Harvest & Storage

Baleage (as opposed to harvesting forage as bales or silage) has advantages for many producers.

There’s a lot of pressure on custom harvesters. In a small window of time, they are rushing to get multiple clients’ forages ensiled – often across many states with a dog-tired crew by the end of the season.

There is no adrenaline rush quite like trying to get a field harvested before a storm hits or the anticipation of waiting for a field to dry out so you can run an implement through.

It is 3 o’clock in the afternoon, and the hay is just finally dry enough to bale. On the first round in the field, my pocket vibrates just as my radio sitting in the cup holders starts to blast; it must be bad news.

From the first mower pass to the last load of silage, every step a producer takes can affect the nutritional value and profitability of their forage crop in some way.

What happens during the first 24 hours after a bale of silage is formed but not yet wrapped? Can forage quality be improved if the bale is wrapped even sooner than 24 hours after baling? The short answer is: yes.