ARS | Publication request: FORAGE CONDITIONING LEVELS MEASURED BY LEACHATE CONDUCTIVITY

Submitted to: Agricultural Equipment Technology Conference
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: November 4, 1996
Publication Date: N/A

Technical Abstract: Degree of forage conditioning is a continuum ranging from no conditioning to extreme maceration. Intensive conditioning of forage has been shown to increase both field drying rate and digestibility. A measure of the level of conditioning is necessary in order to relate conditioner performance to expected benefits in drying rate and/or digestibility or to compare functional performance of different conditioners. Electronic conductivity of forage leachate has been used as an index of the degree of conditioning. The forage to be evaluated is washed in a prescribed way with distilled water, the solids filtered out of the water, and the conductivity of the resulting liquid measured. In situ digestibility trials of the forage have been carried out to establish a relationship between the conductivity index and the rate of forage digestibility.