EFFECTS OF HYDROPONIC MEDIA ON FORAGE AND SILAGE QUALITY OF BARLEY (HORDEUM VULGARE L.)

This study was carried out to investigate the effects of different substrates (barley+straw and barley+diy olive pulp) on the feed value of barley plants produced in a hydroponic system. In addition, germination of barley was tested in experiment 2 for silage quality. For this purpose, barley was harvested on the 7th day of the experiment. Nutrient contents of plant samples were determined. Dry matter content of the fodders increased significantly with the addition of straw (P<0.01), while the ash, ADF and NDF contents significantly increased (P<0.01) with the addition of dry olive pulp (prina) ratio. In trial 2, the addition of straw and dry olive pulp increased the dry matter content of the silage while the straw increased the pH of silage (P<0.01). The contribution of dry olive pulp increased total ash, ADF and NDF values in silage. Protein levels did not differ in either trials (P>0.05). The results revealed that the use of straw is useful in preventing the negative effect of excess water in germination environment. In addition, relative feed value (RFV) and digestible dry matter (DDM) criteria of feeds were quite satisfactory. Nutrient content and other quality criteria of feed indicated that hydroponic barley is a favorable silage material with base materials, though wheat straw was superior to dry olive pulp.