Get reliable rangeland science

Salinity Reduces the Forage Quality of Forage Kochia: A Halophytic Chenopodiaceae Shrub
Author
Waldron, B.L.
Sagers, J.K.
Peel, M.D.
Rigby, C.W.
Bugbee, B.
Creech, J.E.
Publisher
Elsevier Inc.
Publication Year
2020-05
Body

Forage kochia (Bassia prostrata [L.] A.J. Scott) is a perennial, halophytic Chenopodiaceae shrub adapted to semiarid rangelands and steppes. It is noted for its ability to produce edible forage in saline environments, but the effect of salinity on its nutritive value has not been determined. Therefore, this study evaluated the dose-response of increasing salinity on the forage quality of forage kochia and Gardner's saltbush (Atriplex gardneri [Moq.] D. Dietr., a chenopod forage shrub indigenous to the United States). Individual plants were evaluated in hydroponics for 28 days at 0, 150, 300, and 600 mM NaCl. Salt from accumulated ions, minerals, and forage nutritive value were determined using ground shoot samples. Analysis of forage nutritive value is problematic in plants with high salt concentrations, so neutral detergent fiber (NDF) and in vitro true digestibility (IVTD) were also predicted on an ash-corrected dry matter (DM) basis (NDF<inf>corrected</inf> and IVTD<inf>corrected</inf>). Forage kochia exhibited a dose-response for salt concentration, IVTD<inf>corrected</inf>, and crude protein (CP) as salinity increased. Salt concentrations increased to 19% of DM at 600 mM NaCl, which may reduce voluntary intake by ruminants grazing forage kochia. Results indicated that uncorrected IVTD estimates were inflated as forage kochia IVTD<inf>corrected</inf> decreased from 65% to 56% with the major change between 300 and 600 mM NaCl. Crude protein did not differ between two forage kochia cultivars but decreased from 26% to 15% between 0 and 600 mM NaCl, whereas Gardner's saltbush CP decreased by only five percentage points as salinity increased. Nonetheless, despite the greater CP sensitivity to salinity level, forage kochia salt concentration was less and digestibility and metabolizable energy (ME) were greater than Gardner's saltbush. Overall, salinity reduced the forage quality of forage kochia, though not as dramatically as for Gardner's saltbush, thus supporting use of forage kochia to improve the forage base of saline rangelands. © 2020

Language
en
Resource Type
Text
Document Type
Journal Issue/Article
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
10.1016/j.rama.2019.12.005
Additional Information
B.L. Waldron, J.K. Sagers, M.D. Peel, C.W. Rigby, B. Bugbee, and J.E. Creech "Salinity Reduces the Forage Quality of Forage Kochia: A Halophytic Chenopodiaceae Shrub," Rangeland Ecology and Management 73(3), 384-393, (22 May 2020). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rama.2019.12.005
ISSN
1550-7424
OAI Identifier
oai:repository.arizona.edu:10150/679466
Journal Volume
73
Journal Number
3
Journal Pages
384-393
Collection
Rangeland Ecology & Management (REM)
Journal Name
Rangeland Ecology and Management
Keywords
digestibility
forage nutritive value
Halogeton
salinity
Saltbush
concentration (composition)
Detergent
digestibility
dry matter
forage
hydroponics
metabolism
nutritive value
protein
salinity
salt
shrub
sodium chloride
United States
Amaranthaceae
Atriplex gardneri
Bassia prostrata
Halogeton
Kochia
Sarcobatus vermiculatus