Shredding of grass-clover before ensiling: Effects on feed intake, digestibility, and methane production in dairy cows

Shredding is a type of processing that mechanically treats forage in order to separate plant tissues apart and rupture the plant cell. This experiment aimed at investigating the effects of shredding grass-clover harvested at two developmental stages on feed intake, digestibility, and gas production. The grass-clover was harvested either at an early (May 14; ERL) or a late (May 29; LAT) developmental stage. Within each developmental stage, grass-clover was mown, wilted, and either baled and wrapped (CON) or shredded, baled, and wrapped (SHR). The four combinations of ensiled grass-clover (ERL-CON, ERL-SHR, LAT-CON, and LAT-SHR) was fed to four rumen, duodenum, and ileum cannulated primiparous Danish Holstein cows in a 4 × 4 Latin square design with four periods of 21 d duration. The silage was offered for ad libitum intake. Silage density was higher (P