SUGARCANE LEAVES (Saccharum officinarum) ENSILIZED ALONE AND IN COMBINATION WITH LEGUMES, AS FOOD FOR FATTENING BOVINE CATTLE

The objective of the study was to evaluate fresh and ensiled sugar cane leaves alone and combined with forage legumes on the consumption and weight gains of fattening bulls in the dry season. The study wascarried out in the Chetumal Experimental Field of INIFAP in Quintana Roo, which presents 27° C of temperature averageand 1200 mm of rainfall annual average. Swiss Zebu breed Steers of 250 kg ± 5 of average weight were used. All steers were dewormed and vitaminized, prior to their random distribution in three treatments. Food treatments were T1: fresh cane ends + molasses + urea + legume, T2: cane leaves silage + molasses + urea, and T3: only grazing. The test was carried out 210 days with 15 days of adaptation to handling and forage. Weighing were carried out every month. ANOVAand Tukey test were carried outto detect differences between means. The variables measured were daily weight gain and voluntary consumption. Results indicated differences in weight gains (P≤0.05) of 250, 214, and 190 g/animal per day for T1, T2, and T3 respectively. The average intake of dry matter (DM) was 5.23, 5.40 and 4.37 kg/day. In conclusion, using cane leavescan allow modest weight gains and could be an alternative food in the dry season.