Feed & Forage

NIR Testing Packages

Weather and Its Impact on Forage Quality

   Forage Quality

   When the growing season come to an end, South Eastern Pennsylvania harvests good quality alfalfa, ryelage and corn silage. The weather patterns have allowed some growers the luxury to harvest a 5th cutting of alfalfa. In addition, the Indian summer has resulted in a greater number of cover crops being planted for both yield and green manure.

There have been reports of insect pressures and disease pressures but nothing out of the ordinary.

With the increase in tonnage, alfalfa and corn silage soil fertility levels are depressed. Make sure  that a sound soil-testing program is adhered to this fall. Ensuring maximum fertility levels are met for the spring is of the utmost priority.

Neutral Detergent Insoluble Crude Protein (NDICP) 

   Neutral Detergent Insoluble Crude Protein (NDICP) by NIRS is now available on a forage report. Neutral Detergent Insoluble Crude Protein (NDICP) is the protein component, expressed as a percent of dry matter, that is associated with the residue remaining after performing a Neutral Detergent Fiber (NDF) determination on a feedstuff. It is sometimes referred to as (Neutral Detergent Insoluble Protein) or NDP (Neutral Detergent Protein). It could also be expressed in terms of Nitrogen or "N", a component of crude protein and called Neutral Detergent Insoluble Nitrogen (NDIN) or just Neutral Detergent Nitrogen (NDN). The NDIN value can be calculated by dividing the NDICP by 6.25. 

   Unlike Acid Detergent Insoluble Crude Protein (ADICP or Heat Damaged Protein) which is almost entirely unavailable to animals, some of the NDICP is available to ruminant animals. The available NDICP is likely part of the digestible fiber (dNDF) component of NDF. 

   In our laboratory, NDICP is assayed using one of two methods. The first requires that an NDF determination is made using the Ankom Fiber Analyzer with no sodium sulfite added to the detergent solution. A crude protein assay is performed on the remaining neutral detergent fiber residue and the NDICP calculated from the remaining values. 

   The second method predicts NDICP values from NIR spectra obtained from microwave oven dried samples that are ground in a cyclone mill. These predicted values are based on calibrations developed from our reference laboratory NDICP values and corresponding sample spectra. Currently, a separate prediction equation is used for corn silage, small grain silage, hay, and haylage. No NDICP values are predicted on grains such as shelled corn.

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