Effects of developmental stage and store time on the microbial community and fermentation quality of sweet sorghum silage

• Published in: Italian journal of animal science 2022-12, Vol.21 (1), p.1543-1557
• Main Authors: Zhao, Jie, Yin, Xue-Jing, Li, Jun-Feng, Wang, Si-Ran, Dong, Zhi-Hao, Shao, Tao
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Acetic acid; Acids; Ammonia; Chemical composition; developmental stage; Developmental stages; Fermentation; fermentation characteristic; Growth stage; Lactic acid; Lactobacillus; Lactococcus; Metagenomics; microbial community; microbial network; Microbiomes; Silage; Sorghum; Sweet sorghum silage
• ISSN: 1828-051X; 1594-4077; 1828-051X
• DOI: 10.1080/1828051X.2022.2138788

This study investigated the effects of developmental stage and store time on the chemical composition, microbial community, co-occurrence networks and fermentation characteristics of sweet sorghum silage. Sweet sorghum harvested at two developmental stages (heading stage, S 1 ; hard dough stage, S 2 ) was treated as follows: (I) natural fermentation of S 1 (NS 1 ); (II) natural fermentation of S 2 (NS 2 ) and ensiled for 1, 3, 7, 15, 30 and 60 days. After 60 days of ensiling, NS 2 silage had higher lactic acid concentration and the ratio of lactic to acetic acid, and lower pH value and acetic acid concentration than NS 1 silage. Meanwhile, NS 2 silage also had higher ammonia nitrogen (NH 3 -N) content than NS 1 silage, but the NH 3 -N content of both treatments was lower than 100 g/kg TN. Leuconostoc and Lactococcus were respectively dominant in both 7-day NS 1 and NS 2 silages, while Lactobacillus was the most abundant genus in 30-day NS 1 and NS 2 silages. The developmental stage altered the bacterial co-occurrence networks of fresh and ensiled sweet sorghum. Spearman's correlation heatmap showed that the higher lactic acid content and ratio of lactic to acetic acid in NS 2 silage could be associated with the higher water-soluble carbohydrate content in S 2 material, the higher abundance of Lactococcus in the initial phase of ensiling and the higher abundance of Lactobacillus in the late phase of ensiling. These results concluded that the sweet sorghum harvested at the hard dough stage is preferred for silage production over the sweet sorghum harvested at the heading stage. HIGHLIGHTS Microbial succession pattern was studied on fresh and ensiled samples. Growth stage affected the chemical and microbial parameters of sweet sorghum. Epiphytic microbiota was correlated with the chemical composition of forage. Metagenomic sequencing showed Lactobacillus was dominated in all silages. Growth stage accelerated the fermentation of sweet sorghum silage.