Dietary Compositions of <i>Pueraria montana</i> (Lour.) Merr. and Relationship of Its Growth and Productivity with Environmental Factors

Abstract The research aims to evaluate the dietary compositions of Kudzu and the effect of environmental factors in Jonggol on its growth and forage production. The research was conducted at the IPB University field laboratory of Jonggol Animal Science and Technology Research Unit from December 2019 to June 2020. Kudzu germination rate was tested and then planted in 1 ha of research field area with planting space 30 cm x 30 cm. The research field was fertilized using NPK 15-15-15 (Phonska) with dosage 100 kg/ha. The plants were harvested after 3 and 5 months old. Proximate analyses were performed to evaluate dietary the compositions of leaves, stems and leaves+stems of Kudzu. Kudzu leaves had the highest crude protein concentration (243 g/kg dry matter, DM) than Kudzu stems, and leaves+stems (111 and 227 g/kg DM, respectively). Meanwhile, Kudzu stems had the highest crude fiber, neutral detergent fiber, acid detergent fiber, and nitrogen-free extract concentrations (295, 748, 584, and 477 g/kg DM, respectively) compared to Kudzu leaves and leaves+stems (212, 737, 371, and 402 g/kg DM and 215, 688, 445, and 438 g/kg DM, respectively). The results indicated that the height of the Kudzu plant, along with the leaf and branch number, showed a positive correlation with rainfall. The correlation between light intensity, temperature, and humidity with plant growth parameters was low. Kudzu reached its peak productivity at five months, recording a fresh weight of 10.60 tons/ha/year and a dry weight of 2.50 tons/ha/year.