Vol. 9, Issue 6, Part D (2024)

Author(s): Ravi R Rathod, Dineshsingh S Chauhan and Sunita J Magar

Abstract: The study was undertaken to know the physical and microbial qualities of Oat and Maize silage with different treatment composition by adding oat in maize for preparation of silage. In this experiment, 5 treatments and 3 replications were laid out in a completely randomized design. The treatments consisted of silages: (T₀) Control 100% Maize, (T₁) 20% Oat and 80% Maize, (T₂¬) 30% Oat and 70% Maize, (T₃) 40% Oat and 60% Maize, (T₄) 50% Oat and 50% Maize. The physical composition of silage prepared from Maize and Oat fodder as affected by ensiling duration was assessed through sensory evaluation of silage. The Organoleptic test was carried out by including colour, odour and texture by filling out a questionnaire assessing the characteristics of colour, odour and texture by penalties by using the senses of sight, odour and touch. Microbial qualities of silage prepared from maize and oat results show that the ensiling duration had significant effect on the bacterial and fungal populations at 45, 60 and 90 days of ensiling period. Microbial analysis showed that bacterial populations peaked at 45 days and decreased over time, while fungal populations remained low throughout the ensiling duration. The highest bacterial population recorded in treatment (T₁) 20% Oat and 80% Maize (41.13 x 10⁷ cfu/g, 38.12 x 10⁷ cfu/g and 33.19 x 10⁷ cfu/g), while highest fungal population recorded in treatment (T₀) Control 100% Maize (0.07 x 10⁴ cfu/g, 0.05 x 10⁴ cfu/g and 0.04 x 10⁴ cfu/g) at 45, 60 and 90 days of fermentation respectively.