STUDIES IN THE DIGESTIBILITY OF HERBAGE

Results are reported from six digestibility experiments in which frozen herbage was fed to groups of sheep at HIGH and Low levels of intake. The sheep on the HIGH level of intake digested the dry matter, organic matter, nitrogen and normal-acid fibre in the herbage less efficiently than those on the LOW level, confirming earlier results reported in Part VI of this series. Evidence suggests that this difference results from the higher rate of passage of food through the digestive tract at the HIGH level of intake.
These results are discussed with reference to the errors introduced into the faecal-index method for estimating the digestibility of grazed herbage.