Alternative forage feeds for beef cattle in Northwestern Alberta, Canada: forage yield and nutritive value of forage brassicas and forbs

Abstract

Forbs and forage brassicas are non-traditional forage crops in northwestern Alberta, Canada. Ten forage brassicas (barkant turnips, bayou kale hybrid, daikon radish, collard, inka brand marrowstem kale, malwira turnip rape, purple top turnips, tillage radish, vivant hybrid cross and winfred) and four forbs (buckwheat, chicory, plantain and phacelia) were seeded on 25 May 2018 and 23 May 2019. The above-ground parts of plants were harvested for forage yield and nutritive quality on 15 August 2018 and 29 August 2019. Forage dry matter (DM) yield, crude protein (CP) and total digestible nutrients (TDN) respectively varied from 2953 to 10740 kg DM ha−1, 12.2–23.5% CP and 58.8–77.9% TDN. Some crops had no nitrate (ant-nutritional factor) detected, while six crops (bayou kale cross, chicory, phacelia, plantain, purple top turnips and tillage radish) had nitrate concentrations ranging 0.26–0.56%, considered toxic for beef cattle. In general, the brassicas and forbs investigated produced forage with high nutritional quality. Based on forage DM yield and nitrate level in the forage, the crops with the most attractive forage options that can provide alternative forage feed for beef cattle production from this study would be buckwheat, daikon radish, inka brand marrowstem kale and forage collards.

Keywords

• alternative forage crops
• broadleaf
• forage yield
• nutritive value
• beef cattle