Working Successfully with a Custom Operator Joe Stellato and John Biese, Crops and Soils Agents Shawano and Outagamie County UW-Extension, respectively Introduction The economics of farming today requires that dairy operators invest only in capital assets that produce a high rate of return on investment (ROI). Large, expensive pieces of farm machinery which […]
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New Extension Mobile App for Pricing Standing Corn Silage Find free app download below! Waupaca, Wis. – The start of corn silage harvest for 2016 is just around the corner. Most corn silage is harvested from late August through early November, when energy, fiber and moisture are at their best, depending on planting date, hybrid […]
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Silage Preservation: First Things First by Brian J. Holmes bjholmes@wisc.edu Harvest at Correct Stage of Maturity Why? High levels of readily available carbohydrate are needed to ferment into acids. What Stage? Alfalfa – early to mid bloom, Corn – 1/3 – 1⁄2 half milk line Harvest at Correct Moisture Why? Too dry… high porosity (oxygen penetration) reduced acid production […]
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Adding Enzymes to Silage by Patrick Hoffman and Richard Muck Introduction Enzyme addition to silages has received considerable attention over the past decade. Their primary function is to break down forage fiber during fermentation, rendering the silage more digestible during feedout. The breakdown of fiber into soluble sugars also helps bacteria produce lactic acid, which helps […]
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Lactobacillus buchneri for Silage Aerobic Stability by David K. Combs and Patrick C. Hoffman Department of Dairy Science University of Wisconsin-Madison Introduction Lactobacillus buchneri is a bacterial inoculant approved for use in grass silages, corn silage, legume silage and high moisture grains. Lactobacillus buchneri has been demonstrated to improve aerobic stability of silages by reducing the growth […]
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Microbial Inoculants for Silage by Francisco Contreras-Govea and Richard Muck Introduction Ensiling is an important means to preserve forage quality. Although silage fermentation occurs naturally under anaerobic conditions due to the native bacteria on plants, the speed and efficiency of the fermentation (pH drop) is variable, depending on the numbers and types of lactic acid bacteria […]
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Silage inoculants: What the research tells us about when and how to use them With all of the variables – crop varieties, weather, packing density, speed of covering – no two silage crops are ever the same, which is why scientists are reluctant to give blanket statements regarding when and how to use silage inoculants. […]
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Inoculating High Moisture Corn by Patrick Hoffman and Richard Muck (revised December, 2011) Introduction High moisture corn (HMC) is harvested between 25 and 35% moisture content and stored in a silo where it is preserved through fermentation. The optimum harvest moisture for good fermentation of HMC is 28 to 32%. In general, high moisture corn ferments […]
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Crop Processor Adjustment for Corn Silage Ronald T. Schuler, Extension Agricultural Engineer, Biological Systems Engineering A properly adjusted crop processor on a forage harvester will break all the corn kernels and have no large cob pieces remaining in the corn silage. The primary processor adjustment to achieve this goal is the clearance between the processing […]
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Transferring Silage between Silos by Randy Shaver and Jim Leverich Introduction We often receive questions from dairy producers about the practice of transferring silage from the silo where it was originally stored to a more conveniently located silo for feeding. This occurs when silage is bought and sold between operations, moves from farm to farm […]
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