Abstract
This experiment was conducted to study the effect of addition of Lucerne juice (LJ) obtained by mechanical extraction of freshly harvested crop on the nutritive value of rice straw silage. Rice straw (RS) was ensiled with intact, NaOH or $NH_3$ treated LJ at 3:7 ratio on fresh weight basis (LJ RS, LJ NaOH RS and LJ $NH_3$ RS, respectively). Each alkali was mixed with fresh juice at a level of 4% of rice straw dry matter just before ensiling. Rice straw ensiled with water was prepared as the control (W RS). In the digestion trial, goats were allocated in a $4{\times}4$ Latin-square design and fed the diet containing three parts of RS silage and one part of wheat bran (DM basis). For the goats receiving the control silage, urea was supplemented at feeding time so as to adjust the nitrogen intake except for goats on LJ $NH_3$ RS silage. Crude protein content of RS silage was increased from 5.2 to 9.1% (DM basis) by the addition of intact LJ and to about 24% by $NH_3$ treated LJ. The control W RS silage contained only trace amount of lactic acid and was dominated by acetic and butyric acid. The addition of intact LJ reduced butyric acid content and $NH_3-N/TN$ of the silage whereas the addition of alkalized LJ increased those values and shifted to a butyrate type fermentation. Nutrient digestibilities and nitrogen balance of goats were almost the same when they were fed W RS and LJ RS silage indicating the addition of intact LJ did not improve the nutritive value. The addition of alkalized LJ significantly increased the fiber digestibilities of RS silage and $NH_3$ treatment was more effective than NaOH treatment. Postprandial ruminal $NH_3-N$ and blood urea nitrogen (BUN) concentrations were decreased by feeding LJ NaOH RS silage suggesting ruminal protein synthesis was enhanced along with the increase of energy supply for supply for rumen microbes by the alkali treatment. The advantageous fiber digestibilities of LJ $NH_3$ RS silage compared with those of LJ NaOH RS silage might be attributable to a sufficient nitrogen supply for microbial fiber digestion in the rumen.