AUTHOR=Wu Shuo , Gao Lin , Chen Dandan , Xue Yanlin , Kholif Ahmed E. , Zhou Wei , Chen Xiaoyang , Zhang Qing 

TITLE=Effects of Forestry Waste Neolamarckia cadamba Leaf Meal as an Additive on Fermentation Quality, Antioxidant Activity, and Bacterial Community of High-Moisture Stylo Silage

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Environmental Science

VOLUME=10

YEAR=2022

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/environmental-science/articles/10.3389/fenvs.2022.925400

DOI=10.3389/fenvs.2022.925400

ISSN=2296-665X

ABSTRACT=<p><italic>N. cadamba</italic> leaves, a byproduct of wood production, are always discarded in the field. <italic>N. cadamba</italic> leaves have strong antibacterial property, which might be recycled to inhibit undesirable bacteria and enhance the fermentation quality of silage. Ensiling, a traditional conservation method for animal feed, is commonly used all over the world. It is known that high-moisture forages, especially legumes, are difficult to ensile directly as much ammonia-N and butyric acid produced by undesirable bacteria will reduce the feeding value. To investigate the effects of <italic>N. cadamba</italic> leaf meal on the fermentation quality of stylo silage, 5% and 10% <italic>N. cadamba</italic> leaf meal were mixed with stylo for 30 days of ensiling in two independent experiments. Results showed that the silage pH and butyric acid content of stylo silage were decreased (<italic>p</italic> &lt; 0.01) by 10% <italic>N. cadamba</italic> leaf meal. In experiment 2, contents of nonprotein-N and ammonia-N were significantly decreased (<italic>p</italic> &lt; 0.05), while the true protein content was significantly increased (<italic>p</italic> &lt; 0.05). The same results on the changing tendency were also obtained in experiment 1. In addition, <italic>N. cadamba</italic> leaf meal addition also decreased the bacterial diversity. The relative abundance of <italic>Clostridium</italic> and <italic>Lelliottia</italic> decreased, whereas that of <italic>Lactobacillus</italic> increased when <italic>N. cadamba</italic> leaf meal was added. It is worth noting that the addition of <italic>N. cadamba</italic> leaf meal also improved the antioxidant activity of stylo silage. The aforementioned results suggested that mixing <italic>N. cadamba</italic> leaf meal to high moisture forages could be an effective strategy to enhance silage fermentation quality, and it is also a feasible way to recycle <italic>N. cadamba</italic> leaves.</p>