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Virginia Tech

Nutritional Value of Warm- and Cool-Season Grasses for Ruminants

Abstract

dc:description.abstract

A metabolism trial was conducted to compare the nutritional value of: 1)"Quickstand" bermudagrass [Cynodon dactylon (L.) Pers.], 2)caucasian bluestem [Bothriochloa caucasia (Trin.) C.E. Hubb], 3)tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea Schreb.), and 4)orchardgrass (Dactylis glomerata L.). The warm-season grasses (bermudagrass and bluestem) were higher (P < .01) in fiber components than the cool-season grasses (tall fescue and orchardgrass). Bluestem was lower (P < .001) in CP, hemicellulose, and ash, and higher in NDF (P < .001), ADF (P < .001), cellulose (P < .001), and lignin (P < .01) than bermudagrass. The warm-season grasses were lower in the apparent digestibility of DM (P < .001), NDF (P < .01), ADF (P < .05), cellulose (P < .05), and hemicellulose (P < .01) than cool-season grasses. Apparent digestibility of NDF (P < .001), ADF (P < .001), cellulose (P < .01), and hemicellulose (P < .01) was higher for bluestem than bermudagrass. Fescue was higher (P < .001) in apparent digestibility of DM and CP and lower (P < .01) in apparent digestibility of NDF, ADF, cellulose, and hemicellulose than orchardgrass. Lambs fed bluestem had lower (P < .05) N retention than those fed bermudagrass, when expressed as g/d. Lambs fed fescue had higher (P < .001) N retention, than those fed orchardgrass. When expressed as a percent of intake or absorption, N retention values were similar among treatments. The results of this study suggest that cool-season grasses are of higher nutritional value than warm-season grasses.

Degree

thesis:*
Name thesis:degree_name
Master of Science
Level thesis:degree_level
masters
Discipline thesis:degree_discipline
Animal and Poultry Sciences
Department dc:contributor.department
Animal and Poultry Sciences
Grantor dc:publisher
Virginia Tech
Year dc:date.issued
1999

Author and committee

dc:creator, dc:contributor.*
Author dc:creator
  • Mundie, Benjamin Scott
Chair dc:contributor.committeechair
  • Fontenot, Joseph P.
Committee members dc:contributor.committeemember
  • Abaye, Azenegashe Ozzie
  • Peterson, Paul R.
  • Hall, John B.

Subjects

dc:subject × 6

Rights

dc:rights
Statement dc:rights
  • In Copyright

Identifiers

dc:identifier.*
Dc Identifier Other
etd-052799-165923
OAI identifier oai:identifier
oai:vtechworks.lib.vt.edu:10919/42804

Chain of custody

source
Harvested from
Virginia Tech
Base URL
vtechworks.lib.vt.edu/oai/request
Last updated
2026-07-22
Source record
OAI-PMH GetRecord
citation

Mundie, Benjamin Scott. Nutritional Value of Warm- and Cool-Season Grasses for Ruminants. masters thesis, Virginia Tech, 1999. http://hdl.handle.net/10919/42804