Valorisation of grape pomace, a by-product of the winery industry, has been pushed into the spotlight in recent years since it can enable lower environmental impact, but it can also bring an added value to the wine production process by recovering several grape pomace biologically active compounds. The first step that allows for grape pomace reuse is its drying, which should be carefully performed in order to preserve the biologically active compounds’ stability. In this study, the effects of different drying methods on the stability of polyphenols, tannins and tartaric acid in grape pomace (Vitis vinifera) cv. Graševina were investigated. In particular, vacuum drying (at different temperatures: 35, 50 and 70 °C), conventional drying at 70 °C and open sun drying were performed and the drying kinetics was described using Peleg’s model. Considering the processing time and thermodynamics, vacuum drying at 70 °C was the most convenient processing method. Polyphenols were highly stable during drying, and slight degradation occurred during vacuum drying at 35 and 50 °C. Tannins and tartaric acid were more prone to degradation depending on the drying method applied and showed the greatest stability during vacuum drying at 70 °C.

Grape pomace is a fibrous food with satisfactory quantities of residual sugars. It meets the desirable characteristics for conservation in the form of silage for later use in animal feed, mainly for ruminant herbivores. Fresh grape pomace was subdivided into three treatment groups: grape pomace as a control, grape pomace treated with an inoculum of lactic acid bacteria, and grape pomace treated with zeolite. The treatments were performed in micro-silos over 90 days. There was a significant change (p < 0.05) in the chemical characteristics, content of biologically active compounds, and fermentative characteristics during the silage of all treatments. After 30, 60 and 90 days of ensiling, silages treated with inoculum and zeolite had better fermentation quality indicated by significantly (p < 0.05) lower pH and ammonia-nitrogen contents compared with those of the control. Also, the additives have decreased the total polyphenols and tannins for 97% in average which confirmed that lactic acid bacteria and zeolite positively effect on the degradation of polyphenols and tannins in grape pomace silage. The Flieg score was calculated and the values were above 80% what refers to excellent silage. In conclusion, our results suggest that inoculant and zeolite supplementation improves the quality of grape pomace silage for later use in animal feed.

Managing alfalfa silage in livestock production systems is an important issue in order to maintain the silage quality and achieve maximum profitable production of milk and meat. The aim of this study was to estimate effects of commercial bacterial inoculants on chemical composition and fermentation of alfalfa silage, under field conditions in the commercial dairy farm, during 2017. The silage mass was subdivided into five equal parts (control - silage without inoculant) and silages treated with commercial bacterial inoculants (PIO 1 - Pioneer 11H50, PIO2 - Pioneer 11AFT, SIL - Silko and BON - Bosilage alfa) all ensiled in microsilos. After 90 days of ensiling, silages were analysed for chemical and nutritional composition and fermentation characteristics. Dry matter and crude protein value were higher, lactic acid and acetic acid value were significantly higher in silage treated with bacterial inoculant PIO1, PIO2, SIL and BON compared to control silage. Contrary, alfalfa silage treated with a bacterial inoculant PIO1, PIO2, SIL and BON had lower values of acid detergent fibre, neutral detergent fibre and pH and significantly lower values butyric acid, alcohols and NH3-N/total nitrogen compared to control silage. Results showed that bacterial inoculant PIO1, PIO2, SIL and BON increases silage quality compared to control silage.

Little is known about the best management systems for seed production of Italian ryegrass. The main objective of this study was to determine the influence of management systems on the first-year seed crop grown under various nitrogen fertilization (0, 60, 120 and 180 kg ha⁻¹). Management systems of single-purpose crops were with (SeedPGR-crop) and without (Seed-crop) plant growth regulator application. The dual-purpose crops incorporated early spring forage cut during stem elongation (EF-seed-crop) and late cut at the onset of heading (LF-seed-crop) followed by seed harvest. Compared to the single-purpose crops, the dual purpose-crops shattered much less seeds but still yielded less because their plants had lower number of visible nodes on stems, shorter ears, fewer spikelets per ear, fewer flowers per spikelet in various ear sections and lighter seeds. Despite similar lodging incidence, the SeedPGR-crop produced relatively small, but significantly larger seed yield than the Seed-crop because plants in the SeedPGR-crop had shorter stems with fewer vegetative tillers, and shattered seeds slightly less. Nitrogen fertilization consistently improved seed yields in all management systems regardless of associated increases in lodging and seed shedding. These yield increments were mainly associated with the increased number of early- and late-formed reproductive tillers, and partly due to improved number of florets per spikelet and slightly heavier seed in early-formed reproductive ears. In spite of larger seed losses through shattering, the single-purpose crops largely out-yielded and had higher seed germination than the dual-purpose crops at all nitrogen fertilization rates, with maximized yields produced in the SeedPGR-crop.

Corn silage is a high-yielding, voluminous forage rich in energy but with insufficient protein content for ighproducing cattle. Since legumes have a low dry matter yield, low forage yield and unsatisfactory quality, they are often used in intercropping with cereals, which contributes to a higher yield and better forage quality than in pure culture. In this research, corn (Zea mays L.) and climbing beans (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) were sown in different sowing densities in order to determine the best ratio in the intercropping system of corn and beans to achieve high yield and good nutritional value of forage. A pure maize crop (75000 grains ha-1) and maize in intercropping with beans were sown: 75000 grains ha-1 of maize and 37000 grains ha-1 of beans, 75000 grains ha-1 of maize and 50000 grains ha-1 of beans and 75000 grains ha-1 of corn and 75000 grains ha-1 of beans. The highest yield of dry matter was determined with the highest proportion of beans (19.0 t ha-1), and the lowest yield with 75000 plants ha-1 of corn and 37000 plants ha-1 of beans (17.2 t ha-1). The intercropping of corn and beans reduced the proportion of neutral detergent fibers, which could result in an increase in the digestibility of voluminous forage. Based on the nutritional value and forage yield, we can conclude that the intercropping with the highest proportion of beans had the highest yield and the best nutritional value.

Cultivated nettle Urtica dioica L., a member of the Urticaceae family, is widely distributed throughout the temperate regions of the world and can be used as a nutritious feed for animals through the winter period. The aim of this research was to determine (i) the nutritional value of freshly cultivated nettle Urtica dioica L. grown in the open field and (ii) the fermentation value of cultivated nettle Urtica dioica L. ensiled with additives, including a commercial inoculant containing bacteria that produce lactic acid and molasses from sugar beet after 60 days of ensiling. Cultivated nettle Urtica dioica L. was ensiled in six treatments: without additions (control); with sugar beet molasses (2, 4, and 6%) per 1 kg of fresh mass and a commercial inoculant (2 and 4 g/t of fresh mass) in five replicates. The results of this research showed that the cultivated nettle Urtica dioica L. contains a large proportion of proteins and some essential minerals, including calcium, and is especially rich in magnesium and iron. Without the addition of sugar beet molasses and without treatment with a commercial inoculant, poorly preserved silage from cultivated nettle was obtained. With 2% molasses, poorly preserved silage was obtained, but with 4 and 6% molasses, well-preserved silage from cultivated nettle was obtained. Based on the results of these studies, it is recommended to use sugar beet molasses during ensiling in a concentration of 4 to 6% of the fresh mass of cultivated nettle. In future research, it would be interesting to test the joint application of commercial inoculants and sugar beet molasses when preparing cultivated nettle Urtica dioica L. for silage on the farm.