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**Chapter 4**

Provisional chapter

**Ensiling of Forage Crops in Semiarid Regions**

Ensiling of Forage Crops in Semiarid Regions

Ana Paula Maia dos Santos, Wandrick Hauss de Souza and

Edaphoclimatic condition of the semiarid region is unfavorable for the forage production of livestock. Silage is considered a better alternative to conserve forage crops. Ensiling is a technique for preserving forage, in which the ensiled mass is acidified under anaerobic conditions. The lactic acid bacteria present in the environment produce lactic acid, thereby making the environment acidic, and convert soluble substrates into organic acids. Many microorganisms are involved in the fermentation process of silage and their development depends on the characteristics of ensiled materials, such as dry matter, water-soluble carbohydrate content, buffering capacity and presence of indigenous microbial. Ensiling is a favorable technque used in the semiarid region because it preserves the nutritional values of the crops and the water. Some plant species are produced in semiarid regions because they are resistant to water deficit and high solar radiation. The main crops of semiarid regions are sorghum, pearl millet, grasses, cactus pear, and leguminous. Due to agronomic conditions available for their production during periods of rain, for ensiling these plants are important for the fermentation profile of each species because the ratio of the dry matter to water-soluble carbohydrate

content and buffering capacity directly influence the end product of silage.

variability of soil with greater or lesser ability to retain water [1].

Keywords: cultivate crop, drought, forage preservation, forage silage, tropical crop

The semiarid regions are characterized by an irregular distribution of rainfall with greater variability between years and within the same year, and high solar radiation. This hydric variability originates from complex systems of the formation of rain, with the occurrence of concentrated rain in a few months of the year and alternate years, irregularity, existence of geographic barrier concentrating higher humidity in the valleys and leaving dried slopes, and

© The Author(s). Licensee InTech. This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons

© 2016 The Author(s). Licensee InTech. This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and eproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

João Paulo Farias Ramos, Edson Mauo Santos,

João Paulo Farias Ramos, Edson Mauo Santos,

Additional information is available at the end of the chapter

Additional information is available at the end of the chapter

Wandrick Hauss de Souza and Juliana Silva Oliveira

Ana Paula Maia dos Santos,

Juliana Silva Oliveira

Abstract

1. Introduction

http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/101990

#### **Ensiling of Forage Crops in Semiarid Regions** Ensiling of Forage Crops in Semiarid Regions

João Paulo Farias Ramos, Edson Mauo Santos, Ana Paula Maia dos Santos, Wandrick Hauss de Souza and Juliana Silva Oliveira João Paulo Farias Ramos, Edson Mauo Santos, Ana Paula Maia dos Santos, Wandrick Hauss de Souza and Juliana Silva Oliveira

Additional information is available at the end of the chapter Additional information is available at the end of the chapter

http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/101990

#### Abstract

Edaphoclimatic condition of the semiarid region is unfavorable for the forage production of livestock. Silage is considered a better alternative to conserve forage crops. Ensiling is a technique for preserving forage, in which the ensiled mass is acidified under anaerobic conditions. The lactic acid bacteria present in the environment produce lactic acid, thereby making the environment acidic, and convert soluble substrates into organic acids. Many microorganisms are involved in the fermentation process of silage and their development depends on the characteristics of ensiled materials, such as dry matter, water-soluble carbohydrate content, buffering capacity and presence of indigenous microbial. Ensiling is a favorable technque used in the semiarid region because it preserves the nutritional values of the crops and the water. Some plant species are produced in semiarid regions because they are resistant to water deficit and high solar radiation. The main crops of semiarid regions are sorghum, pearl millet, grasses, cactus pear, and leguminous. Due to agronomic conditions available for their production during periods of rain, for ensiling these plants are important for the fermentation profile of each species because the ratio of the dry matter to water-soluble carbohydrate content and buffering capacity directly influence the end product of silage.

Keywords: cultivate crop, drought, forage preservation, forage silage, tropical crop
