Feeding SS Baleage ?

[Stocker Steve]

Made a pile of SS baleage with an older baler that did not have a roto cutter., and just started feeding it. Color and smell are good but it is pretty course. Weaned calves just pick around the stalks. Will that change as they get used to it, or is it much better for feeding cows?

 

[ChrisB2]

In my limited experience, it is better for cows. We have started cutting it when it is around 3 feet tall so it isn't as course, but it still doesn't seem paletable to calves. I like SS for the tonnage, but don't really like feeding it. Maybe my cows are just spoiled on the alfalfa they usually get.

 

[Stocker Steve]

I was thinking about cutting it sooner too...

Do you also offer dry hay when feeding baleage?
What level of baleage waste do you see with calves vs. cows?

 

[Atimm693]

It's an issue and they will always pick through it to some degree I think. But we've been feeding it to calves for 4 years now, although we chop it in the bale and then run it through the mixer which chops it further.

Doing your best to cut before it gets really tall and tough, and making sure it retains enough moisture will help. Although the wetter and sappier it is, the harder it is to handle and bale, so there's a balance.

As mentioned, we also prefer to cut it with alfalfa or something sweet. Seems the calves eat it better that way. Once it gets cold cows will clean it up pretty well though.

 

[b.duke]

next time I would chop it. let it go to seed. it's amazing feed.

 

[southernultrablack]

Fed it here 2 years ago. Cut at about 4-5' tall and wrapped at a pretty high moisture level. Fed to mature cows and calves together. The one thing I noticed was that they left a fair bit of stalks.

 

[cumminspuller]

We've been growing/ wrapping/ feeding it for 4 years now. If you can cut it at 3 feet or just over you will not have as much waste for sure. I've cut it from 3 feet to headed out. The taller it is the more waste you will have. We have feed it to cows with calves at their side. We have a small herd. We set out a roll of haylage and a roll of dry hay at the same time and make them clean up the dry before giving them more. I want to try feeding it to a group of calves in a lot to see how they would do on it. I've got way more than I'll need for this winter so I might get to try it.

 

[Otha]

I worked for a guy winter that feed some ss balage. We cut it about 5-6 foot tall. It had some Bermuda mixed in the understory. We only ever had about 1/3 of the knives up in the baler so it cut about 3 or 4 inches pieces usually plus no knives near the edges so the bale would stay together better. We kept dry hay out at all times, usually pretty low quality stuff. Would put out 2 or 3 bales of balage each day and they pretty well cleaned it up. There might be a couple of stalks from the outside but not much. It was the most waste free thing I had every seen fed to a cow. They did some bermuda baleage too and it was the same way. basically no waste.