Use of zeolite and cattle manure for soil improvement and increase oflivestock yield
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Abstract
Due to the compacting of cow manure in the dairy farms, it is rarely used in the pasture and
forage areas, resulting in low agricultural yields and low milk production. This work was
developed during five years in five dairy farms of the “El Tablón” Livestock Enterprise,
Cienfuegos, through the manufacture and application to the soil of natural organo-mineral
fertilizer (Zeofert) with the objective of increasing the yield of pasture and forage. For the
preparation of Zeofert, fresh cow dung deposited by the animals on the floor of the shaded
sheds was used and mixed with 1-3 mm particles of natural zeolitic rock (Fertisol). The
obtained decompacted manure (2,362 t) was applied manually on 94.5 ha of pasture and forage
at a rate of 25 t ha-1. The results showed that the application of Zeofert to the soil significantly
increased the yield of Panicum maximum Jacq. cultivar ‘Common’ (natural grass) and P.
maximum cultivar ‘Likoni’ (guinea grass) by 52 % and of Pennisetum purpureum Schum. (king
grass) cultivar ‘CT-115’ by 77 %, while milk production was increased by 20 %, all with respect
to the control. The return of nutrients to the soil was restored, with a significant increase in the
contents of P2O5, K2O, organic matter and pH values. The use of 99, 124 and 116 t of NH4NO3,
simple supersulfate and KCl were substituted as equivalent chemical fertilizers, respectively.
The use of this technology is recommended in those units that have cattle in stabled or semistabled
conditions.
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