Forage storage and management

By Jon Urness, Vita Plus national forage specialist
Have you ever looked at your alfalfa hay or haylage and wondered, “What is the value of the leaves and stems?”  Probably not, but the nerds among us might find the answer to that at least interesting.  More importantly, the forage, dairy and beef producers among us may find such information critical to the success of their forage programs.

Most of the crop season has had a slow and wet start, but, with promising weather on the horizon, farmers hope to get back in the fields soon.  Hear from our Vita Plus dairy and forage consultants as they provide insights on the planting and alfalfa progress across the Vita Plus market area.

By Brittany Gevelinger, Vita Plus Dodgeville dairy specialist
In this final video of our five-part series, Brittany Gevelinger walks through the proper steps of sampling bunkers and piles to help you make management and nutrition decisions.

Harvest season can seem like a sprint from one field to another.  However, taking the time to do the basics correctly when harvesting haylage will help keep custom harvesters and dairy producers in business, according to Dr. Michelle Windle, Vita Plus forage products and dairy technical service specialist.

Baleage may not get a lot of attention here in the United States, but it accounts for 10 to 25 percent of all silage in western Europe, according to Dr. Thomas Chamberlain.  During his presentation at the Vita Plus Custom Harvester Meeting, Chamberlain, a private forage and dairy health consultant, explained the advantages of baleage for British producers and how some of those advantages may also apply to U.S. producers.

By Dr. Michelle Windle, Vita Plus forage products and dairy technical service specialist
The winter months often offer a time to reflect on the past year’s work, including the forages program.  To assist with that review, Vita Plus has developed a forage scorecard to help highlight areas of your forages program where you excel and areas for improvement. 

By Richard Mensendike, Vita Plus dairy specialist
In this fourth video of a five-part series, Richard Mensendike, Vita Plus Lanark livestock specialist, walks through the proper steps of sampling upright silos to help you make management and nutrition decisions.  We’ll discuss sampling strategies for other storage structures and feed in upcoming editions of Forage Foundations.

By Jon Urness, Vita Plus national forage specialist
Our Silostop^® Gravelbags are not new and they aren’t improved, but sometimes it’s simply worthwhile to draw attention to a product that is often overlooked in the field.