forage Archives | Midwestern BioAg

Why do we ferment forage? | Bailey’s Bit About Nutrition

By: Bailey Farrell · Livestock Nutrition

Fermenting forages is very beneficial to cattle nutrition and production. When forage is fermented it causes a breakdown of forage material, making it easier for animals to digest. Since the fermented forage is easier to digest, the bodies can digest forage quicker and releases more energy for the animal. The cattle can utilize the feed more efficiently and this will result in less waste in the undigested material that they excrete.
Breaking it down to the molecular level, microbes multiply and break down the forage through …

Are You Ready to Put Cows on Pasture?

By: Midwestern BioAg Staff · Livestock Nutrition, Alfalfa

You may be ready to see green grass and be done with winter, but are our pastures ready? Before the ground thaws (unless sloped) is a good time to fertilize or apply soil correctives to the paddocks that didn’t get tended to last fall. It is time to check fences, and as it warms and greens up, water lines, lane condition, and pasture stand.
Evaluate The Stand
How did it come through the drought and winter?

Alfalfa Stand Assessment

By: Midwestern BioAg Staff · Alfalfa

How have your forages fared in the unpredictable Midwest winter weather? Winter weather in the Midwest is unpredictable to say the least. Bitter cold, mid-winter rain, and extreme freeze-thaw cycles may have taken their toll. Use the prime times in April and May to evaluate your alfalfa fields. Are they going to be healthy, high-producing forage stands? Or is rotation the best option for maximum farm yield?
Tips for Evaluating Your Alfalfa Stands:

Healthy alfalfa stands will green up quickly & evenly.

Are Your Forages the Best They Can Be?

By: Midwestern BioAg Staff · Forages, Bio-Cal®, Dairy Production, Calcium

After your forages are harvested is a good time for you and your BioAg consultant to evaluate your forage program and your crop ration.
Evaluate Your Forage
It takes some time to evaluate what you have for forages and to what groups of animals they would best be fed. Some dairy producers have had the experience of feeding more alternative annual forage varieties due to the improved crop rotation and soil health. These dairy producers have been pleasantly surprised by the digestibility of their crops if …

Mold and Mycotoxin | Bailey’s Bit About Nutrition

By: Bailey Farrell · Livestock Nutrition

Molds are fungi (fuzzy or dusty – appearing) that occur commonly in feedstuffs, including roughages and concentrates. Molds can infect dairy cattle causing a disease referred to as mycosis. Mycosis is most likely when cows may be immune-suppressed during stressful periods. A mycosis can occur in various locations such as lungs, mammary gland, uterus, or intestine. An intestinal infection may result in hemorrhagic bowel. Molds may also affect cattle by producing poisons called mycotoxins that affect animals when they consume contaminated feeds, resulting in a mycotoxicosis.

Why do we ferment forage? | Bailey’s Bit About Nutrition

By: Bailey Farrell · Livestock Nutrition

Why Do We Ferment Forage
Fermenting forages is very beneficial to cattle nutrition and production-wise. When forage is fermented it causes a breakdown of forage material, making it easier for animals to digest. Since the fermented forage is easier to digest, the bodies can digest forage quicker and releases more energy for the animal. The cattle can utilize the feed more efficiently and this will result in less waste in the undigested material that they excrete.

Feed Inventory: Do You Have Enough?

By: Midwestern BioAg Staff · Livestock Nutrition, Forages, Inoculants

Estimate Your Feed Inventory
Late summer is a very good time to evaluate your feed inventory – what do you have and what will you still need to put in storage to make it through the next year? The weather always presents challenges and variabilities. It’s important to keep in mind that harvesting the same amount of acres of a certain forage year after year might not work.
Too many times we have received calls saying, “I’m out of certain forage.” Feed inventory is …

Rotational Grazing | Bailey’s Bit About Nutrition

By: Bailey Farrell · Livestock Nutrition

Rotational Grazing
More than one-quarter of the Midwest’s agricultural land is in some form of pasture. Rotational grazing is where one part of the pasture is grazed at a time, while the remainder pastures “rest”. Resting grazed paddocks allows forage plants to renew energy reserves, rebuild vigor, deepen their roots system, and give long-term maximum production. Below is the relationship between the number of paddocks and the rest period per acre.For optimum production, pastures should be grazed about a week before the grass heads out (goes …

Fermentation | Bailey’s Bit About Nutrition

By: Bailey Farrell · Livestock Nutrition, Dairy Production, Silage

Why We Ferment Forage
Fermenting forages is very beneficial to cattle nutrition and production-wise. When forage is fermented it causes a breakdown of forage material, making it easier for animals to digest. Since the fermented forage is easier to digest, the bodies can digest forage quicker and releases more energy for the animal. The cattle can utilize the feed more efficiently and this will result in less waste in the undigested material that they excrete.
Breaking it down to the molecular level, microbes multiply and break …

Alfalfa Stands | Bailey’s Bit About Nutrition

By: Bailey Farrell · Livestock Nutrition, Forages, Alfalfa

Spring Alfalfa Stand
Spring is here and if you look out into the fields, you will start to see some green popping up. Now is time to assess the alfalfa stand condition. First, you will need a square to measure a square foot; as in the picture below.
Just plop this down in a couple of random spots throughout the field and start counting. One way to count the alfalfa stand condition is to count the individual plant.