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Cited by 211Ruminant Nutrition and Digestive PhysiologyAnimal Nutrition and PhysiologyProbiotics and Fermented Foods

The effect of Lactobacillus buchneri 40788 or Lactobacillus plantarum MTD-1 on the fermentation and aerobic stability of corn silages ensiled at two dry matter contents

Open access
Hu, W., Schmidt, R.J., McDonell, E.E., Klingerman, C.M., Kung, L.·2009·Journal of Dairy Science
DOI 10.3168/jds.2008-1788
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Abstract

Whole-plant corn was harvested at 33 (normal) and 41% (moderately high) dry matter (DM) and ensiled in quadruplicate 20-L laboratory silos to investigate the effects of Lactobacillus buchneri 40788 (LB) or L. plantarum MTD-1 (LP) alone, or in combination, on the fermentation and aerobic stability of the resulting silage. Aerobic stability was defined as the amount of time after exposure to air for the silage temperature to reach 2 degrees C above ambient temperature. The chopped forage was used in a 2 x 2 x 2 factorial arrangement of treatments: normal and moderately high DM contents, LB at 0 (untreated) or 4 x 10(5) cfu/g of fresh forage, and LP at 0 or 1 x 10(5) cfu/g. After 240 d of ensiling, corn silage harvested at the moderately high DM had higher pH, higher concentrations of ethanol, and more yeasts compared with the silage ensiled at the normal DM content. Inoculation with LB did not affect the concentration of lactic acid in silages with a moderately high DM, but decreased the concentration of lactic acid in the silage with normal DM. Higher concentrations of acetic acid were found in the silage treated with LB compared with those not treated with this organism. Inoculation with LP increased the concentration of lactic acid only in the silage with the normal DM content. The concentration of acetic acid was lower in silage treated with LP with a moderately high DM content, but greater in the silage treated with LP with the normal DM content when compared with silages without this inoculant. Appreciable amounts of 1,2-propanediol (average 1.65%, DM basis) were found in all silages treated with LB regardless of the DM content. The addition of L. buchneri increased the concentration of NH(3)-N in silages but the addition of L. plantarum decreased it. Aerobic stability was improved in all silages treated with LB, with greater aerobic stability occurring in the silage with moderately high DM compared with silage with normal DM content. Inoculation with LP had no effect on aerobic stability. There were no interactions between L. buchneri and L. plantarum for most fermentation products or aerobic stability of the silages. This study showed that inoculating whole-plant corn with L. buchneri 40788 or L. plantarum MTD-1 has different beneficial effects on the resulting silage. There appear to be no major interactions between these organisms when added together to forage. Thus, there is potential to add both organisms simultaneously to improve the fermentation and aerobic stability of corn silage.

AI snapshot

Written from the paper’s full text.

TL;DR

Inoculating whole-plant corn silage with *Lactobacillus buchneri* 40788 improved aerobic stability and increased acetic acid, while *Lactobacillus plantarum* MTD-1 mainly increased lactic acid at normal dry matter (DM). The two inoculants showed few interactions, suggesting they can be added together with generally maintained benefits.

Key findings

  • *L. buchneri* 40788 increased aerobic stability across DM contents (treated, 189 h vs. untreated, 50 h; P < 0.01), with a greater effect in moderately high DM silage. It also increased acetic acid and produced 1,2-propanediol in all treated silages (average 1.65%, DM basis).
  • *L. plantarum* MTD-1 increased lactic acid only in normal DM silage, decreased acetic acid in moderately high DM silage but increased it in normal DM silage, and had no effect on aerobic stability or yeast numbers.
  • Silage harvested at moderately high DM (40.6%) had higher pH, higher ethanol, and more yeasts than normal DM silage (33.1%).
  • There were no interactions between *L. buchneri* and *L. plantarum* for most fermentation products or aerobic stability; exceptions included 1,2-propanediol and lactic acid bacteria numbers.

