Legume Leaf Meal

In areas with a long, dry season, most dry fodder will still be capable of providing sufficient energy and fibre for ruminant livestock, but it will become deficient in terms of protein and vitamins. One way to provide the quality fraction of the diet is through the use of dried leaf meal cut from a range of tree legumes. The material is harvested during the dry season, dried in the shade and bagged for use later in the year. When fed at up to 20 per cent of the diet to ruminants, it will improve animal growth rates and milk yields. At levels in the range of 2-5 per cent in the diets of laying hens, it will ensure a rich, yellow-orange in egg yolks.

Background Methodology References and Further Reading   See also: Tree Fodder Hay Silage

In large areas of the tropics, there is a marked dry season, which can last for a period of six months, or more. When this occurs, conventional pastures for ruminant livestock become dry and deficient in nutritional quality. In this state, while the rumen continues to function normally, the pastures are usually capable of providing sufficient fibre and metabolizable energy for the livestock, but digestible protein and vitamin levels drop to levels where the animals are no longer able to grow, or produce milk. Animals often reach the stage where they start to lose some of the weight gained during the previous wet season and this leads to the typical cyclic pattern of body weights seen in many parts of the tropics and sub-tropics. There are several, proven ways to provide the necessary quality fraction of the diet, including the use of commercial concentrates, non-protein nitrogen and silage, but these are often expensive, or require transport and machinery that may not be available on small farms. In the Caribbean, the use of legume leaf meals has been shown to be both economical and practical in small-scale animal production systems.

For ruminant livestock, dry season supplementation with dried leaf meal in the range of 15-20 per cent of the overall diet will allow animals to continue to grow and produce during the whole year. The animals will not lose weight during the dry season and they will produce enough milk to raise their young and, where appropriate, produce a surplus for sale or for use within the family. With poultry, a lack of fresh herbage in the diet may result in the laying of eggs with a light, creamy coloured yolk, which in many areas, is unattractive to consumers and often leads to a reduced price in the market. The addition of small amounts (less than 5 per cent) of dried legume leaf meal to the diet will produce a strong, yellow-orange colour to the yolks, which is often attractive enough to attract a premium price.

Methodology

A rough rack is constructed of wood and wire, at a convenient height above the ground (60-100 cm is usually appropriate). This is placed in an open-sided shed to allow constant, natural ventilation, under a roof of corrugated iron or thatch, to give protection from rainfall. Branches of tree legumes such as Leucaena leucocephala, Calliandra calothyrsus, etc. which produce large quantities of leaves made up of small leaflets, are cut when in full leaf. The branches are piled in a thin layer (no more than 10-15cm) onto the rack and left to dry, with occasional turning, for 3-4 days. As they dry below about 12 per cent moisture content, the leaflets fall naturally from the branches, with no need for beating. They can be swept up from the ground and bagged for later use. If the bags are kept dry, the leaf material will keep for several months, without any deterioration. It can be fed in troughs direct to ruminants without further treatment, although some grinding and mixing with other feed may be necessary to minimize wastage, when fed to poultry.

 

Stür, W.W. and Horne, P.M. (2001). Developing forages with smallholder farmers—How to grow, manage and use forages. ACIAR Monograph no. 88. 96 p. ACIAR and CIAT.