Annual efficiency of a commercial finishing operation of fattening of cattle with silvopastoral technology [Eficiencia anual en una operación comercial de ceba final de bovinos con la tecnología de silvopastoreo]

Abstract

With the objective to evaluate the factors that affect performance related to the association of a mixture of pasture and Leucaena leucocephala ‘Perú’ for the end of cattle fattening, 22 fattening cycles were assessed in zebu bulls at the Represa #1 unit of Rectángulo de ceba in Camagüey, Cuba, from 2002 to 2012. Soil is brown without carbonates. The climate is savannah tropical wet (Aw) with 1183 mm of annual rainfall. The factors evaluated were: stocking rate (a/ha) and years assessed. The changes in the percentage of the pasture and Leucaena populations were recorded through plant counting. Daily weight gain indexes, income and expenses per operation were assessed. Leucaena ‘Perú’ reached final values of 93% (p<0.05) in its population, with an increase in the populations of Guinea grass and other pastures. High income was reached for the lowest charge (p<0.05) with 0.981 kg/a/d. Silvopastoral technology with the association of Leucaena leucocephala ‘Perú’-dryland grasses, allowed to obtain average daily weight gains over 0.800 kg/a/d at the end of the fattening of bulls which were held for ten years of evaluations with very suitable economic results according to such technology and the inputs levels applied.