Methods

  • Whole-plant corn was harvested at 33.1 and 40.6% DM and ensiled in quadruplicate 20-L laboratory silos for 240 d in a 2 × 2 × 2 factorial: DM content, *L. buchneri* 40788 at 0 or 4 × 10⁵ cfu/g, and *L. plantarum* MTD-1 at 0 or 1 × 10⁵ cfu/g.
  • Silages were analyzed for chemical composition, microbial populations, fermentation products by HPLC, in vitro NDF digestibility, and aerobic stability (time for silage temperature to rise 2°C above ambient).
  • Data were analyzed with the GLM procedure of SAS; significance was defined as P ≤ 0.05.

Limitations

  • The paper does not include a dedicated limitations section.
  • Evident limitations from the text: the study used laboratory-scale 20-L silos and a single corn hybrid, so results may not directly translate to farm-scale silos or other hybrids.
  • The paper reports several unexplained findings, including higher yeast numbers in moderately high DM silage, effects of *L. plantarum* on ADF, and some 1,2-propanediol responses; no animal performance or intake outcomes were measured.

Model-written summary. Check it against the paper before relying on it.

Integrity signals

Registry

Crossref · 10.3168/jds.2008-1788

Cites

Statistics

Nothing to recompute.

Claims the paper makes

0 of 25 cited sources checked · 0 supported · 0 flagged

  • Findingown data

    Inoculation with L. buchneri 40788 alone, L. plantarum MTD-1 alone, or both together did not affect the in vitro rumen NDF digestibility of corn silages, regardless of DM content.

    “Regardless of DM content, inoculation with L. buchneri alone, L. plantarum alone, or a combination of both did not affect the in vitro rumen digestibility of NDF of corn silages.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim
  • Findingnone given

    Addition of L. plantarum MTD-1 did not affect ethanol production in corn silage.

    “The addition of LP did not affect the production of ethanol in silage.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim
  • Findingown data

    pH was lower in corn silage made from normal-DM forage than in silage made from moderately high DM forage (P < 0.01).

    “The pH was lower in silage with a normal versus a moderately high DM content (P < 0.01)”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim
  • Findingown data

    Addition of L. plantarum MTD-1 decreased 1,2-propanediol concentration in L. buchneri-treated corn silage made from moderately high DM forage (P < 0.01).

    “the addition of LP decreased the concentration of 1,2-propanediol in silage treated with LB with a moderately high DM content (P < 0.01)”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim
  • Findingown data

    Inoculation with L. plantarum MTD-1 had no effect on the aerobic stability of corn silage.

    “Inoculation with LP had no effect on aerobic stability.”
    • Also stated in: § Aerobic Stability of Corn Silages Ensiled for 240 d · plain
      “there was neither a LP effect nor an interaction between LB and LP on the aerobic stability in the present experiment.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim
  • May combine two claims. 16
  • Classified as probably not a substantial claim. 10

  • May combine two claims.

    Findingown data

    Inoculation with L. buchneri 40788 increased acetic acid concentration in corn silage, and the increase was larger at moderately high DM than at normal DM.

    “As expected, inoculation with LB resulted in silages with more acetic acid, but the effect was greater in silage with a moderately high versus normal DM.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim

  • May combine two claims.

    Findingown data

    DM recovery was above 98% for all silages, and adding L. plantarum MTD-1 or L. buchneri 40788 did not affect DM recovery.

    “The recovery of DM was extremely high (>98%) for all silages and there was no effect of adding LP or LB on DM recovery.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • May combine two claims.

    Findingown data

    In corn silage, CP concentration was lower and ADF and NDF concentrations were higher at moderately high DM than at normal DM.

    “As expected, the concentration of CP (P < 0.01) was lower but the concentrations of ADF (P = 0.01) and NDF (P < 0.01) were higher in silages with a moderately high versus normal concentration of DM.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • May combine two claims.

    Findingown data

    LAB numbers were more than 100-fold higher in L. buchneri 40788-treated silages than in untreated silages (9.26 vs. 6.98 log10 cfu/g fresh silage; P < 0.01), with a greater increase in normal-DM silage.

