Published in Scientific Papers. Series A. Agronomy, Vol. LXV, Issue 2
Written by Niculae DINCĂ, Ana-Maria STANCIU, Nicolae PĂTRU, Daniela ALEXANDRESCU, Loredana NEAGU FRĂSIN, Daniel DUNEA
The main aim was to establish some differences in productivity, nutritional value but also in the efficiency in obtaining performances in growing and fattening animals. The following alfalfa varieties were studied: Pioneer PR55 V48, Sandra, Valahia (4AG08), Dobrogea (4AG07), and Dimitra. Five plots were established for the cultivation of alfalfa with an area of 1 hectare each on a farm in Balotesti village following the evolution of plant growth parameters and their chemical composition, especially in year 2, at the 2nd harvest. The green mass obtained was preserved in the form of hay. The animal experiment was organized on a sheep farm in Dambovita County where fattening young sheep from Turcana × Suffolk half-breed were fed with hay for a period of 3 months. Concerning the alfalfa hay, the dry matter ranged between 848 and 861 g, organic matter between 759 and 782 g, and crude protein 65 and 76 g, respectively. Gross energy was similar for all varieties ranging around 18 MJ. Considering the fattening performances, the average daily gain recorded by the fattening lambs, during the experiment ranged between 171.4 and 181.2 g/day. We recommend the use of hay from the Romanian varieties in fattening lamb diets, which demonstrated similar characteristics to the valuable foreign ones.
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