Changes in the nutritive value and aerobic stability of corn silages inoculated with Bacillus subtilis alone or combined with Lactobacillus plantarum

Abstract

Chemical composition, fermentation characteristics, in vitro digestibility and aerobic stability were evaluated in corn silage inoculated with microbial additives in two different experiments. Inoculant treatments (untreated, Bacillus subtilis and B. subtilis combined with Lactobacillus plantarum) were applied to fresh forages. Chopped corn plants (2B655 Hx) were ensiled in laboratory silos for periods of 7, 14, 21 and 63 days to evaluate the fermentation parameters. The experimental silos were weighed to determine gas losses. After the ensiling period, the silage was sampled to determine chemical composition and in vitro organic matter digestibility. To evaluate aerobic stability, chopped corn plants (AG‐1051) were ensiled in laboratory silos that were opened after 96 days of ensiling. The silage was placed in different buckets containing data loggers. The silage was sampled after 0, 4, 8 and 12 days of exposure to air to evaluate the microbial populations and pH. The data were analysed as a completely randomised design using a mixed repeated-measures model in the MIXED procedure of SAS. To evaluate each treatment relative to the fermentation times, a regression analysis using the PROC REG procedure of SAS was applied. A significance level of P < 0.05 was used. Inoculation with both strains increased lactic acid concentration, whereas the use of B. subtilis alone or combined with L. plantarum improved in vitro apparent organic matter digestibility. In the B. subtilis and B. subtilis combined with L. plantarum silages, moulds and yeasts decreased, and aerobic stability was improved. Inoculation with B. subtilis alone or combined with L. plantarum improved the nutritional value and aerobic stability of corn silage.

Effects of Lactobacillus buchneri as a silage inoculant and as a probiotic on feed intake, apparent digestibility and ruminal fermentation and microbiology in wethers fed low‐dry‐matter whole‐crop maize silage

“…Man, Rogosa and Sharpe (MRS) agar was used to count LAB by pour plate, whereas potato dextrose agar (PDA) was used to count yeasts and moulds by spread plate. Both MRS and PDA plates were incubated at 28°C according to protocols used in previous studies carried out in our laboratory (Basso et al., ; Lara et al., ; Rabelo, Basso, et al., ). Lactic acid bacteria and yeasts were counted after 2 days, and moulds were counted after 5 days.…”

Silage fermentation—updates focusing on the performance of micro‐organisms

“…Many species of Bacillus can produce antimicrobial substances as peptide and lipopeptide antibiotics and as bacteriocins, and the bacteriocins of Bacillus have a broader action spectrum than those produced by LAB (Abriouel et al 2011). Positive results include increased aerobic stability with the inoculation of B. subtilis (Lara et al 2015) and the inhibition of moulds by B. subitilis, B. licheniformis and B. pumilus (Pahlow et al 2003). No significant changes were observed in the silage with the inoculation of B. pumilus .…”

Influence of lactic acid bacteria, cellulase, cellulase-producing Bacillus pumilus and their combinations on alfalfa silage quality

“…Bacillus (B) species have been investigated in recent years as novel silage inoculants. Lara et al (2016) found some species from this genus could improve the aerobic stability of silage by producing bacteriocin, which inhibits yeasts and molds. The application of these species in animal feed also exhibited positive effects on feed utilization and livestock growth performance (Zhang et al 2017).…”