    “More than 100-fold higher numbers of LAB were found in the silages treated with than in silage without LB (9.26 vs. 6.98 log 10 cfu/g of fresh silage; P < 0.01), with a greater increase occurring in the silage treated with LB with a normal DM content.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim

  • May combine two claims.

    Findingown data

    In fresh chopped whole-plant corn, harvesting at moderately higher DM increased NDF and ADF concentrations and decreased water-soluble carbohydrate concentration.

    “Harvesting at a moderately higher DM (later maturity) resulted in predictable changes in plant composition.For example, the concentrations of NDF and ADF increased, whereas the concentration of WSC decreased with advancing maturity.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • May combine two claims.

    Findingown data

    Addition of L. buchneri 40788 did not affect ethanol concentration in moderately high DM corn silage but decreased ethanol concentration in normal-DM corn silage (0.24 vs. 0.55%; P < 0.01).

    “The addition of LB did not affect the concentration of ethanol in the silage with a moderately high concentration of DM, but decreased the concentration of ethanol in the silage with normal forage DM content (0.24 vs. 0.55%; P < 0.01).”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing).

    Findingnone given

    Microbial populations on the fresh corn forages were similar between the two DM contents.

    “Microbial populations on the fresh forages were similar between DM.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • May combine two claims.

    Findingown data

    Water-soluble carbohydrate concentration was lower in silages treated with L. buchneri 40788 than in untreated silages (1.01 vs. 1.10%; P < 0.01), but the difference was very small and not practically significant.

    “The concentration of WSC in the silages treated with LB was lower than in silages not treated with this inoculant but this difference was extremely small and not of practical significance (1.01 vs. 1.10%;P < 0.01).”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • May combine two claims.

    Findingown data

    There was an LB × LP interaction on LAB numbers (P = 0.03): LAB increased with L. plantarum MTD-1 in silages without L. buchneri 40788 but was unaffected in silage treated with L. buchneri 40788.

    “There was an interaction effect of LB × LP on numbers of LAB (P = 0.03).Lactic acid bacteria increased with the inoculation of LP (P < 0.01) in the silages without LB, but was unaffected in the silage treated with LB.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing). May combine two claims.

    Premisecitation

    Nishino and Touno (2005) reported that L. buchneri inoculation decreased lactic acid and increased acetic acid and 1,2-propanediol, with greater effects in direct-cut than in wilted grass silages.

    “Nishino and Touno (2005) reported that inoculation of L. buchneri decreased lactic acid and increased acetic acid and 1,2-propanediol, with the effects being greater in direct-cut than in wilted grass silages.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim0 of 1 sources checked
    • cites Nishino and Touno, 2005

      Not checked in the free run.

  • May combine two claims.

    Premisecitation

    Acetic acid has antifungal properties and improves silage stability when silage is exposed to air.

    “Acetic acid has good antifungal properties and thus improves the stability of silages when they are exposed to air (Kleinschmit and Kung, 2006a).”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim0 of 1 sources checked
    • cites Kleinschmit and Kung, 2006a

      Not checked in the free run.

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing). May combine two claims.

    Premisecitation

    Kleinschmit and Kung (2006b) reported that corn silage treated with L. buchneri 40788 and Pediococcus pentosaceus R1094 had normal fermentation but aerobic stability was not consistently improved.

    “Kleinschmit and Kung (2006b) reported that corn silage treated with L. buchneri 40788 and Pediococcus pentosaceus R1094 had normal fermentation characteristics, but the aerobic stability of silage was not consistently improved with this combination of organisms.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim0 of 1 sources checked
    • cites Kleinschmit and Kung, 2006b

      Not checked in the free run.

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing).

    Premisecitation

    Homolactic inoculants probably affect corn silage pH less than alfalfa silage pH because corn has relatively low buffering capacity.

    “Homolactic inoculants probably have a lesser effect on silage pH of corn silage versus alfalfa silage because the buffering capacity is relatively low in corn (Muck and Kung, 1997).”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim0 of 1 sources checked
    • cites Muck and Kung, 1997

      Not checked in the free run.

