• • • Optimizing mineral nutrition of alfalfa-ryegrass lands in the Middle Volga region
In the Russian Federation production of 1 l of milk requires 1.8–2.0 feed units instead of 1 feed unit specified, 1 kg of meat — over 20 versus 16 feed units in developed countries. The main reasons of such cost-inefficient production are protein deficiency and disbalance of nutrients in forage, especially of the sugar-protein ratio. The most simple, ecologically friendly, energy- and economically efficient solution for qualitative forage production is wide cultivation of legume grasses, particularly alfalfa, having high protein content. Mineral nutrition improves green mass productivity of alfalfa from 18.4 to 36.8 t ha-1. But perennial legume grasses have extremely low sugar content, making the development of balanced diet for animals more difficult. However, sugar concentration in dry matter of annual ryegrass reaches 16.1%. As a result, the sugar-protein ration meets the optimal value: from 0.80:1 to 0.99:1.
Source: https://kormoproizvodstvo.ru/en/6-2018-2/, p. 8
You can order translation of the full text into English (kormoproiz@mail.ru).