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Quinoa has the potential to be an important alternative source of silage as a forage crop. However, there is limited information on the ensiling of quinoa in the literature. This study investigates the silage fermentation quality, nutritive value and aerobic stability of quinoa cultivars harvested at different plant growing stages. The experiment was carried out in the experimental area of the Hatay Mustafa Kemal University, Faculty of Agriculture in the 2019 and 2020 growing seasons. The experiment was laid out in a split plot with a randomized block design with three replications, the three main plots were based on harvesting times (flowering, milky and dough stages) and the five subplots were based on cultivars (Mint Vanilla, Cherry Vanilla, French Vanilla, Red Head and Titicaca). Traits such as pH, ammonia nitrogen, lactic acid bacteria (LAB), LA, acetic acid (AA), butyric acid (BA), propionic acid, ethanol (EtOH), dry matter (DM), neutral detergent fiber, acid detergent fiber, acid detergent lignin, crude protein, ash, ether extract, water soluble carbohydrate (WSC) and relative feed value were analyzed in order to determine silage fermentation quality and nutritive value. In addition, all silages were evaluated in terms of aerobic stability. In reference to the interaction effects, pH, ammonia nitrogen, LAB, AA, BA and EtOH, the silage fermentation quality parameters were between 3.83-4.16, 5.57-14.83%, 4.69-5.80 log10cfu/g DM, 1.37-2.10%, 0.32-0.51% and 0.79-1.63, respectively. On the other hand, DM, ADF, ash and WSC changed between 21.95-33.36%, 22.39-28.36%, 15.41-17.70% and 2.35-9.50%, respectively, as silage nutritive composition features. The carbon dioxide production values of silages exposed to air were between 5.49 g/kg and 10.26 g/kg according to interactions. Among the evaluated quinoa cultivars, cv. Titicaca and cv. French Vanilla provided superior results in terms of fermentation quality compared to other cultivars. It was also determined that it would be more appropriate to harvest these superior quinoa cultivars during the dough stage for quality silage. Among the silages, the cv. Titicaca had the best aerobic stability. As a result of this study, it was concluded that cv. French Vanilla and cv. Titicaca should be harvested during the dough stage in order to obtain better silage quality. According to the results of this study, it was deduced that the quinoa plant could be an alternative ensiling crop. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The fermentation profile and silage quality of 3 Italian ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum Lam.) cultivars (cvs. Devis, Hellen, and Trinova) treated with 5 nitrogen doses (0, 50, 100, 150, and 200 kg/ha) were evaluated. Methods: The experiment was laid out in split plot in randomized complete block design with three replications. Annual ryegrass cultivars used in this study have been commonly grown in Turkey. Nitrogen doses were set in main plot and cultivars in split plot in the field. Plants were harvested at full-flowering stage with dry matter content about 220 g/kg for first cutting and 260 g/kg for second cutting. Harvested plants were chopped theoretically into 2 to 3 cm lengths for ensiling. Chopped fresh materials were ensilaged by compressing in 2 L plastic jars about 3±0.1 kg. Results: Effects of N doses on dry matter, neutral detergent fiber, acid detergent fiber, dry matter digestibility, relative feed value, crude protein, pH, ammonia nitrogen, lactic acid, acetic acid, and lactic acid/acetic acid were statistically significant while water soluble carbohydrate, ash and organic matter were not statistically different. Ammonia nitrogen, crude protein, ash, organic matter, lactic acid, and lactic acid/acetic acid were affected by cultivars, but the other parameters were not. Increasing nitrogen applications positively affected the chemical composition of annual ryegrass silage. The significant increase in protein content was remarkable, however, silage fermentation properties were adversely affected by the increasing nitrogen dose. Conclusion: It can be recommended 150 kg/ha nitrogen dose for annual ryegrass harvested at full blooming stage. Even though the silage fermentation properties of the used cultivars were similar, cv. Devis gave better results than the others in terms of silage pH and relative feed value. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]