Early- and late-harvested smooth bromegrass
and eastern gamagrass silages and fourthcutting
alfalfa silage were compared in two, 20-
day voluntary intake and digestion trials. Visual
appraisal and pH values indicated that all five
forages were well preserved as silage. Voluntary
intake tended to be higher for sheep fed
bromegrass and alfalfa silages compared to
those fed gamagrasssil ages. The late-harvested
gamagrass silage had the lowest DM intake in
both periods. Dry matter, crude protein, and
neutral detergent fiber digestibilities were
generally similar for the two grasses within the
early- and late-harvested silages. Chemical
analyses indicated that the two bromegrass
silages were of nearly equal nutritive value;
however, digestion trial results showed that the
early-harvested silage was higher in quality than
the late-harvested silage. Results of both chemical
analyses and digestion trials showed that the
early-harvested gamagrass silage was higher in
quality than the late-harvested silage.
