The present study was conducted to investigate the influence of different levels of dietary phytogenic feed additive (PFA) on growth performance, caecal microbiota, and intestinal morphology of broilers. A total of 480 Ross-308 one-day-old male broilers chicks (body weight 43±3 g) were randomly assigned to 32 replicate pens of four experimental groups, each experimental group consisting of 8 replicates (each replicate pen consisting of 15 chicks). A basal diet was formulated based on corn and soybean meal that was fed to the control group. Other dietary treatments received a commercial PFA at 100 mg/kg (PFA100), 125 mg/kg (PFA125), and 150 mg/kg (PFA150). Body weight gain, feed intake, and feed conversion rate of broilers were recorded on 1-21, 22-42, and 1-42 days of age. One bird was slaughtered on the 21^st and 42^nd days and caecal contents were aseptically collected. Jejunal tissue samples were also collected on the same days. Total aerobic bacteria, coliforms, Escherichia coli, and lactobacilli were counted in the caecal contents. Villus height, villus diameter, crypt depth, muscular thickness, and goblet cell number per villus were recorded. There was no difference among the dietary treatments for growth performance and caecal microbe populations at any phase. However, the dietary PFA supplementation increased the villus height, villus width, muscularis thickness, and reduced the crypt depth and goblet cell number per villus in broilers compared to those fed control diets. In conclusion, this study suggests that dietary supplementation of a PFA consisting of blend of different spices and essential oils did not improve growth performance and caecal microbial populations despite a positive improvement in the jejunal morphometry of broilers.

Triticale, a hybrid cereal crop derived from the cross of wheat and rye, is widely used for silage production owing to its high nutritional qualities and tolerance to varying climatic conditions. The genotype and maturity stage of forage crops govern the efficiency of microbial inoculants used for ensiling. The effects of homofermentative (HMF; Lactiplantibacillus plantarum and Enterococcus faecium) and heterofermentative (HTF; Lentilactobacillus buchneri) inoculants, either alone or in combination, on the fermentation quality, nutrient composition, and in vitro rumen digestibility of ensiled triticale varieties (Alperbey and Karma 2000) were assessed in this study. The study was carried out using a 2 × 2 × 2 factorial arrangement of two triticale varieties, two levels of HMF [0 or 1 × 10⁵ CFU/g fresh forage (0.8 mg/kg)], and two levels of HTF [0 or 0.5 × 10⁵ CFU/g fresh forage (500 mg/kg)]. Forages were harvested at the early dough stage, vacuum-packed in 110 μm-thick plastic bags (35 cm × 25 cm), and allowed to ferment for 120 days. Fermentation characteristics, chemical composition, volatile fatty acids, and digestibility traits were evaluated after ensiling. Application of HMF inoculant significantly reduced silage pH compared to the control and HTF treatments in Alperbey, whereas in Karma 2000, terminal pH remained statistically similar between control and HMF treatments. Generally, inoculated silages had lower ammonia nitrogen levels than control silages, reflecting better protein conservation. The HTF significantly increased the acetic acid and decreased the butyric acid concentrations. There were significant two-way (variety × HMF and variety × HTF) and three-way (variety × HMF × HTF) interactions for crude protein content, fiber contents, volatile fatty acids profile, and digestibility characteristics (p < 0.05). For Karma 2000, the application of HMF increased crude protein concentration; however, it also increased lignin and fiber contents, thereby reducing organic matter digestibility. In contrast, dual inoculation raised neutral detergent fiber digestibility. The results show that variety-specific inoculant selection can improve triticale silage quality, underscoring the importance of aligning microbial additives with the forage’s biochemical properties.

This study evaluates the effect of homofermentative and heterofermentative inoculants used independently or in combination on the quality of fermentation, chemical composition, fiber digestion, and nutritional value of silage made from four wheat varieties (Bayraktar 2000, Kızıltan 91, Bezostaja 1, and Tosun bey). Four treatments were applied within each variety: an untreated control group; a homofermentative inoculant (HMF group; Lactiplantibacillus plantarum, formerly Lactobacillus plantarum, and Enterococcus faecium, applied at 1.0 × 10⁵ cfu/g fresh weight); a heterofermentative inoculant (HTF group; Lentilactobacillus buchneri, formerly Lactobacillus buchneri, applied at 5.0 × 10⁴ cfu/g fresh weight); and their combination (HMF+HTF; group 1.5 × 10⁵ cfu/g fresh weight). The whole-crop wheat silage collected at the dough stage was allowed to ferment for 120 days using a 4 × 2 × 2 factorial design having four replications. Statistically significant differences between varieties and inoculation treatments were seen in most of the recorded characteristics (p < 0.001), demonstrating that inoculant responses were significantly impacted by genotype. In Kızıltan 91, dry matter (DM) did not differ significantly among treatments (p > 0.05). In Bayraktar 2000, DM was reduced only by HTF applied alone (36.56% vs. 43.23% in the control), while HMF and HMF+HTF did not differ from the control. In Bezostaja 1, both HTF and HMF+HTF decreased DM relative to the control, whereas HMF alone had no effect. In Tosun bey, all LAB treatments increased DM relative to the control, with the homofermentative inoculant producing the greatest increase. Homofermentative inoculants demonstrated improved fermentation characteristics by lowering silage pH and ammonia-nitrogen concentrations and enhancing physical traits, while Heterofermentative inoculants reduced butyrate accumulation and raised acetic acid concentration, which reached 3.50 g/kg DM in Kızıltan 91 during combined inoculation. According to genotype, the application of inoculants varied the amount of fiber and digestibility. In vitro dry matter and organic matter digestibility, net energy of lactation, total digestible nutrient, and relative feed value (RFV) were frequently reduced by the combination HMF+HTF treatment. In Bayraktar 2000, RFV was found to have decreased the most, from 166.79 to 106.51. Conversely, Bezostaja 1 showed comparatively constant levels of energy content and digestibility regardless of the treatment, suggesting greater adaptability to the effects of microbial inoculants. In general, wheat genotype was the main factor influencing the nutritional value and quality of silage, and varietal characteristics had a significant impact on the efficacy of microbial inoculation. These results show how essential it is to choose inoculant methods according to variety in order to maximize fermentation quality and maintain feeding value in the production of wheat silage.