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BACKGROUND: Safflower (Carthamus tinctorius L.), usually grown as a source of oil crop, can be used as fodder either for hay or ensiling purposes, particularly in semi-arid regions.

RESULTS: A 2-year trial was conducted in southern Italy to evaluate the production and forage quality of safflower biomass cv. Centennial, harvested at three different stages: 1, at complete appearance of primary buds (PB); 2, at complete appearance of secondary and tertiary buds (STB); and 3, at 25% of flowering stage (FS). For each stage of growth, 50% of the biomass was ensiled in 4 L glass jars without and with inoculation (Lactobacillus plantarum, LAB), and the other 50% was field wilted for 24 h before ensiling. Dry matter (DM) content and yield (DMY), pH, buffering capacity (BC) and water soluble carbohydrates (WSC) were determined on fresh forage. On safflower silages were also evaluated ammonia-N, crude protein (CP), fibre fractions, fat, lactic and acetic acids, Ca and P, and gas losses. DMY ranged from 4.5 t ha(-1) (PB harvesting) to 11.6 t ha(-1) (FS harvesting). DM content varied from 129 g kg(-1) (PB not wilted) to 630 g kg(-1) (FS wilted). The WSC in forage before ensiling with not wilting ranged from 128 (PB stage) to 105 and 100 g kg(-1) DM at STB and FS stages, respectively. The wilted safflower forage showed a lower WSC compared to wilted forage. The high sugar substrate allowed lactic acid fermentation and a good conservation quality in all the harvesting stages. Silages quality was strongly influenced by the treatment performed. Wilting practice increased DM, pH and NDF contents but reduced lactic acid, acetic acid and NH(3)-N values. Inoculation reduced DM, pH and NDF contents, but increased lactic and acetic acids, CP and ash.

CONCLUSION: As result, wilting the forage for 1 day was very effective in the early harvesting stage because this practice significantly increased DM, reducing on the same time the intensive fermentation and proteolysis processes of silage. When harvesting is performed at the beginning of the flowering stage wilting is not necessary. (C) 2011 Society of Chemical Industry