  • May combine two claims.

    Premisecitation

    Ethanol in silage could be produced by L. buchneri during anaerobic degradation of lactic acid to acetic acid and 1,2-propanediol, or by fermentation by yeasts or other organisms.

    “Ethanol could be produced by LB during the anaerobic degradation of lactic acid to acetic acid and 1,2-propanediol (Oude Elferink et al., 2001) or by fermentation of yeasts or other organisms.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim0 of 1 sources checked
    • cites Oude Elferink et al., 2001 source

      Not checked in the free run.

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing).

    Premisecitation

    Past studies found that L. buchneri 40788 did not affect ammonia concentration in corn silages.

    “In contrast, treatment with L. buchneri 40788 did not affect the ammonia concentration of corn silages in past studies (Ranjit and Kung, 2000;Kleinschmit et al., 2005).”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim0 of 2 sources checked
    • cites Ranjit and Kung, 2000 source

      Not checked in the free run.

    • cites Kleinschmit et al., 2005 source

      Not checked in the free run.

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing).

    Premisecitation

    Filya (2003a) found that wheat, sorghum, and corn silages were aerobically unstable when inoculated only with L. plantarum.

    “For example, Filya (2003a) found that wheat, sorghum, and corn silages were aerobically unstable when inoculated solely with LP.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim0 of 1 sources checked
    • cites Filya, 2003a

      Not checked in the free run.

  • May combine two claims.

    Premisecitation

    A moderately higher pH in L. buchneri-treated silage is common because L. buchneri degrades lactic acid to acetic acid.

    “A moderately higher pH in silage treated with L. buchneri is a common finding (Kleinschmit and Kung, 2006a) because of the degradation of lactic acid to acetic acid by LB (Oude Elferink et al., 2001).”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim0 of 2 sources checked
    • cites Kleinschmit and Kung, 2006a

      Not checked in the free run.

    • cites Oude Elferink et al., 2001 source

      Not checked in the free run.

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing).

    Premisecitation

    Inoculation with homolactic acid bacteria has sometimes worsened the aerobic stability of silage.

    “Inoculation with homolactic acid bacteria has sometimes led to the worsening of aerobic stability of silage (Weinberg et al., 1993;Filya, 2003a).”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim0 of 2 sources checked
    • cites Weinberg et al., 1993 source

      Not checked in the free run.

    • cites Filya, 2003a

      Not checked in the free run.

  • May combine two claims.

    Premisecitation

    Addition of L. buchneri increased NH3-N concentration in grass silages and in low-DM corn and sorghum silages.

    “However, addition of LB increased the concentration of NH 3 -N in grass and low DM corn and sorghum silages (Driehuis et al., 2001;Filya, 2003b).”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim0 of 2 sources checked
    • cites Driehuis et al., 2001 source

      Not checked in the free run.

    • cites Filya, 2003b

      Not checked in the free run.

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing).

    Interpretationcitation

    The higher NH3-N concentration caused by L. buchneri inoculation may be associated with increased pH in silage treated with L. buchneri.

    “The higher concentration of NH 3 -N as a result of inoculation of LB might be associated with increased pH in silage treated with LB (Driehuis et al., 2001).”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim0 of 1 sources checked
    • cites Driehuis et al., 2001 source

      Not checked in the free run.

  • May combine two claims.

    Premisecitation

    Schmidt et al. (2008) and Mari et al. (2008) reported greater LAB numbers in corn silages treated with L. buchneri and confirmed greater L. buchneri numbers by quantitative real-time PCR.

    “Schmidt et al. (2008) and Mari et al. (2008) also reported greater numbers of LAB in corn silages treated with L. buchneri than in untreated corn silage and further confirmed that treated silages had markedly greater numbers of L. buchneri (as determined by quantitative real-time PCR).”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim0 of 2 sources checked
    • cites Schmidt et al., 2008 source

      Not checked in the free run.

    • cites Mari et al., 2008

      Not checked in the free run.

