Evaluation of Barley Silage Harvested at Boot and Soft Dough Stages

Barley (Hordeum vulgure, L.) harvested at boot (May 7, 1988) and soft dough (June 6, 1988) stages of maturity was ensiled for nutritive comparisons. Bod stage was wilted, and soft dough was directcut at 15 (low) and 25 cm (high) above ground Yields were 3690, 8750, and 6287 kg DM/ha for boot, soft tively. Apparent digestibjlities of DM, CP, and ADF were 74.7, 75.4, and 70.8% for boot; 61.9, 50.5, and 44.7% for soft dough-low; and 62.3,47.2, and 49.7% for soft dough-high, respectively, when fed to heifers. The TDN was 71.2, 62.0, and 62.8% of DM for boot, soft dough-low, and soft dough-high, respectively. Thirtysix lactating Holstein cows were fed silages to supply 75 or 60% of diet DM for 60 d Milk yields were greater for high-vs. low concentrate diets and averaged 28.3 vs. 25.7 kg/d for boot, 26.3 vs.