

The results showed that local sweet sorghum landraces might provide a viable energy resource for ruminants due to high IVDMD. It is necessary to screen these local landraces for biomass production and nutritional evaluation through animal trials.

Web 
http://www.lrrd.org/lrrd14/4/madi144.htm
Citation key 
Madibela et al., 2002
Datasheets 
Sorghum forage