The Effects of a New Plastic Film on the Microbial and Fermentation Quality of Italian Ryegrass Bale Silages

Problems associated with big bale silage include the high permeability of plastic wrapping films to O2, their low resistance to damage and the large amount of plastic that must be used to limit aerobic deterioration during conservation. Low permeability film, used in the packaging of food and recently proposed for bunker silos (Degano, 1999), could reduce fungal development in bale silage. The aim of this work was to compare the microbial and fermentation quality of big-baled silage, wrapped with commercially available plastic film and a new stretch film with low O2 permeability, over different conservation periods

The Effects of the Growth Stage and Inoculant on Fermentation and Aerobic Stability of Whole-Plant Grain Sorghum Silage

Grain sorghum (Sorghum bicolor) is well adapted to environments with limited rainfall and low soil fertility. Today, on dry land, improved grain sorghum hybrids may be a valid alternative to maize silage and they may give DM yields and digestible energy that are comparable to maize, but at lower production costs (Legarto, 2000). Harvesting crops for silage at an early stage of maturity (low DM content) may result in silage with a higher acid content and low nutritional quality, while harvesting crops at a later stage of maturity may make the forage more difficult to chop and pack. Furthermore, drier silage could be more aerobically unstable during the feed-out phase. The aim of this work was to determine the optimum stage of development for silage purposes and to evaluate the effect of maturity and lactic acid bacteria (LAB) inoculant on the fermentation, nutritional quality and aerobic stability of whole-plant silage produced by grain sorghum grown without irrigation in the Po valley, NW Italy

Effects of the Stage of Growth and Inoculation on Proteolysis in Field Pea Silage

Ensiling legumes is a good way of providing home-grown protein in dairy farms but severe protein degradation can occur when conserving legumes. Peas (Pisum sativum L.) are legumes with a high crude protein and starch content, that provide a high forage yield in a short growing period. Very little information is available on the protein value of field pea silage. The aim of the study was to investigate the effect of stage of maturity and inoculant application on proteolysis in field pea silage in the Po Valley, NW Italy

How Online Solutions Help Beat the Lockdown in Higher Education: A Central Asia Case Study

This chapter is aimed at summarizing the recent initiatives put in action for solving the problems in delivering the educational services in the Turin Polytechnic University in Tashkent, TTPU, after the lockdown, and the stringent measures taken by the Uzbek government in March 2020, for the pandemic explosion of the COVID-19 virus. The long-lasting connection between Politecnico di Torino, a European University, and this Central Asia Institution has been proven to be extremely effective, maximizing the benefits of TTPU in promptly offering online solutions for remote lectures, and the preparation of the technical substrate for both the exams and admission test which will be delivered after the completion of the second semester lectures. A summary of the IT tools adopted, with compact highlights of their features, as well as the qualitative feedback collected from the first courses offered with a reshaped structure suitable for online classes are thoroughly discussed in this work