The effect of sodium hydroxide treatment on the organic matter digestibility of hay from three tropical grasses

Abstract

Chopped samples of Setaria sphacelata, Pennisetum purpureum and Chloris gayana hay were treated with NaOH at 5 g/100 g dry matter. The addition of alkali increased in vitro organic matter digestibility by a maximum of 11 units (from an initial digestibility of 45 per cent) but the degree of improvement declined as the digestibility of the untreated material increased. The responses to alkali treatment were less than those reported in a temperate species.