Harvest time: Watch your moistures

Posted on August 6, 2012 in Dairy Performance
By Chris Wacek-Driver We’re already starting to chop corn silage in some parts of the Midwest. As you look to harvest this year’s crop, we once again remind you of the importance of closely monitoring your moisture levels. For corn silage, we recommend an optimum moisture level of 65 to 68 percent, but you’re generally

2012 drought: When to harvest and pricing corn

Posted on July 20, 2012 in Dairy Performance

By Dr. John Goeser, Chris Wacek-Driver and Randy Greenfield

(Editors note:  Scroll to the bottom of this article for a full webinar recording on this topic as well as PowerPoint slides from the presentation.) Many of you are facing drought conditions and re-thinking your forage strategy as a result.  Make your decisions based on actual conditions and move forward after careful consideration of your options. 

Make the right decisions for harvesting drought-stressed corn silage

Posted on July 13, 2012 in Dairy Performance
By Chris Wacek-Driver The drought conditions we’re seeing have many of us worrying about this year’s yields.  It is extremely difficult and emotionally challenging to watch a valuable and needed crop curl and turn brown due to lack of moisture.  While the gut tendency may be reactive based on visual information, careful analysis and informed

2012 alfalfa: A few more factors to keep in mind

Posted on May 18, 2012 in Dairy Performance

By Dr. John Goeser
 In my last article, we discussed 2012 alfalfa and the frost damage that occurred in some areas.  Now that it’s warming up, many of you are already in the fields cutting first crop – or maybe you’ve already finished.  As we look to the rest of the season, we have a few more factors to carefully evaluate as we put up high quality forages. 

Status of the 2012 alfalfa crop

Posted on April 30, 2012 in Dairy Performance
By Dr. John Goeser Let’s take a look at the last few months.  First, we had a warm and dry winter.  Next, summer came early in the upper Midwest with March temperatures in the 80s.  Then the chilly temperatures came back for most of April.  We even saw frost return to some areas.  This roller

Bunker density: Are you ahead of the pack? Ask that question now

Posted on April 5, 2012 in Dairy Performance
By the Vita Plus Loyal Dairy Team Managing your forage program is a challenging job and has many components. Selecting the right hybrids, managing your equipment or custom harvester and selecting the proper harvest time are all very important, but, when the weather breaks and the tractors are running, are you paying close enough attention

Is snaplage a fit for your dairy?

Posted on September 29, 2011 in Dairy Performance

By Chris Wacek-Driver 
Have you been talking about putting up snaplage this year?  This forage has gained renewed interest with increased use of high capacity field harvesters equipped with kernel processors.  The decision to harvest snaplage (which consists of the corn grain, cob, husk and some upper plant parts) will depend on the dietary fit and production goals of your dairy.