The bacterial community and fermentation quality of mulberry (Morus alba) leaf silage with or without Lactobacillus casei and sucrose

To investigate the effects of adding Lactobacillus casei (LC) and sucrose (S) on the fermentation quality and bacterial community of mulberry leaf silage, two kinds of mulberry leaves were harvested and ensiled with or without LC and S for 1, 7, 14, 30 and 60 days, respectively. Silages treated with LC and S contained more lactic acid (4.46-10.54%DM) and less ammonia-N (0.03-0.13%DM), acetic acid (0.73-3.40%DM) and coliform bacteria (< 2.30 log cfu/g FM) and had a lower pH (< 4.40) compared with controls. In addition, microbial analysis revealed less diverse bacterial communities and greater abundances of Lactobacillus (52.89-81.27%) and Pseudomonas (2.21-5.21%) in the LC and S silages. Furthermore, the addition of LC and S also inhibited the growth of undesirable Enterobacter. In conclusion, the addition of both LC and S has the capability of improving the silage quality of mulberry leaves.