Effects of Konjac Flour and Lactiplantibacillus plantarum on Fermentation Quality, Aerobic Stability, and Microbial Community of High-Moisture Forage Rape Silages

To obtain high-quality silage and better understand the mechanism underlying silage fermentation, a study was conducted to investigate the effects of konjac flour (KF), Lactiplantibacillus plantarum (LP) and their combination on fermentation quality, aerobic stability, and microbial community of high-moisture forage rape after 60 days of ensiling. Results showed that the KF and LP treatments increased the lactic acid content, decreased the pH value, and inhibited the production of butyric acid in ensiled forage rape (p < 0.05). The additives also altered the bacterial community of forage rape silages, showing reduced Shannon and Simpson indexes (p < 0.05), while the abundance of desirable Lactobacillus was increased, and the abundance of undesirable bacteria, such as enterobacteria and clostridia, was decreased (p < 0.05). In addition, their combination significantly improved the aerobic stability (96 h vs. 28 h, p < 0.05) and exhibited notable influence on the bacterial community, with the highest abundance of Lactobacillus. These results indicated that KF and LP improved the silage quality of high-moisture forage rape, and their combination displayed a beneficial synergistic effect.