Successful high moisture corn harvest and storage – Jon Urness, Vita Plus

Posted on September 23, 2016 in Forage Foundations
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By Jon Urness, Vita Plus national forage specialist
Dairy producers have successfully harvested, stored, and fed high moisture corn (HMC) for years, but problems can occur for the best producers.  Even with relatively low corn prices, HMC is still worth more than $100 per ton.  For the sake of cash flow, high production, and animal health, it pays huge dividends to get things done right, and it starts with harvesting at the correct moisture.

The fungus among us: The buzz behind the fuzz – Dr. Michelle Windle, Vita Plus

Posted on September 23, 2016 in Forage Foundations
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By Dr. Michelle Windle, Vita Plus forage products and dairy technical service specialist
A mushroom, a yeast and a mold walk into a bar.  The bartender yells, “I don’t want any trouble here!”  They responded “Calm down, friend… we’re just fun-guys!”

A "good" joke, but it’s not funny when those molds appear in your feed and start causing trouble.

VIDEO: Forage sampling video – Silage bags – Richard Mensendike, Vita Plus

Posted on September 23, 2016 in Forage Foundations
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By Richard Mensendike, Vita Plus dairy specialist
In this second video of a five-part series, Richard Mensendike walks through the proper steps of sampling silage bags 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.

Minimizing negative effects of pests – Dr. Michelle Windle, Vita Plus

Posted on July 29, 2016 in Forage Foundations
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By Dr. Michelle Windle, Vita Plus forage products and dairy technical service specialist
In the May 2016 Forage Foundations, we described the effects pests, such as birds, raccoons and rats, have on feed quality.  In this second article, we aim to describe ways to minimize those effects.  

Forage particle size influenced by storage method? Absolutely! – Margaret Quaassdorff, Vita Plus

Posted on July 29, 2016 in Forage Foundations
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By Margaret Quaassdorff, Vita Plus Lake Mills dairy specialist
You may have taken forage samples from different storage structures, like bags, bunkers or piles, and observed a difference in particle size distribution.  Vita Plus National Forage Specialist Jon Urness and I dedicated more thought and observation to find why forage particle sizes may vary coming out of different storage structures and if the distributions truly differ.  It seems reasonable to assume that, during harvest, feed going through a bagger would be processed to a greater degree than feed stored in a bunker or pile, due to more aggressive filling and packing mechanisms.

Use of fall-grown oats in dairy cropping systems – Dr. Wayne Coblentz, USDA-ARS

Posted on July 29, 2016 in Forage Foundations
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By Dr. Wayne Coblentz, USDA-ARS agronomist and dairy scientist
Recently, we’ve seen new or renewed interest in alternative forage crops, double-cropping and cover crops. Work by the USDA-ARS and University of Wisconsin staff at the UW-Marshfield Agricultural Research Station has focused primarily on using fall-grown oats.   

Prevent setbacks with pre-harvest inspections – John Brantsen, Vita Plus

Posted on July 29, 2016 in Forage Foundations
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By John Brantsen, Vita Plus dairy specialist
The Fourth of July has come and gone, corn has started to tassel, and we are officially in the heart of summer. This means the always-exciting corn silage season in the Midwest is less than two months away!  Although this is a great time for producers to slow down, and maybe take a vacation while the corn crop continues its march toward maturity, you should not forget to properly prepare the equipment for harvest and storage of this year’s corn silage.

Producers practice good stewardship with plastic recycling

Posted on July 29, 2016 in Forage Foundations

A dumpster on a dairy farm wouldn’t normally turn heads, but a new type of dumpster is doing that very thing.

This dumpster’s sole purpose is to recycle used ag and silage plastics. Revolution Plastics, headquartered in Stuttgard, Arkansas, offers producers an environmentally friendly option to dispose of the plastics on their farms.

VIDEO: Forage sampling video – Baled hay and baleage – Brittany Gevelinger, Vita Plus

Posted on July 29, 2016 in Forage Foundations
By Brittany Gevelinger, Vita Plus Dodgeville dairy specialist
In this first video of a five-part series, Brittany Gevelinger walks through the proper steps to of sampling baled and baleage 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.

Q&A: Applicator preparation and troubleshooting – Mark Case and Dwain Ewald, Vita Plus

Posted on July 29, 2016 in Forage Foundations

Mark Case is a Vita Plus dairy specialist in western Michigan and Dwain Ewald is a customer service specialist with Vita Plus Gagetown. Case and Ewald work closely with producers to troubleshoot and maintain their inoculant applicators and also support their other forage needs.

Pest problems have far-reaching effects – Jon Urness, Vita Plus

Posted on May 26, 2016 in Forage Foundations

By Jon Urness, Vita Plus national forage specialist
Wildlife pests found around bunkers, piles and bags are not only an unsightly nuisance, but can also wreak havoc by spreading serious disease threats to livestock and even humans.

Higher corn silage diets: Why do many nutritionists prefer them? – Dr. Darin Bremmer, Vita Plus

Posted on May 26, 2016 in Forage Foundations

By Dr. Darin Bremmer, Vita Plus dairy technical specialist
What once was considered a high corn silage diet is not high compared to today’s standards. In the past, you never heard of feeding milk cow diets containing more than 50 percent of forage dry matter (DM) from corn silage.  We now feed diets with more than 80 percent of forage DM from corn silage.

Number one cause of silage failure – Jon Urness, Vita Plus

Posted on May 26, 2016 in Forage Foundations

By Jon Urness, Vita Plus national forage specialist
What’s the number one reason for things going bad in the silage bunker, pile, bag or silo?

The answer to that question is often determined long before even a single load is put into those structures.

Regional report: Spring planting and alfalfa progress – John Brantsen, Mark Case, Jon Rasmussen and Jerry Ruetten, Vita Plus

Posted on May 26, 2016 in Forage Foundations

For the most part, this crop season is starting nicely throughout the Midwest.  Here’s a look at corn planting progress and alfalfa conditions as of May 17 at several points in the Vita Plus market area.

Reintroducing Silostop Gravelbags – Jon Urness, Vita Plus

Posted on May 26, 2016 in 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.

The size of the pile – Jon Urness, Vita Plus

Posted on May 26, 2016 in Forage Foundations

By Jon Urness, Vita Plus national forage specialist
How much feed can I store in a drive-over pile given a certain area?

University extension services have some excellent tools to help you determine how much feed can be stored in a drive-over pile given a certain area.  Vita Plus also has a very comprehensive Feed Inventory Projector Program.