Rye as an Energy Cover Crop: Management, Forage Quality, and Revenue Opportunities for Feed and Bioenergy
, Tom L. Richard 1, Sergio H. Lence 2, Huaiqing Wu 3, Peter L. O’Brien 4, Bryan D. Emmett 4, Tom C. Kaspar 5, Douglas L. Karlen 5,6, Keith Kohler 5 and Robert W. Malone 4
Round 1
Reviewer 1 Report
The study is interesting and can be considered for publication once the comments below are addressed.
1. How did you calculate the protein?
2. Please show the formulas for all studied parameters.
3. Why ADF lower in 2019 but not 2018? What was the intrinsic factor that caused the reduction.
4. How did you estimate the GHGs emission? Program or software used?
Author Response
Please see the attachment.
Author Response File: 
Author Response.pdf
Reviewer 2 Report
1. I cannot find the planting methods in the part of “Materials and Methods”, please give the detail of the three methods in this part.
2. the section of 3.1, In my opinion, this paragraph cannot be taken as a single paragraph, but should be combined with other parts, such as the analysis and discussion of yeild and quality
3. please give the n and SD values in the table 1.
4. Table 1 of this article needs to include a simple title
5. There is no better conclusion, such as the relation between the main results and planting method and fertilization
Author Response
Please see the attachment.
Author Response File: Author Response.pdf
Reviewer 3 Report
Dear Authors,
I have gone through your manuscript. The topic of the manuscript is interesting. However, before it’s final publication I have the following suggestions and comments-
[1] The title of the manuscript is very complex. You may simplify the title as ‘’ Management, forage quality, and revenue opportunities for feed and bioenergy of Rye’’
[2] Abstract: P1-L13: please delete …..energy cover crop……., P1-L13: Replace ‘two-year’ by ‘two-years’
[2] Introduction: is too long, please reduce it
[3] Materials & methods: It would be more readable if you split the M&M into different sub-headings
P5-L245: please subscript 2 in CO2-e
[4] Results & Discussion
P6-L261-66: Not necessary. Please delete the whole paragraph.
Page 7 & 8: Figure 1 should come after Table 1 in the manuscript because Table 1 cited first in the text. Please reorganized.
[5] Appendices:
Please remove Appendix A & B from the main manuscript file & upload them as separate file in the Supplementary Document
[6] References:
Please try to cite only SCOPUS and WOS journal articles instead of popular article or website informations
Author Response
Please see the attachment.
Author Response File: Author Response.pdf
Reviewer 4 Report
Dear authors,
Some comments to improve your article.
Introduction
In the last paragraph clearly specify and state the main hypotheses tested.
Material and methods
Please mention which normality and homoscedasticity tests did you run.
Discussion
3.3 Forage quality of digested winter rye and revenue from bioenergy and feed protein
Please to your discussion the impacts of the anaerobic digestion of the rye on the change of the microbial community, especially the change from predominant (aerobic) to anaerobic.
Please answer how a change in the microbial community can affect ruminant's microbial community.
Add also something about the archaea community in the digested, CH4.
Conclusion
Mention here also something about the microbial change in the digested compared to the fresh forage.
Author Response
Please see the attachment.
Author Response File: Author Response.pdf
