Forage Types

Forages are the foundation of dairy cow diets and ensiled forages account for much of the forages fed on dairies around the world.

The process of producing silage involves harvesting a fresh forage crop at a near neutral pH from the field, putting that crop into an enclosed storage system of some sort (e.g. bales, bags, bunkers, pits, piles, towers, etc.) and acidifying the material to reduce its pH, which prevents the growth of spoilage organisms.

Have you ever started the herd on a new silage crop and experienced an intake and milk production crash?

It has been said, the first thing to plant in setting up a managed grazing system is fence posts.

There’s not a whole lot of positive things producers can say about the current feed prices, but it has caused some feed sources often considered “alternative feeds” to get a second look.

When rain occurs in windrowed alfalfa fields, problems often develop. Sometimes referred to as “windrow disease,” these problems can be noted by stripes in the field where alfalfa windrows remained so long that some smothering occurred underneath the hay.