Seasonal variation in leaf Chemical composition of Ougienia oojeinensis

The nutritional importance of Ougienia oojeinensis as a fodder species has been proved in many previous studies. However there is a lack of information to indicate whether nutrients and anti-nutrients in Ougienia are consistently present throughout the plant growth stages or are affected by the seasons. Such a study can help to decide the best feeding time for this species. In order to answer these questions chemical composition of O oojeinensis leaves during three seasons was studied. The results showed that dry matter (51.64%), total ash (11.14%), Ca (5.48%), P (0.28%), Cu (17.60 ppm), Mn (38.27 ppm) and Zn (12.30 ppm) were highest during autumn while crude protein (14.00%), K (1.70%), organic matter (91.82%) and total carbohydrates (75.53%) were highest during summer season. Winter season depicted highest acid detergent fibre (27.00%), neutral detergent fibre (44.22%), nitrogen-free extract (48.81%) and Fe (691.90 ppm) contents. The anti-nutrient study revealed that except saponins all the antinutrients were within safe limit during all the seasons. These findings indicate that O oojeinensis is a potential nutritious fodder species.