The Effect of Lactobacillus buchneri 40788 on the Fermentation and Aerobic Stability of Ground and Whole High-Moisture Corn1

Experiments were conducted to evaluate the effects of inoculating high-moisture corn (HMC) with Lactobacillus buchneri40788 on silage fermentation and aerobic stability. In the first experiment, HMC (73% DM) was ground and treated with nothing, L. buchneri40788 to achieve 6.6 × 105 cfu/g of HMC (LB), a mixture of enzymes (ENZ), LB + ENZ, or 0.1% (wet weight basis) of a liquid mold inhibitor and was ensiled in 20-L bucket silos for 90 d. Treatments with LB and LB + ENZ increased the concentrations of acetic acid and improved the aerobic stability of ground HMC relative to other treatments. Treatment ENZ had no effect on the chemical composition or aerobic stability of ground HMC. The only effect of the liquid mold inhibitor relative to untreated HMC was that it increased the concentration of propionic acid, but this did not improve its aerobic stability. In a second experiment, HMC (75% DM) was harvested as the intact, whole grain and treated with nothing, L. buchneri40788 to achieve 4 × 105 cfu/g of HMC, L. buchneri40788 to achieve 6 × 105 cfu/g of HMC, or L. buchneri40788 to achieve 8 × 105 cfu/g of HMC and ensiled for 120 d. Treatments with L. buchneri40788 resulted in whole HMC with lower concentrations of water-soluble carbohydrates; higher concentrations of lactic, acetic, and propionic acids; and greater numbers of lactic acid bacteria but fewer molds when compared with untreated corn. As a group, inoculated silages were more aerobically stable than untreated silage, but increasing levels of application did not further improve the response. These experiments showed that addition of L. buchneri40788, but not addition of an enzyme mixture or a liquid mold inhibitor, improved the aerobic stability of ground and whole HMC harvested between 73 and 75% DM.