Nutritive quality of silage of three millet cultivars

With the aim of evaluating the nutritive value of millet silage [Pennisetum glaucum (L.) R. Brown], an experiment was carried out in the dependencies of the Animal Science Department of UFLA, using the millet established on a Typical Very Clay Texture Distroferric Red Latosol. The treatments consisted of three cultivars (BRS 1501, BN 1 and Comum) and three cutting ages, 70, 90 and 110 days for silage, sown in November/2003. The experimental outline used was the one of randomized blocks, constituting into a factorial with 3 x 3 (3 cultivars x 3cutting ages) with three replications. For the silages, there were significant differences among cutting ages for the contents of DM, CP, N-NH3 and pH, varying from 21.34 to 36.83 percent, 7.13 to 9.50 percent, 1.21 to 1.38 percent and 3.48 to 3.77, respectively. For the production of millet silage, the cultivar BN 1 planted in November can be harvested at 90 days of age, for overcoming the others in bromathological composition.