NUTRITIVE AND PROXIMATE ANALYSIS ON FIVE WEEDY GRASSES FOR THEIR POTENTIAL USE AS FODDER

Abstract

Grasses serve as the primary food source for most of the herbivorous but generally grasses are considered as weeds of open fields. The present study aimed to quantify and compare the mineral and proximate composition from the dry leaf powder of five weedy grasses, namely Apluda mutica, Bothriochloa pertusa, Chloris barbata, Paspalidium flavidum and Stenotaphrum dimidiatum. Among the five weedy grasses, it has been found that Apluda mutica possess high fodder potential because of its highest amount of calcium (53.60 mg/100 g), sodium (123.60 mg/100 g), crude lipid (5.48%) and caloric value (354.84 kcal/100 g) compared to other grasses. Stenotaphrum dimidiatum shows highest crude protein (39.97%) and highest amount of carbohydrate is reported in Paspalidium flavidum (58.87%). A reasonable amount of macro and micro nutrients, total ash, moisture content, crude protein, crude lipid, carbohydrates, crude fibre, and caloric value were also observed in other grasses respectively. The present investigation provides a scientific data for utilisation of the weedy grass as fodder based on the nutritional and biochemical assessments.