Impact of Treated Maize Stover with Urea-molasses Solution on the Chemical Composition and In Vitro Gas Production.

Abstract

The purpose of this work was to evaluate the effects of treated maize stover with urea-molasses solution on chemical composition and in-vitro gas production. Dried, milled, and treated samples of maize-stover were used as T1 (untreated), T2 (0.5%), T3 (1%), T4 (1.5%), and T5 (2.0%). The results of the study showed that crude protein (%) ranged from 2.76(T1) to 12.15(T5), crude fiber 20.17(T5) to 32.17(T1), ether extract 1.31(T1) to 3.05(T5), ash 10.90(T1) to 12.91(T5), NDF 62.26(T5) to 72.67(T1), ADF 41.18 (T5) to 48.16 (T1), and ADL 6.62(T5) to 9.98(T1) and were all significantly (P<0.05) different. From (T1) to (T5), the hemicellulose and cellulose contents gradually dropped when more urea-molasses solution was added. The addition of more urea-molasses solution enhanced the insoluble but degradable percentage (b, ml) fermentation values ranged from 12.00 (T1) to 39.67 (T5). At 24 hours of incubation, treatment with urea-molasses had a significant (P<0.05) impact on gas volume production (ml). T5 had the maximum gas volume measured at 46.67 milliliters, while T1 (20.67 ml) had the lowest. Across treatments, there was a significant (P<0.05) difference in the calculated parameters. Short Chain Fatty Acid (SCFA, mmol) varied from 0.43(T1) to 1.05(T5), Metabolisable Energy (ME, MJ/Kg DM) ranged from 5.26(T1) to 9.29(T5), and Estimated Organic Matter Digestibility (OMD,%) ranged from 41.59(T1) to 70.24 (T5). According to the study's findings, treated maize stover with urea-molasses solution greatly increased the estimated values of OMD, ME, and SCFA. Adding treated maize-stover with urea-molasses to a full-feed-mixture is recommended for ruminants.