Abstract
Understand how forage quality in semi-arid rangelands is modified by the botanical composition and climatological factors is essential for the appropriate nutritional management of the livestock. This study investigated the influence of the vegetal stratum and season on the bromatological composition of the forage in rangelands from a seasonally dry tropical forest in the Brazilian semi-arid. The experimental design was completely randomized with five replications, and the treatments consisted of two vegetal strata (herbaceous and shrub-arboreal), and two seasons (rainy and dry), in a two-year field trial. There was a significant effect of the season on the crude protein, fiber, hemicellulose, lignin, and soluble carbohydrates (p < 0.05), and the forage showed lower nutritional value during the dry season. Forage dry matter content was greater in the dry season (p < 0.05). There was a pronounced effect of the type of vegetation on the crude protein, fiber, hemicellulose, lignin, total and soluble carbohydrates (p < 0.05), and the herbaceous vegetation was characterized by greater content of fiber compounds and total carbohydrates, while the shrub-arboreal stratum by greater crude protein, soluble carbohydrates, and lignin. The cellulose content was greater in the herbaceous stratum (p < 0.05). The shrub-arboreal strata had greater contents of ether extract (5%), compared to the herbaceous vegetation (1%) (p < 0.05), and it was intensified by the dry season. Despite the mutual influence of the season and the vegetal strata on the bromatological composition of the forage, the type of vegetation of the semi-arid rangelands had a stronger effect in defining forage quality.
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Source: Serra Talhada, PE, Brazil APAC/IMET (2014–2015)
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Data availability
The datasets generated during and/or analyzed during the current study are available in the Mendeley Data repository, http://dx.doi.org/10.17632/v8bkp92bw8.1
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Acknowledgements
Grants from Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq). Grants. For the postdoctoral scholarship of the Fundação de Amparo à Ciência e Tecnologia do Estado de Pernambuco (FACEPE), Grant Number BFP-0126-5.04/19.
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CNPq—National Council for Scientific and Technological Development—Brazil. Grant number 480755/2012–4.
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MJG Investigation, MJG data curation, CMV Project administration, Funding Acquisition; SEJO Supervision CJJ Writing formal, Formal analysis; SMVF; SEJO; DJJCB; MACL Conceptualization.
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de Moura, J.G., da Cunha, M.V., de Souza, E.J.O. et al. The vegetal stratum defined the forage bromatology more than the season in seasonal dry tropical forest rangelands. Agroforest Syst 95, 1177–1189 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10457-021-00644-4
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10457-021-00644-4