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Reduce Hay Feeding Waste To Controlling Winter Costs – Part 1
DR. TERESA L. STECKLER
SIMPSON, ILL.
This is a broken record, but the weather has once again played havoc this year. This spring many areas received ample rains, but rather cool weather hampered good hay/pasture growth. Then the heat wave began. Some received rains, others were exceedingly dry. I heard that some cattlemen began feeding hay early this again year due to lack of pastures.
Interestingly, those that implemented a rotational grazing program have faired much better than those that have not. Cattlemen may want to investigate and consider implementing a rotational grazing program especially when considering the volatility of the weather the last 5-10 years. But I digress…
Again this year some cattlemen may have insufficient hay stores to get through winter. However, there may be a few management changes they can employ to stretch their hay reserves and reduce the amount of hay produced/ purchased. Hay is lost during all stages – harvest, storage, and feeding.
Hay losses come in two main forms; dry matter (DM) and nutritional quality. Dry matter losses refer to the decrease in the physical amount of hay present and available for consumption. Nutritional quality refers to the specific nutritional value of the hay, such as total digestible nutrients (TDN), or crude protein (CP). This article will focus on ways to manage DM losses in hay. Dry matter losses will generally fall into one of two main categories; storage losses and feeding losses. We will focus only on storage for this article and feeding next month.
Storage is probably where most beef producers in southern Illinois have the greatest loss of hay. I have seen many strategies employed while traveling – hoop structures, under trees near fence rows, east to west rows that are side by side, bottom of hills, etc. Location of your hay can have a dramatic influence on how much hay you have to feed.
Storage losses are any reduction in DM from the time the hay is rolled or baled until the hay is fed. The first factor impacting the severity of storage loss is the moisture content of the hay at baling. All hay will lose some DM in the weeks immediately after baling. The dryer the hay is at baling the lower the expected DM loss will be. Hay dried to 15-20 percent moisture prior to baling should have minimal DM loss, whereas hay baled with over 20 percent moisture has the potential for considerable DM losses. In the case of high moisture hay DM losses will be accompanied by decreased nutritional content and palatability. There is also an increased risk of fire when high moisture hay is stored. For these reasons it is crucial that adequate drying occurs prior to baling.
How and where hay is stored after baling also has a significant effect on the amount of DM lost. Weathering (environment) reduces the dry weight of hay and changes its composition. Weathering lowers the feeding value of hay 15 to 25 percent, in addition to any dry matter losses. Weathering losses are greatly influenced by climatic variables; higher rainfall and more humid conditions cause more loss than drier climates.
Protecting hay from the environment, especially moisture is crucial to prevent DM loss. A worst case scenario would be bales wrapped with twine and stacked uncovered directly on the ground. This scenario could result in over 25 percent DM loss in one year. Ideally, hay bales would be completely protected. This protection could come from a permanent structure like a barn, or from more individual/temporary measures like bale sleeves or individual wrapping in plastic wrap. These forms of protection reduce DM storage losses to around 5 percent.
Remember weathering occurs not only on the tops and sides of hay stored outside, but also where hay contacts moist ground. Research in Indiana has shown that storing bales on crushed rock versus the ground reduced the weathered portion from 23 to 11 percent of the original bale weight.
So some of you may be saying I can’t afford to put the rock down. My response is can you afford not to? Consider the following. The price of 1.75 inch rock at Anna Quarries is $8.60 (undelivered cost). To lay a 6 x 600 foot pad (for 100 round bales that are 5 foot by 5 foot) 4 inches thick, approximately 80 tons would be required. You should place fabric down before the rock prevent the rock from being pushed down into the soil (I will not add that to the price since you can find something to replace the fabric for minimal cost). The overall cost (not including delivery) is approximately $688. Another plus is that the rock base should last many years. However, from another perspective, how much is the rock base worth when the tractor is not creating ruts each time a bale of hay is retrieved?
Now consider the hay savings by adding the pad. Based on several sites hay is averaging at least $50 per ton. Let’s assume each 5x5 foot round bale weighs 1200 lbs. You need 100 bales for a total cost of $5000. However, since you do not have a rock pad, you will lose between 11 and 23 percent, based on the Indiana data, of the original bale weight due to rot. You will loose between 13,200 lbs (11% x (100 no. bales x 1200 lbs) and 27,600 lbs (23% x (100 no. bales x 1200 lbs) of hay. Thus the amount of hay lost solely to sitting on the ground is the equivalent of 11 to 23 bales! At today’s price of $50 per bale you will have lost between $550 and $1150.
From another perspective: Mature cows require 20-30 lbs/head/day during the winter feeding period. We will calculate the amount of hay that can be saved and fed if you install a rock pad. Our assumptions are: 25 cows that eat 25 lbs of hay per day (25 cows x 25 lbs = 625 lbs of hay per day for your herd). If your loss is on the high end (23 percent) then you will be loosing the equivalent of 44 days (27,600 lbs/ 625 lbs per day) worth of hay! While there is still some hay loss even with a rock pad, you still save 12 bales of hay.
There is one thing you need to keep in mind though, these number are ONLY for the hay lost due to sitting on the ground. It does not include the amount of hay lost on the top and/or sides of the bales nor does it include the loss of nutrients.
Thus, outdoor storage losses can be lowered if hay is stored on a well-drained site. Also be sure the bale is dense and evenly formed which allows rainfall to run off rather than settle in depressions and soak into the stack. Round bales can be butted end-to-end with little increase in loss from storage. Do not stack round bales unless they are covered with plastic.
Even the best (shed or covered) storage conditions allow about 5 percent of the hay's dry matter to be lost after one year. Most nutrients maintain nearly constant concentrations when hay is properly stored, although carotene (provitamin A) concentration declines rapidly. Losses of dry matter and quality during storage can be considerable when hay is stored too wet. These losses are caused mostly by heating, which will usually occur if hay is packaged above 20 to 22 percent moisture. Grass hay can be packaged at a slightly higher moisture content than hay containing legumes.
Hay is an expensive feed whether grown on the farm, or purchased off-farm. Growing or purchasing hay for a herd, for the entire winter, is a sizable investment. To help keep hay costs manageable, it is imperative that producers minimize the amount of hay lost or wasted. ∆
DR. TERESA L. STECKLER: Extension Specialist, Animal Systems/Beef, Dixon Springs Agricultural Center, University of Illinois
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