Milkweed - a perennial herbaceous plant, highly productive and cold-hardy, resistant to biotic and abiotic stresses. In the conditions of the Komi Republic, it can be cultivated for up to 18 years, forming two cuts during the summer period, which increases yield and facilitates harvesting.
New varieties of milkweed, 'Zhuravsky' and 'Usty-Sysolsk', developed by scientists of the Scientific Center of the Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, maintain stable morphological features and possess high productivity. Based on these varieties, feed supplements have been created for ewes, young sheep, agricultural birds, lactating cows, and pigs. These supplements contain dried leaves or milkweed extract with a high content of 20-hydroxyecdysone.
The advantages of these supplements include ease of application, environmental safety, and significant improvement in animal health: increased growth, milk production, growth energy of lambs and poultry, as well as improved protein exchange and overall metabolism. Milkweed is also used as raw material for obtaining pectic polysaccharides used as plant growth regulators.
