Nutritive value of maize stover/pasture legume mixtures as dry season supplementation for sheep

Two experiments were carried out to determine the nutrient contents and relative preferences of maize stover and three legumes forages and their feeding on intake and digestibility of sheep. Maize stover was blended with three legumes, stylo (Stylosanthes guainensis), siratro (Macroptilium atropurpureum) and centro (Centrocema pubescens), to produce four treatments, namely, only maize stover (control), stover/stylo, stover/siratro and stover/centro mixtures. The first experiment evaluated the relative preference of the stover and the various stover/legume mixtures when offered to sheep. Six rams were offered pair combinations of the treatments in a 6x6 Latin square with a split plot arrangement such that each ram had access to two feeds at a time in each period of 6 days. The second experiment included measurements of intake and digestibility of the stover and stover/legume mixtures. Four intact and four castrated male sheep were used in two, 4x4 Latin squares with 21-day periods. The least (P<0.05) preferred feed was maize stover when it was offered as the sole feed. There were no significant differences in preference among the stover/legume mixtures. Dry matter intake (DMI) was highest (P<0.05) when sheep were offered the stover/centro mixture and lowest (P<0.05) when maize stover was fed as the sole feed. Dry matter digestibility did not differ significantly among treatments. Sheep that were offered maize stover only lost weight, those fed stover/centro gained weight and those that were fed either stover/siratro or stover/stylo maintained weight. However, these short-term weight changes may reflect changes in fill as much as changes in body tissue. Addition of legumes to maize stover improved the nutritive value, possibly by increasing the nitrogen content of the stover. The results suggest that maize stover, which is normally left to rot in the field, could be better utilised by intercropping with legumes and allowing animals access after grain harvest.