Effects Of Burning On Diet Quality And Associated Production Systems Of Cattle And Goats In Acacia Savannahs Of Kenya

Abstract

One year study on the seasonal effects of burning on the dietary nutrition of cattle and goats was conducted at Kiboko from March 1982 to March 1983. Four esophageally fistulated heifers and two goats were utilized to collect diet samples from two adjacent burned and unburned paddocks. Pre-burn and post-burn herbaceous plant species frequency and density were evaluated in both paddocks. Post-burn shrub/woody plant species were evaluated for density and canopy parameters. Diet samples were subjected to laboratory analysis for crude protein (CP) and organic matter digestibility (OMD). Digestible energy was calculated.