A note on the chemical composition of six ecotypes of Leucaena leucocephala

A random block design was used to study the concentrations of the chemical indicators: dry matter (DM), crude protein (CT), true protein (TP),ash and neutral detergent fiber (NDF) and the anti-nutrirional factors: mimosine and DHP in six cultivars of Leucaena leucocephala (Venezuela, Peru, CIAT-17218, CIAT-17222, CIAT-9904, CIAT-17489) in the dry and rainy seasons. In both seasons, there were no differences among the cultivars, according to DM, CP,TP, ashes and NDE with averages of 24, 29.4, 22.59, 7.92 and 46.50% for the rainy season and 25.74, 25.39, 22.74, 8.53 and 43.42% for the dry season, respectively. The content of mimosine in the dry season and the content of DHP in the rainy season showed differences (P < 0.05) among ecotypes, with values that ranged from 3.36 to 4.74% for mimosine in the dry season and from 0.88 to 1.75% for DHP in the rainy period. It is concluded that the main differences among ecotypes are related to anti-nutritional factors. Physiological studies on animals are recommended to determine possible differences among ecotypes, since they were not found in the chemical composition.