Chemical and Bacteriological Changes in Grass Silage During the Early Stages of Fermentation. II. Bacteriological Changes

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Abstract
The majority of organisms from silages during early stages of fermentation were cocci and Gram-negative rods. Lactobacilli were usually present in high percentages late in fermentation. Minor differences were observed in growth rates and total numbers of viable cells in good and poor silages, and the percentages of acid-producing bacteria in different crops and cuttings were similar. In poor silages the Gram-negative bacteria reached higher percentages and decreased slower than in good silages. Streptococci and Leuconostocs were observed late in fermentation. The good silages demonstrated a typical sequence in that the cocci (with the exception of the pediococci) and Gram-negative rods disappeared and the high-acid-producing lactobacilli predominated.