Development of a chopping apparatus for cactus prickly cladodes Article uri icon

abstract

  • Either under proper cultivation and growing in the wild, cactus prickly represents an important source to feed livestock. When properly cultivated, around 10 t/ ha per year of fresh biomass is produced just from pruning. However, when the biomass is left over the soil it slowly degrades and fertilizes cactus prickly orchards, in contrast, when unattended it contributes to generate pests and diseases. A profitable alternative is to utilize this cactus prickly pruning to feed livestock, by mixing and balancing it with some locally feeds such as mesquite pod and hay from alfalfa. Thus this work shows the development an apparatus for continuously chopping cactus prickly cladodes; firstly by cutting strips and ended into small cubes. The apparatus is simple to handle, inexpensive and with the capacity of processing up to 10 t/h; besides it provides a profitable choice for an underutilized resource in a region with shortage of feeds for livestock. © 2019 Farm Machinery Industrial Research Corp.. All rights reserved.

publication date

  • 2019-01-01