Maize silage is a high energy bulk feed, extensively used in the nutrition of dairy and meat purpose cattle due to the high yielding potential of this crop, high concentration of energy, palatability, and easy application in the total mixed ration feeding regime. | Turkish Journal of Agriculture and Forestry Turk J Agric For (2014) 38: 354-361 © TÜBİTAK doi: Research Article Hygienic condition of maize silage (Zea mays L.) depending on cutting height and ensiling additive 1, 1 2 Grażyna SZYMAŃSKA *, Hanna SULEWSKA , Marek SELWET Department of Agronomy, Poznań University of Life Sciences, Poznań, Poland 2 Department of General and Environmental Microbiology, Poznań University of Life Sciences, Poznań, Poland 1 Received: Accepted: Published Online: Printed: Abstract: Maize silage is a high energy bulk feed, extensively used in the nutrition of dairy and meat purpose cattle due to the high yielding potential of this crop, high concentration of energy, palatability, and easy application in the total mixed ration feeding regime. A necessary precondition for the complete utilization of the nutritive value of maize is to prepare high quality silage. In North America and Europe, cattle nutrition is increasingly based on maize silage fed throughout the year, resulting in the need to store silage in silos for 14 months or even longer. Thus, it is necessary to collect a greater amount of data on the microbial composition of silage throughout its storage. In view of the above, the aim of this study was to assess the effect of cutting height (CH) and the application of ensiling additives (EAs) on the hygienic status and aerobic stability of maize silage. The experiment was run in a 2-factorial design with 3 replications. The first factor was CH of the maize plants: 20 cm, 30 cm, and 40 cm. The second degree factor was connected with the EAs: Inokulant 11A44, Inokulant 1132, Bioprofit, Pro-Stabil AP 80 L, and the control with no additives. Analyses showed that the applied EAs, both microbial and chemical, influenced both the quality and stability of maize silage. Applied EAs in the tested silage reduced the counts of mold
