Exploring <i>Lactobacillus plantarum</i> on Fermentation Quality, Gas Emissions, and In Vitro Digestibility of Different Varieties of Litchi Leaves Silage

To investigate the feasibility of developing litchi leaves as silage, we determined the fermentation quality of four varieties of litchi leaves (including “Wanpu”, “Wuyejiu”, “Tongzai” and “Zhuangyuanhong”) ensiled with or without <i>Lactobacillus plantarum</i> on day 3, 7, 14 and 30. The in vitro dry matter digestibility and gas production of litchi leaves silages were also determined after 30 days of ensiling. The results showed that <i>Lactobacillus plantarum</i> significantly reduced pH value (<i>p</i> < 0.01), inhibited coliform bacteria, and reduced the production of ammonia nitrogen (<i>p</i> < 0.01) in all the four kinds of litchi leaves silage. Moreover, <i>Lactobacillus plantarum</i> treated litchi leaves (“Wanpu” and “Zhuangyuanhong”) had lower yeasts than the untreated litchi leaves during ensiling. The number of molds in <i>Lactobacillus plantarum</i> treated groups (“Tongzai” and “Zhuangyuanhong”) was below the detected level after 30 days ensiling, which was lower than that of the untreated groups. The addition of <i>Lactobacillus plantarum</i> also contributed to improving IVDMD and markedly reduced (<i>p</i> < 0.01) gas production of all litchi leaves silages. Conclusions: <i>Lactobacillus plantarum</i> can improve the fermentation quality and in vitro digestion characteristics of litchi leaves silage. Developing litchi leaves as silage material is a feasible way to recycle litchi leaves.