Seasonal Changes in Chemical Composition, Preference and In Sacco Degradation of Eight Different Fodder Tree leaves

Livestock farmers in the Coastal Savannah of Ghana cut and feed leaves of various naturally occurring fodder tree species to supplement livestock diets, especially in the dry season. The aim of this study was to determine the seasonal changes in chemical composition, rumen degradation characteristics and preference of sheep for eight common indigenous fodder tree leaves, and ascertain their contribution to livestock production. Fodder leaves from Albizzia lebbek (AL), Baphia nitida (BN), Blighia sapida (BS), Ficus exasperata (FE), Ficus polita (FP), Morinda lucida (ML), Moringa oleifera (MO) and Spondias mombin (SM) were used. Fresh leaves were sampled in the wet and dry seasons to determine changes in seasonal chemical composition. Four Djallonke sheep (two males and two females) of average weight of 27.3 kg ±0.22 were offered fresh fodder leaves in a cafeteria system to determine preference. In sacco dry matter (DM) degradation was determined using four fistulated sheep in a repeated 4x4 Latin square design. Seasonal DM, crude protein (CP), acid detergent fibre (ADF), neutral detergent fibre (NDF) and lignin content of the fodder leaves ranged from 319.7 to 862.7 g kg^-1, 150.0 to 359.2 g kg^-1 DM, 181.1 to 491.5 g kg^-1 DM, 277.5 to 718.3 g kg^-1 DM and 50.5 to 242.0 g kg^-1 DM respectively. Crude protein content of AL and FP were higher for the wet season than dry season but BS had similar trend for both seasons. The soluble and potentially degradable fractions of DM ranged from 113.3-216.8 and 142.9-627.7 g kg^-1. It is concluded that the four most preferred fodder species were AL, FE, SM and MO. Their CP contents regardless of the season were higher than the minimum level considered as adequate for moderate ruminant production. It is expected that, these fodder leaves will contribute to by-pass protein and nitrogen retention and subsequently lead to weight gain when fed to sheep.