Research Information System
Fresenius Environmental Bulletin, vol.28, no.5, pp.4226-4231, 2019 (SCI-Expanded)
The aim of this study is to determine some physical and chemical characteristics of giant miscanthus silages harvested and ensiled in different development stages. In the study, giant miscanthus (Miscanthus x giganteus) was harvested and ensiled without using any additives at the early booting, booting and flowering stages in 2017 year. According to the results of the study, statistically significant differences were determined related to dry matter contents, silage loses, physical observation values, pH, fleig scores and relative feed values of the silages in terms of cutting stages. The crude protein contents of the silages varied between 4.07% and 5.20%, NDF values varied between 71.46% and 77.06% and ADF rates varied between 49.66% and 52.02%. According to the results of the study, late cutting stage increased the silage fermentation performance, however, it decreased the silage quality. At the end of the study, it was found out that it is more suitable to harvest the giant miscanthus in early booting stage for a high quality silage.