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NUTRITIVE VALUE OF THE INDIGENOUS GRASSES OF ASSAM [Vol. XX, Part III
Cattle are seldom stall-fed in Assam. It has therefore, been considered desirable
to study the sum total effect of feeding a grass of this nature on the animal system
at various stages of life. Hence adult and rapidly growing animals were taken
as experimental subjects. The metabolism of the organic and inorganic nutrients
under various conditions of feeding has been separately reported in the present paper
which gives an account of these investigations in two parts as follows :
I. The chemical composition of the grass from the various pastures of the
province at two stages of growth and the metabolism of the organic nutrients as
affected by feeding the same to adult and young animals under a variety of
conditions.
II. The metabolism of the inorganic nutrients calcium and phosphorus with
and without the supplementation of calcium salts under various conditions of feed-
ing.
Ulu is a sweet smelling highland grass, grows abundantly in acid soil and
is available in considerable quantities in the hills and plains of the province. Accord-
ing to the forest authorities so plentiful is the supply of the grass that the roughage
quota of the entire cattle population can be met with if properly mobilised. It
is difficult to eradicate once it gets set and is therefore, considered as a pest. In
this respect, it behaves like kans (Saccharum spontanium) but is very much softer
to the feel than either kans or Bhara (Saccharum munj). During the early growth
it is usually associated with many other grasses, but very soon it destroys other
natural flora and dominates so firmly that grazing of any description can not either
destroy or check its vegetative growth. It grows to a height of about one and a
half to two feet. It is extremely drought resistant, when the old ones are burnt
down during the months of February and March, within a fortnight new shootings
spring up. This process some times saves our cattle from starvation, as the grazing
areas are practically barren at this period of the year. A little nitrogenous or
farmyard manure makes the leaf broader and under such treatments the grass
assumes a deep green colour. When frequently cut and new growth allowed, the
grass becomes soft and is much relished by cattle.
I. The chemical composition and the metabolism of the organic nutrients under various
conditions of ulu feeding
The chemical composition of the grass collected from the various pastures of
the province at different stages of growth viz., young and prime, representing the
early and late monsoon cut is shown in Table I, while the detailed analysis is
given in Table II.
The data shown in the above table are the mean of a number of samples from
the various representative tracts. It is obvious from the composition that the
grass is not rich in any of the indispensable nutrients, the content of protein is barely
sufficient for maintenance. The detailed composition is shown in Table II.
It may be seen from the data in Table II that the grass is conspicuously low
in ash at all stages of growth and hence rich in organic matter. The dry matter
of the grass usually varies between 25 to 50 per cent. The other nutrients are not
very much different from those shown in Table I. The samples may, therefore,