Agriculture (Aug 2022)
Nutritive Value of <i>Ajuga iva</i> as a Pastoral Plant for Ruminants: Plant Phytochemicals and In Vitro Gas Production and Digestibility
Abstract
This study aims to evaluate the nutritive value of Ajuga iva (A. iva) harvested from three distinct altitude regions in Tunisia (Dougga, Mograne, and Nabeul). The chemical composition, phenolic concentration, gas production, and in vitro dry matter (DM) digestibility were determined. The highest concentrations of neutral detergent fiber (NDF) and acid detergent fiber (ADF) were for A. iva cultivated in Nabeul. In contrast, the highest crude protein (CP) concentration was observed in that cultivated in Mograne, and the lowest (p p A. iva cultivated in Dougga and Mograne. The highest (p A. iva cultivated in Mograne and Nabeul regions. DM digestibility differed between regions and methods of determination. The highest (p A. iva cultivated in Mograne and Dougga, while the lowest (p A. iva collected from Mograne region than that collected from the other sampling areas. In conclusion, the nutritive value of A. iva differed between regions. Therefore, care should be taken when developing recommendations for using A. iva in an entire region. Season- and region-specific feeding strategies for feeding A. iva are recommended.
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