@conference {41853,
	title = {Digestion kinetics of New Zealand native flax},
	booktitle = {Proceedings of the New Zealand Society of Animal Production},
	volume = {65},
	year = {2005},
	month = {Jan},
	pages = {367-371},
	publisher = {New Zealand Society of Animal Production},
	organization = {New Zealand Society of Animal Production},
	address = {Christchurch},
	abstract = {This experiment compares the nutritive value of New Zealand native flax, Phormium tenax, by-products i.e. leaves (L), butts (B), thrash-stripped fibre (F) and green matter (G), with white clover (WC) via digestion kinetics derived from in vitro and in sacco incubations. The WC had a high nutritive quality (11.1 MJME/kg DM, CP 28\% DM), G a moderate (10.1 MJME/kg DM, CP 9\% DM), and L, B, F were of very low nutritive quality (< 8 MJME/kg DM, CP < 6 \% DM). After 24 hours, 96, 76, 47, 47, and 30 \% of the DM was degraded for WC, G, L, B and F, respectively (P < 0.001). The degradation rates (\%/h) of digestible DM were faster (P < 0.001) for WC (13) and G (11) than B (3.8), L (4.6) and F (2.7). Flax by-products had a net loss of ammonia after 2 (B), 4 (F and L) and 8 hours (G). The proportion of DM converted to VFA by 8 hours was 21 \%, and 14 \% for WC and G respectively, but only 9-10 \% for the other flax by-products (P < 0.001). The feeding model BestFeed{\texttrademark} predicted that G could grow a 500 kg bull at 0.8 kg/day and had potential as a supplement for pasture-fed animals.
KEYWORDS: flax; Phormium tenax; in sacco; in vitro; digestion kinetics; nutritive value; forage ration, BestFeed. },
	issn = {1176-5283},
	author = {Litherland AJ and Layton DL and Burke JL and Corson DC and Peters JS}
}
