Forage Harvesting and Handling

Hay making objectives

 Cut, crimp, rake and bale within a few
days time
 Reduce plant moisture from 75-85% to below
16%
 Store protected from rain and wet soil
 Prevent dust and mold contamination
 Leaf shatter
 Dirt
 Molds—formed in the windrow in the bale
 Minimize losses
 Respiration 1-7%--- 4% normal
 Rain
 1/10 inch 3-7%---5%
 ½ inch
7-27%---17%
 1 inch
12-50%---31%
 Mow-condition
1-4%---2%
 Tedding
 Swath inversion
2-8%---3%
 Raking 1-3%---1%
1-20%---5%
 Hay losses
 Baling
 Small bales 2-6%---4% normal
 Large round bales 3-9%---6%
 Storage
 Inside
3-9%---5%
 Outside
 Typical losses 6-30%---15%
 20% good
conditions
 40% to 50% w/
rain, round bales,
outside storage
Harrigan, 2006 Purdue Hay Day
Sickle-Bar Cutting Unit
 Mower-Conditioner

$12,000 to $36,000 1-4% DM loss

 Self-Propelled Mower-
Conditioner

$60,000 to $90,000
Rotary-disk w/ rubber roll conditioner
Steel Roll Conditioner
Flail Conditioner
Hay Macerator
Macerated Hay
 Windrow Inverter

$8,000 to $10,000 1-3% DM Loss

 Tedder

3% loss in a wet crop, 10% late in drying process

 Tandem Wheel Rake

$10,000 to $12,000 1-20% DM Loss

 Suggestions
 Cutterbar and rotary disk mowers have
offsetting advantages. Rotary disks are most
useful when greater harvest capacity is needed.
 Conditioning is a good investment in all
systems.
 Take advantage of natural drying conditions
Wide swath and rake or
Narrow swath and invert before baling (30%
moisture)
 Suggestions
 Tedder/rake might save ½ day at 1st cut,
but 8% loss with alfalfa < 40% moist.
 Tedder within a few hours of mowing (50-
60% moisture) or after rain
 Inside storage or weather protection can
be justified in most conditions.
 When hay is transported relatively long
distances, large high-density rectangular
bales are preferred.
Small Rectangular Bales
Large Rectangular Bales
 Round Baler

$15,000 to $30,000
 Bale size
 Small square bales are easy to handle (50 lb).
 Convenient for stabled horses.
 Labor intensive for several horses.
 Large square bales stack tightly for shipping.
 2-4 ft width and height, 4-8 ft long, 450-2000+ lb
 Large round bales are heavy 600-1000+ lb but
labor efficient.
 Many horse owners are not set up to handle large
bales. Premium for delivery and handling.
 Bale Tuber

$15,000 to $20,000
Round Bale Storage
Plastic Bale Wrap
Covered Stack
Shed Storage
Round Bale Storage
 Feeding losses
3.5% waste 6.1% waste

11.4% waste 14.6% waste

 Making Silage
 Controlled fermentation of high-moisture
forage.
 First few days plant enzymes and microbes
are active, metabolize soluble carbohydrates
to CO2, H2O and heat.
 Anerobic microbes multiply using sugars and
starches for energy, produce lactic acid.
 Lactic acid levels of 7-8%, pH = 4.0
fermentation stops, stable storage
 Making Silage
 Optimal dry matter 30-45%.
 Too wet
 pH too high, development of clostridial bacteria,
butyric acid, odor.
 Seepage of soluble nutrients.
 Too dry or poorly packed
 Excess heating, molds, bacteria, yeasts.
 Unpalatable, may be toxic.
 Silage harvest systems
 Silage production is a
major cost of milk
production.
 Own or custom hire?
 Labor available
 Crop acreage
 Crop quality
 Suitable days for harvest
 Only 2 days out of 3
are suitable for corn
silage harvest in
September and
October.
 Hours per day
available?
 Equipment set
 Forage harvester
 Transport wagons or
trucks
 Silo blower or packing
tractor
 Prevent crop flow bottlenecks
 2-row pull-type
 3 7-ton self-unloading
wagons when hauling
1.75 miles or less
 8-row self-propelled
 8 9-ton dump trucks
when hauling 5 miles.
 Silo Filling and Storage
 Fill fast
 Uniform moisture
and maturity
 Pack well
 Exclude oxygen
 Cover
 No cover costs 30%
of top 3 feet.
 Packing or filling silos
 Packing increases
silage density,
excludes oxygen,
promotes fermentation
and improves quality
Upright Silo
8-10% DM loss
Bunker Silo
12% DM loss
Bag Silo
6% DM loss
 Silo Feed-Out
 Unload fast
 Size face for feed
removal of 5 inches
per day.
 Sample for feed
composition and
quality.
 Compare harvest systems
 Dairies of 75-, 150-,
 New tractors to power
300-, 600-, and 1200-
pull-type forage
cows with replacements choppers
 Mix of new and used  Used tractors to pack
equipment bunker silos, forage
blowers and transport
wagons.
 Used trucks for
transport on larger
farms.
 Harvest Costs
 Machinery ownership
 Purchased, depreciated over 7
years, replaced
 6% real interest
 R&M on accumulated use
 Fuel and lube
 Labor for chopping,
transport and silo filling plus
15% support time
 Requires a systems approach
 Not included:
 Mowing and raking alfalfa
 Crop storage
 Timeliness penalites
 Storage losses
 Charges for
 Land
 Crop establishment
 Crop care
 75-cow herd
 1-row chopper  565 tons alfalfa silage
 2 used 60 hp tractors  990 tons corn silage
 80 hp tractor  Within .25 miles
 2 self-unloading  101 hours machine
wagons use
 Forage blower  $132 per hour
 $8.58 per ton
 600-cow herd
 4-row SP chopper  6470 tons alfalfa silage
 2 210 hp tractor/blade  7935 tons corn silage
(used)  Within 2 miles
 3 15-ton dump trucks  186 hours
 $428.75 per hour
 $5.54 per ton
 Silage harvest costs
Harvest
Harvest Costs,
Costs, $$ per
per hour
hour
600
600

500
500
Harvest Costs, $ per ton
400
400
hour
perhour

10
10
300
300
99
$$ per

200
200
88
77
100
100
66
ton
per ton
00 55
$$ per

75
75 150
150 300
300 600
600 1200
1200 44
Herd
Herdsize,
size,cows
cows 33
22
11
00
75
75 150
150 300
300 600
600 1200
1200
Herd
Herd size,
size, cows
cows
Harrigan, 2006 Purdue Hay Day