RT Journal T1 OPTIMAL MANAGEMENT OF LUCERNE-BASED FEEDING TO MAXIMIZE MILK YIELD AND NUTRITIONAL QUALITY A1 FAHIMA NABI A1 HAMIDA SADJI-AIT KACI A1 Dahbia Kechad A1 Mohamed Zadi A1 Lamia Boudella A1 ASSIA CHAKER HADDADJ A1 MERIEM CHEBAANI JF Journal of Animal and Plant Sciences JO JAPS SN 1018-7081 VO 36 IS 5 YR 2026 FD 2026 DO DOI https://doi.org/10.36899/JAPS.2026.5.0114 AB

The quality of forage, a key factor in livestock feed selection, is now a major development objective to ensure food security, nutrition, and human health. It also represents a sustainable intensification of livestock farming systems. Two experiments were conducted to assess the effects of forage type and lucerne growth stage on milk yield and physicochemical composition. In the first experiment, 25 cows were randomly allocated to five dietary treatments (n = 5 cows per treatment) including: (i) green barley + oat hay as the control, reflecting standard farm practice; green lucerne + oat hay; pasture + oat hay; green sorghum + lucerne hay; and green sorghum + oat hay. The second experiment involved a separate group of 10 cows randomly assigned to two treatments (n = 5 cows per treatment) to evaluate the influence of lucerne growth stage on milk production and composition. The treatments consisted of fresh lucerne used at either the budding stage or the flowering stage. The data were analyzed using a one-way ANOVA with feed treatment as a fixed factor. The fresh lucerne–oat hay resulted in the highest milk yield (16.93 kg day⁻¹) compared with sorghum–lucerne hay and the control diet. Milk production decreased by about 50% when cows were fed pasture–oat hay or green sorghum–oat hay. Moreover, feeding fresh lucerne increased milk yield by over 31% compared with lucerne hay. Fresh lucerne improved milk quality indicated by a higher protein (3.66%) and fat (4.19%), lactose and mineral content but it exhibited the lowest Dornic acidity (16°D), compared with lucerne hay and other diets. Markedly, fresh lucerne at the budding stage significantly improved milk yield (+30.8%) compared with the flowering stage which induced a higher crude fiber (25.23%), that may reduce digestibility. In contrast, budding stage lucerne increased the milk quality by enhancing the crude protein (+24.20%), digestible crude protein (+25.34%), mineral content (+45.01%), and feed units for lactation (+22.58%). The findings of this investigation highlighted that an incorporation of the fresh lucerne, particularly at budding stage into ruminant diets could represent a promising strategy to improve forage quality and supports optimal lactation performance due to its high nutritional richness in protein and mineral components.

K1 Lucerne forage, Dairy cattle, Milk composition, Milk yield, Forage quality PB Pakistan Agricultural Scientists Forum LK https://thejaps.org.pk/AbstractView.aspx?mid=2025-JAPS-1195