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing).

    Premisecitation

    Organisms such as Lactobacillus diolivorans can convert 1,2-propanediol to 1-propanol or propionic acid in silages.

    “organisms such as Lactobacillus diolivorans (Krooneman et al., 2002) have the capacity to convert 1,2-propanediol to 1-proponal or propionic acid in silages (Driehuis et al., 2001).”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim0 of 2 sources checked
    • cites Krooneman et al., 2002 source

      Not checked in the free run.

    • cites Driehuis et al., 2001 source

      Not checked in the free run.

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing). May combine two claims.

    Premisecitation

    Adding homolactic acid bacteria to silage generally lowers silage pH because lactic acid production often increases.

    “The addition of homolactic acid bacteria to silages has generally resulted in lower silage pH because there is often greater production of lactic acid (Muck and Kung, 1997).”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim0 of 1 sources checked
    • cites Muck and Kung, 1997

      Not checked in the free run.

23 of 23

  • The authors state this as an assumption.

    Before this study, no published research had tested the combination of L. buchneri 40788 with L. plantarum MTD-1.

    “However, to our best knowledge, no research has been conducted to test the efficacy of a combination of L. buchneri 40788 with L. plantarum MTD-1.”

  • The authors state this as an assumption.

    Knowledge was limited about how the combination of L. buchneri and L. plantarum affects corn silage made from forage with moderately high DM.

    “Little is known about the effect of the combination of L. buchneri and L. plantarum on corn silage with moderately high forage DM content.”

  • The paper relies on this without support.

    Silages with moderately high DM are harder to manage in farm silos because they are more difficult to pack.

    “This is important because silages with a moderately high DM content are a greater challenge to manage in farm silos because they are more difficult to pack”

  • The paper relies on this without support.

    The results obtained in laboratory-scale silos can be used to recommend inoculant use in farm silos.

    “this finding supports the recommendations that microbial inoculants used in this study may especially be helpful under this condition.”
4 of 4

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References 25 · Cited by 211

Research works printed but not linked: 2

  1. Mari, 2008, An evaluation of the effectiveness of Lactobacillus buchneri 40788 to improve the aerobic stability of corn silage in farm silos, J. Dairy Sci., 91, 31
  2. Muck, R. E., and L. Kung Jr. 1997. Effect of silage additives on ensiling. Proc. Silage: Field to feedbunk. North Am. Conf. Hershey, PA. NRAES-99.

Authors
Hu, W., Schmidt, R. J., McDonell, E. E., Klingerman, C. M., & Kung, L.
Affiliations
University of Delaware (US)
Corresponding author
Kung, L.
ORCID
Venue
Journal of Dairy Science
Publisher
American Dairy Science Association
Published
2009-08
Volume
92
Issue
8
Pages
3907-3914
ISSN
0022-0302 (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.3168/jds.2008-1788
OpenAlex
W2097645323
Semantic Scholar
2dcde8e0a4cb907790bf395d4811e29d21acfd3c
Cited by
211
References
25
Citations by year
2026: 11 · 2025: 7 · 2024: 20 · 2023: 23 · 2022: 27 · 2021: 19 · 2020: 16 · 2019: 11 · 2018: 13 · 2017: 8 · 2016: 9 · 2015: 10 · 2014: 9 · 2013: 14 · 2012: 5
FWCI
9.89
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
Locations
  • Journal of Dairy Science (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
Funders
Lallemand Animal Nutrition
Topics
  • Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Agronomy and Crop Science › Ruminant Nutrition and Digestive Physiology
  • Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Animal Science and Zoology › Animal Nutrition and Physiology
  • Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Food Science › Probiotics and Fermented Foods
Keywords
corn silage, silage inoculants, aerobic stability, dry matter content, silage fermentation, lactic acid, acetic acid, propylene glycol, ammonia nitrogen, ethanol, yeast, silage additives
MeSH terms
Aerobiosis, Zea mays, Fermentation, Food Microbiology, Lactobacillus, Silage, Lactiplantibacillus plantarum

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