SUMMARY
The objective of this study was evaluate the nutritional value, histological sections and in vitro digestibility of maize plants harvested at the stage 90 days after planting. The treatments comprised five maize plant types: a hybrid AG1051 and four open-pollinated cultivars, and two harvest approaches: whole maize plants and maize plants without cobs. The maize varieties used were: Alagoano, Branquinha, St. Louis and Viçosence. The treatments were fitted into a randomized block design with three replicates in a split plot scheme, with maize varieties as main plots and harvest approaches as subplots. Among the varieties selected, those that had higher values for CP in maize plants without cobs were the Alagoano and Viçosence cultivars. For NDT in maize plants without cobs the varieties that had best results (P<0.05) were the AG1051, Branquinha and Viçosence. These varieties presented the greatest potential for forage production. For NDF and IVNDFD in maize plants without cobs the variety that had higher values (P<0.05) was the Alagoano. It can be concluded that, under the nutritional value and harvest stage, all the varieties studied in the trial can be used for ruminant feeding, with or without cobs.
digestibility; forage; quality
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