Ítalo Espinoza Guerra, Ángel Virgilio Cedeño Moreira, Jorge Geovanny Muñoz-Rodríguez, Alexandra Elizabeth Barrera Álvarez, Diego Javier Conrrado-Palma
The study aimed to characterize the microbiota and fermentative characteristics of forage maize (Zea mays) silage with the inclusion of banana peel (Musa paradisiaca). The research was conducted at the Ruminology Laboratory of the experimental farm “La María” at the Technical State University of Quevedo. A completely randomized design was used with five treatments: T1 (100% maize), T2 (75% maize + 25% peel), T3 (50% + 50%), T4 (25% maize + 75% peel), and T5 (100% peel), with five replicates. Microbiological variables evaluated included fungi, yeasts, lactic acid bacteria, and total bacteria, as well as pH and temperature as indicators of aerobic stability. The results showed significant differences (p < 0.05) in fungi and yeasts, with T4 presenting the highest fungal counts and T5 the highest yeast counts, while T1 showed the lowest values. No significant differences were observed in lactic acid bacteria or total bacteria, although T1 had the highest averages. Regarding aerobic stability, pH tended to stabilize around 6.0, while temperature ranged between 21 °C and 28 °C during the evaluation period. In conclusion, the inclusion of banana peel influences the microbiota without significantly affecting the aerobic stability of the silage.