Utilization of forages from intensive feed garden as supplementary roughage for goats

Kanitta Tikam,^{1 2} Choke Mikled, ¹ Theera Visitpanich, ¹ Supharoek Nakkitset² and Wichit Sonloi²

¹Department of Animal Science, Faculty of Agriculture,
Chiang Mai University, Thailand
² Royal Project Foundation, Thailand

Abstract

The major feed resources for goats available in the Royal Project Foundation areas are natural grasses and crop residues. A study on the utilization of forages from intensive feed gardens (IFG) as supplementary roughages for goats was carried out at the Huy Nam Rin (Site 1) and Mae Lord (Site 2) Royal Project Development Centers and at the Mae Hia Research and Demonstration Farm of the Royal Project Foundation (Site 3).

Leguminous trees and shrubs (Gliricidia, Mulberry, and Trichanthera) and grasses  (Napier grass and Guinea grass) were planted in small plots (10 x 20 m) in accordance with the IFG system at each location, and samples were taken for chemical analysis. At each site 5 female goats and 1 male goat were raised and their offspring were weighed each month to determine growth performance.

DM yields of Guinea grass, Mulberry, Napier grass, Trichanthera and Gliricidia were 27.7, 34.9, 43.8, 45.6 and 53.3 tonnes/ha/yr, respectively. The average daily gains of the growing goats at the 3 sites were 120, 90 and 60 g/d, respectively.

Keywords: Gliricidia, Guinea grass, Intensive Feed Garden (IFG), Mulberry, Napier grass, Trichanthera.

Introduction

The integrated crop-livestock farming system is normally practiced by the upland farmers. In the past, cattle and buffalo were raised as draft animals but today are sold to raise cash income. Pigs and chickens have important traditional and cultural roles. Goats are normally raised by upland farmers, mainly for consumption in a rational manner, according to need, and production/consumption is not influenced by rituals and taboos as is the case with pigs and chickens. The major feed resources for goats in the Royal Project Foundation areas are natural grasses and crop residues.

The concept of the intensive feed garden (IFG) was adapted and tested in the Philippines by the International Institute of Rural Reconstruction, based on a design originally developed by the International Livestock Centre for Africa in Ethiopia. IFG aims at maximizing the cultivation of fodder per hectare through intensive cultivation of leguminous trees/shrubs and grasses cultivated in a small area (10 m x 20 m). This technology is recommended in marginal areas, where there is scarcity of land, where compound farming is practiced or where it is compulsory to confine livestock. It is appropriate where feed is scarce and not readily available for cut-and-carry systems (Dayrit 1990).

This study was aimed at evaluating the utilization of the forages from intensive feed gardens as supplementary roughage for goats in the uplands of Northern Thailand.    

Materials and methods

Location and period of the study

The experiment was carried out from December 2006 to September 2007 at three selected sites: Huy Nam Rin (Site 1) and Mae Lord (Site 2) Royal Project Development Centers and Mae Hia Research and Demonstration Farm of the Royal Project Foundation (Site 3).

Animals, treatments and design

At each site 5 female goats and 1 male goat were raised and their offspring were weighed monthly to determine growth performance. The animals were confined in a house, with clean water supplied at all times. The legume trees and shrubs (Gliricidia, Mulberry, Trichanthera) and grasses (Napier grass and Guinea grass) were planted in small plots of 10 x 20 m according to the intensive feed garden (IFG) system at each location. The yields of forages were measured every 6-8 weeks and samples were collected for chemical analysis. The live weights of the growing goats were recorded every month. The data of each experiment were analyzed by CRD and the means compared using Duncan’s New Multiple Range Test (Steel and Torrie 1980).
 

Results and Discussion

The data for the average chemical composition of the forages (Table 1) show that the values are mostly within the normal range (AGRIS No date). However, the crude protein in Trichanthera is lower than the range (15.1 to 22.5% in DM) reported in the review of Rosales (1997).

From the data in Table 3 it can be calculated that the average yield of the forages is equivalent to 51 (41)tonnes DM/ha/year. Highest yield was from Gliricidia and the lowest from Guinea grass.

Conclusions

·        The results of the present study indicate that the intensive feed garden system could be used as a model for farmers in the upland areas to supply forages for goats.
 

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank the Research Section, Royal Project Foundation, for providing the funds for this study. Deep appreciation also goes to the Huy Nam Rin and Mae Lord Royal Project Development Centers, and Mae Hia Research and Demonstration Farm of the Royal Project Foundation, the Department of Animal Science of Chiang Mai University and their staff members for providing the facilities and helping to collect the data. Finally, I would like to express my sincere appreciation to MEKARN-Sida/SAREC for giving me the opportunity to present this paper..

References

AGRIS No date Animal Feed Resources Information System. FAO, Rome

http://www.fao.org/AG/aGa/AGAP/FRG/AFRIS/Data/14.HTM

Dayrit R 1990 Intensive Feed Garden. In “Resource book on sustainable agriculture for the uplands” Editors: Capistrano L N, Durno N and Moeliono I. International Institute of Rural Reconstruction, Philippines. pp. 110-123.

Rosales M 1997 Trichanthera gigantea (Humboldt & Bonpland.) Nees: A review. Livestock Research for Rural Development 9 (4). http://www.cipav.org.co/lrrd/lrrd9/4/mauro942.htm

Steel R G D and Torrie J H 1980 Principles and Procedures of Statistics. McGraw-Hill Book Company, Inc., New York.

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