Soybean hay (Glycine max (L.) Merril) and Marmalade grass hay (Brachiaria plantaginea (Link) Hitch) pure or mixed were evaluated through in vivo digestibility trials with sheep. The trial was conducted in a shed of Metabolic Studies in the Department of Animal Science at UFSM. The soybean hay (100%)-T1, soybean hay (67%) + marmalade grass hay (33%)-T2, soybean hay (33%) + marmalade grass hay (67%)-T3 and marmalade grass hay (100%)- T4, were evaluated in a completely randonmized design, with four repetitions. The soybean was harvested during the R5 to R6 stages while marmalade grass was harvested in the maturation stage.The percentage of crude protein decreased from 10.44% to 4.14%, for treatments from T1 to T4, while the coefficients of in vivo dry matter digestibility and total digestible nutrients remained near to 47% for all treatments. In the regarding to crude matter intake, the digestibility of dry matter and the digestible protein contents decreased when the percentage of marmalade grass in the diet was increased. The hays studied were considered of poor quality because of both maturation stages and losses that happened during the curing and storage process.
soybean; marmalade grass; in vivo digestibility; hay; chemical composition
