Harvest & Storage

Nick Simmons, Escambia County extension specialist in Florida, opens a new video series called "In The Field." Episode 1 in the series depicts proper hay sampling of round bales, beneficial to producers and buyers.

Regardless of the size of your operation, preventative maintenance goes a long way to ensure your sprayer is ready for the season.

Okay now, first things first. I do know the difference between “weather” and “whether.” I debated on the misspelling as an attention-getter, and if you’ve gotten this far, it worked! Thus far, 2019 has been an interesting weather year to say the least. My heart goes out to my fellow farmers who have seen cropland besieged by rain.

No more driving to the crest of the hill 4 miles away to find a cellphone signal. No more scratchy half-audible radio transmissions with every other word cutting out.

Spring 2019 has been challenging to say the least. Hayfields have disappeared due to winterkill, and small grains matured before we could make hay. Making the forages that you have at the highest quality possible will be key.

The most fundamental hay and forage fact is that quality losses begin at cutting. It’s impossible to preserve all the quality found in a standing crop. Once mown, the impact of metabolic and weathering losses can significantly impact crop quality.