Market Farming

[robert schuler <sunnfarm AT bellatlantic.net>]

Around here farmers can generally get at least 4  cuttings of alfalfa, cutting just before bloom yields the most TDN per acre but not the most dry matter. Some people confuse dry matter for nutrients. Old over matured hay contains a lot of indigestible fiber that a ruminant can not digest and will have to be supplemented with another protein source. Anytime you have to buy extra  protein your loosing money. The only way to stockpile forage in the north is by cutting high moisture green forage and storing it either in a silo a bag or piled up in a bunker under tarps. I think allowing cattle to dig for their forage in the snow is bad economics... Bob.

Errol Castens wrote:

My uncle used to let his hayfield get desperately overmature before he'd cut it, because it created so much more volume, and it made him feel like he was accomplishing more. The resulting hay was of exceedingly poor quality, and the condition of his cows showed it all winter. (His explanation was, "Well, it beats a snowball.") Maybe there's a logical difference, but can someone explain to me why stockpiling summer grazing for winter foraging would yield substantially better quality feed than my uncle's hay? Blessings,errol castensOxford, Mississippi