The Right Focus: Vita Plus Dairy Summit 2017 Recap

Posted on January 8, 2018 in Dairy Performance
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More than 330 dairy producers, Vita Plus consultants and industry peers came together December 6 and 7 for Vita Plus Dairy Summit 2017 in Madison, Wisconsin.  Follow the links in this post to access full event coverage, including speakers' PowerPoint presentations, articles, videos and more.

Bank on corn silage in your rations

Posted on August 27, 2015 in Dairy Performance
By Dr. Darin Bremmer What was once considered a high corn silage diet is not high compared to today’s standards.  We commonly feed diets containing at least 80 percent of the forage dry matter (DM) from corn silage. One of the biggest reasons for this change is consistency.  It is much easier to put up

Understanding starch digestibility inside and out

Posted on August 11, 2015 in Dairy Performance
By Pat Hoffman We feed lactating cows starch sources that may be ground, flaked, processed, rolled or ensiled.  In addition, we store feeds containing starch in bags, bunkers and bins at different moisture contents for different lengths of time. With all these possible combinations, figuring out starch digestibility in the feeds we put in front

12-point check for small grain forages

Posted on April 7, 2015 in Dairy Performance
By Pat Hoffman Producers used to only plant small grains in the spring for forage when they faced alfalfa winterkill or needed a companion crop for alfalfa seedings. Times have changed and small grain forages are now commonly and diversely used to augment a wide array of forage needs.  In addition, small grain forages are

Fall milk slump and low digestible forages?

Posted on November 20, 2014 in Dairy Performance
By Rod Martin In the past couple months, we have heard a lot of discussion on lower milk production and higher components. We typically see this phenomenon every year during the fall season, but it seems to be more pronounced this year. Consultants and producers have been evaluating and implementing ration strategies with the goal

Bank on corn silage in your rations

Posted on November 10, 2014 in Dairy Performance
By Dr. Darin Bremmer Looking back a number of years, it was rare to feed a milk cow diet with more than 50 percent of the forage dry matter (DM) coming from corn silage.  Today, it’s common to feed diets with at least 80 percent of the forage DM coming from this crop. That pushes

HMSC: Don’t forget the H

Posted on October 15, 2014 in Dairy Performance
By Jon Urness Dairy producers have successfully harvested, stored and fed high moisture corn for many years. By now, most have the routine down pat. But when things go wrong, it’s often the lack of high moisture that causes problems.  Naturally, too much moisture can be a challenge as well, but the material won’t pack

Harvesting fall-seeded rye as silage

Posted on March 13, 2013 in Dairy Performance
By Jon Urness Spring harvesting of fall-seeded small grain grasses such as rye, triticale, and wheat as haylage has been popular in some areas of the country. Interest in this practice has spread in the Midwest as a source of forage for replacements and the opportunity to maximum forage yield by double-cropping in combination with

Silage additives: Can they cut the mustard in the EU?

Posted on December 21, 2012 in Dairy Performance
By Jon Urness In America, we’re proud to say we live in the land of the free.  And, most often, that’s a good thing.  But when it comes to silage additives and how they’re scrutinized and marketed, maybe we’d have to say not-so-much. Here in the land of wide open spaces and free markets, it’s

Aflatoxin: No room for error in dairy

Posted on September 20, 2012 in Dairy Performance

By Dr. Al Schultz and Rod Martin

Almost every year at harvest, we have a few conversations about common molds and mycotoxins.  However, this year’s weather events have pushed us to look closer at a mycotoxin that isn’t as common in the upper Midwest:  aflatoxin. Aflatoxin is produced by the Aspergillus mold.  It thrives in periods of excessive heat and drought conditions, which is why it’s of particular concern to producers this harvest season.  Spores travel by the wind and infect silks or kernels, usually through insect wounds.

Inoculants and dry matter recovery: What’s at stake?

Posted on February 13, 2012 in Dairy Performance
By Chris Wacek-Driver “Quality forages…where sound nutrition starts” has become a founding principle for Vita Plus consultants as we work with you to put up high quality forages. A key to reaching that goal is improving aerobic stability by inoculating with the world-leading Lactobacillus buchneri 40788.  Benefits of this inoculant include less heating, fewer yeasts

Choose your corn silage hybrid like you choose your steak

Posted on November 7, 2011 in Dairy Performance
By John Goeser Corn silage quality has a profound impact on your dairy’s profitability.  Highly digestible hybrids reduce your need for corn grain, and everyone understands the value of that in today’s markets.  So how do you choose the right hybrid?  The same way you choose your favorite steak. When you sink your teeth into

Getting ‘the rest of the story’ on fecal starch

Posted on September 29, 2011 in Dairy Performance
By Jon Urness Legendary commentator Paul Harvey always ended his daily lunchtime radio broadcasts with the affirmation, “Now you know the rest of the story.” I’m not so sure we’ll ever know the full “rest of the story” when it comes to all the factors affecting total tract starch digestibility.  A survey conducted by Vita

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.