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Nutritive value of Atriplex deserticola and Salicornia forage for ruminants Item Type text; Thesis-Reproduction (electronic) Authors De La Llata Coronado, Manuel Maria, 1967- Publisher The University of Arizona. Rights Copyright © is held by the author. Digital access to this material is made possible by the University Libraries, University of Arizona. Further transmission, reproduction or presentation (such as public display or performance) of protected items is prohibited except with permission of the author. Download date 03/10/2021 06:02:26 Link to Item http://hdl.handle.net/10150/278026 INFORMATION TO USERS This manuscript has been reproduced from the microfilm master. UMI films the text directly from the original or copy submitted. Thus, some thesis and dissertation copies are in typewriter face, while others may be from any type of computer printer. The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. 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Contact UMI directly to order. University Microfilms International A Bell & Howell Information Company 300 North Zeeb Road, Ann Arbor, Ml 48106-1346 USA 313/761-4700 800/521-0600 Order Number 1346687 Nutritive value of Atriplex deserticola and Salicornia forage for ruminants De La Llata Coronado, Manuel Maria, M.S. The University of Arizona, 1991 UMI 300 N. Zeeb Rd. Ann Arbor, MI 48106 1 NUTRITIVE VALUE OF ATRIPLEX DESERTICOLA AND SALICORNIA FORAGE FOR RUMINANTS by Manuel Maria De La Llata Coronado A Thesis Submitted to the Faculty of the DEPARTMENT OF ANIMAL SCIENCES In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements For the Degree of MASTER OF SCIENCE In the Graduate College THE UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA 19 9 1 2 STATEMENT BY AUTHOR This thesis has been submitted in partial fulfillment of requirements for an advanced degree at The University of Arizona and is deposited in the University Library to be made available to borrowers under rules of the Library. Brief quotations from this thesis are allowable without special permission, provided that accurate acknowledgment of source is made. Request for permission for extended quotation from or reproduction of this manuscript in whole or in part may be granted by the head of the major department or the Dean of the Graduate College when in his or her judgment the proposed use of the material is in the interests of scholarship. In all other instances, however, permission must be obtained by the author. SIGNED: APPROVAL BY THESIS DIRECTOR This thesis has been approved on the date shown below: R. S. SWINGLE Date Professor of Animal Science 3 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I wish to thank Dr. Roy S. Swingle for his guidance, comments, critical reading of this manuscript and friendship that helped me to focus my work more clearly. I would like to thank Drs. Alejandro R. Urias and William H. Brown for their comments and for being available to discuss my ideas. My gratitude is also extended to Dr. Jeannette Moore for her cooperation in part of this study. Thanks are also due to the Planetary Design Corporation, Tucson, AZ. for contributing to the financial support of the study and also to Carolyn Watson and Chris Brand from the Environmental Research Laboratory for providing the forages evaluated in this study and background information on their production and on halophytes, in general. I also wish to thank my brothers Antonio, Alejo, Eduardo, Alberto, Pablo and my sister Guadalupe as well as all my friends from the graduate school who either directly or indirectly made the creation of this work possible. My heartfelt thanks to my fiance Tere Aviles for her patience and support since the beginning of my graduate career. I am grateful to my parents J. Antonio and Leonor De La Llata for their strong support, advice, love and patience throughout my education, my warmest regards to them. 4 TABLE OF CONTENTS Page LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 5 LIST OF TABLES 6 ABSTRACT 7 INTRODUCTION 8 LITERATURE REVIEW 11 General Aspects of Halophytes 11 Feeding Studies with Halophytes 14 Significant Role of salt 16 MATERIAL AND METHODS 19 Experiment 1 - Salicornia 19 Experiment 2 - Atriplex 20 RESULTS 22 Trial 1 - Salicornia 22 Chemical Analysis of Forages 22 Chemical Analysis and Digestibility of Diets . 24 Trial 2 - Atriplex . 