Seed coating for bypassing the ruminant digestive tract
AssigneeK.E.S. Associates
InventorAlfred E. Benton
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Pasture grass and legume seeds are protected with an outer coating of insoluble fatty acid salts. The coated seeds are fed to ruminants and bypass their digestive tract. When the coated seeds exit the digestive tract in the manure, they provide ranchers a no-till broadcast technique to easily reseed or improve pasture forage. Legume seeds are preferably coated twice, first with Rhizobia and then with the insoluble fatty acid salts. The Rhizobia coating will improve the legume rate of growth. Alternatively, discreet particles of Rhizobia can be coated with insoluble fatty acid salts and fed to the ruminants along with coated legume seeds.
Claims24
A method for sowing seeds on a plot of grazing land comprising:
- feeding to a ruminant a seed coated with:
- a nitrogen fixing coating comprising a suspension of microbes capable of fixing nitrogen;
- and a protective substance that is substantially resistant to digestion in the digestive tract of the ruminant;
- and
- grazing the ruminant on the plot of land.
A method for sowing seeds on a plot of grazing land comprising the steps of:
- selecting a plot of land;
- selecting at least one ruminant for grazing on the plot of land;
- selecting a type of seed;
- coating the seed with a nitrogen fixing coating comprising a suspension of microbes capable of fixing nitrogen
- coating the seed with a protective substance substantially resistant to digestion in the digestive tract of the at least one ruminant;
- feeding the ruminant the coated seed;
- and
- grazing the ruminant on the plot of land.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.