29 Chemical Analysis of Diet Ingredients .... 29 Chemical Analysis And Digestibility of Diets . 29 DISCUSSION 36 Experiment 1 - Salicornia 36 Experiment 2 - Atriplex 37 APPENDIX A: TABLES 40 Dry matter intake and apparent digestion coefficients for the control diet and for the July, August and September Salicornia diets. Trial 1. 41 Intakes and apparent digestibilities of the experimental diets. Trial 2 42 REFERENCES 43 5 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS Figure Page 1. Average daily dry matter intake for the control diet and for the July, August and September Salicornia diets. Trial 1 27 2. Dry matter (DM), organic matter (OM), neutral detergent fiber (NDF), acid detergent fiber (ADF), crude protein (CP), and gross energy (GE) digestibility for the four experimental diets. Trial 1 28 3. Ad libitum and restricted average daily dry matter intake for the control and Atriplex diets. Trial 2 33 4. Water consumption (ml/lOOg DMI) for the control, Atriplex deserticola and A. barclayana diets. Trial 2 34 5. Dry matter (DM), organic matter (OM), neutral detergent fiber (NDF), acid detergent fiber (ADF), gross energy (GE), and crude protein (CP) digestibility for the control and Atriplex deserticola diets. Trial 2 . 35 6 LIST OF TABLES Table Page 1. Chemical analysis of Salicornia forage harvested at three different cutting dates, alfalfa hay and wheat straw - Trial 1 23 2. Chemical composition of Salicornia diets (July, August and September) and control diet (dry matter basis) - Trial 1 26 3. Chemical composition of ingredients of the experimental diets (dry matter basis) - Trial 2. 30 4. Chemical composition of the experimental diets. - Trial 2 31 Al. Dry matter intake and apparent digestion coefficients for the control diet and for the July, August and September Salicornia diets. - Trial 1 41 A2. Intakes and apparent digestibilities of the experimental diets. - Trial 2 39 7 ABSTRACT Two experiments using lambs were conducted to obtain additional information on the potential nutritional value of halophyte forages for ruminants. In experiment one, Salicornia bigevolii Torr. planted in mid-March and harvested at three dates (July, August and September) replaced wheat straw (30%) in a 65% forage diet. Nutrient composition and digestibility of Salicornia forage declined with advancing maturity. Forage from the July cutting was superior to wheat straw, while that from later cuttings was approximately equal to straw. In experiment two, digestion coefficients were lower when Atriplex deserticola replaced 50% of the alfalfa hay in a 70% roughage diet. Even when all of the alfalfa hay was replaced using a mixture of 85% Atriplex barclayana and 15% Atriplex deserticola consumption by lambs was not adversely affected. It is concluded that Salicornia bigevolii and Atriplex deserticola have potential as feedstuff for ruminants, especially in geographical areas where conventional feedstuffs are not available. 8 INTRODUCTION The term halophyte refers to a broad classification of plants which grow naturally under alkaline or saline conditions. These plants are grazed worldwide by livestock although they are not considered preferred forage species (Chatterton et al. 1971). Halophytes represent a promising group of plants for use as alternative crops in arid lands where water is limited or of poor quality and for areas where soil salinity limits productivity of conventional crops. Over a decade ago, the Environmental Research Laboratory at the University of Arizona began to collect and evaluate halophytes for potential cultivation under conventional agricultural practices. Halophytes are being screened for optimal growth condition and utilization potential. Other uses, such as management of high saline irrigation drainage water might take advantage of halophyte characteristics. Alternative cropping systems using salt tolerant plants would reduce the volume of irrigation drainage water requiring ultimate disposal, by evaporation or other means. Acceptability and nutritive value of halophytes for livestock is generally considered to be low (Cook et al, 1959). However, results of laboratory studies conducted at the University of Arizona by the Department of Animal Sciences in cooperation with the Environmental Research Laboratory suggest that some halophyte species have potential as feedstuffs for ruminants. The high content of ash and sodium chloride in