Hay, January and Markets
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bigbull338
Well-known member
i was quating when you put fert out in texas.here if you have rye clover and vetch to bale for hay you fert in march.we may try to fert our coastal this year.so its going tobe fun to see how much money we throw away.im very against putting fert out as it dont increase the amount of hay you get pre ac enough to off set the cost.i can take the fert money for 1 cutting and buy almost 300 rolls of hay.
talltimber
Well-known member
Then why would you fertilize your coastal?
Do you rent your hay ground?
Do you rent your hay ground?
TexasBred
Well-known member
Rain increases the amount. Fertilize will increase the quality. Same with grazing.bigbull338":1u3sdw0u said:
highgrit
Well-known member
I won't feed un-fertlized hay to my cows. If you don't fertlize your hay fields, you might as well only bale it once in the fall. Some folks just don't see the benefits of fertlizer.
highgrit":1zrdf3hn said:
If you're only doing it once wouldn't it be better to bale it in early summer rather than in the fall?
highgrit
Well-known member
Better for what? We baled some this year in October that hadn't been cut all year to us as a hedge row so the poachers couldn't see the fields. And my son ended up selling it all to cow folks that supplement with tubs and licks. If the grass hasn't been fertlized it won't make hay that's worth feeding without supplementing. Now that's in the south where we don't get snow.
highgrit":3uqzf0wj said:
That's what I'm asking here. Wouldn't first cutting hay have more nutrients than stemmy end of season hay? Even without fertilizer.
highgrit
Well-known member
Yes TT, but you'll be lucky if the hay will test out at better than 7-8%. It's a lot of work to bale hay, and then you have to store the hay. If you store the first cutting of hay outside, by the time you feed it the top 2-3 inches of the roll is moldy. And the bigger the roll the more you waste. I'm no hay guru but I've sent a lot of hay to be tested. And the best hay has always been fertilized.
highgrit":34wotxoy said:
Makes sense. Thanks.
Tim/South
Well-known member
I can not see any benefit in baling and feeding hay that has not been fertilized. As much work goes into making hay it does not make sense for me to go over ground and not produce as many tons of quality hay as I can.
If we did not fertilize then we would only get a spring and a fall cutting. With fertilize we always get three good cuttings of nice thick hay.
Making more hay on less ground was the way I was raised. It costs as much in time, equipment and fuel to make 5,000 lbs. per acre as it does to hope for 2,000 lbs. per acre. Plus the yield is much higher in nutrients.
If we did not fertilize then we would only get a spring and a fall cutting. With fertilize we always get three good cuttings of nice thick hay.
Making more hay on less ground was the way I was raised. It costs as much in time, equipment and fuel to make 5,000 lbs. per acre as it does to hope for 2,000 lbs. per acre. Plus the yield is much higher in nutrients.
bigbull338
Well-known member
we have baled organic hay for 35yrs.some1 in the family is trying to increase the 1st cutting enough that we dont have todo a 2nd cutting.we do not lease any hay ground as we have close to 175acs that can be hay meadows.last year we baled to the equal amount of 450 4 by 6 bales in 2 cuttings.the cows are staying mudd fat of the hay this winter.but we are also feeding the equal amount of 16 to 24 4 by 6 bales a week.
TexasBred
Well-known member
It will definitely be more digestible regardless of the protein content. You also have "digestible protein"(that which is utilized) to factor in, in both hay and grain mixes.TennesseeTuxedo":1ic9nznf said:
Thank you TB. I have a lot to learn about hay and nutrition.
TennesseeTuxedo":1ak0cxom said:
What kind of grass/hay do you have? I'm guessing its fescue and orchardgrass and clover like I do, unless I'm mistaken.
Cool season grasses just get better as it gets colder up to a point. So up here, your fescue baled in the fall should be more nutritious cause it will be mostly blades, unless you bale it in the spring in the boot stage which nobody rarely does. One reason most people don't is because it is rarely hay weather the 1st of May....too damp too cool.
These fine people down south are baling mostly warm season grasses like Bermuda, bahai, etc. A horse of a different color in some ways.
inyati13
Well-known member
Are some of you saying that fertilizer will not increase yields? The laws of physics say you cannot get something if your input is nothing. If N is in short supply, how does a plant build protein when N is the key element in a protein? Plants need K and P to build cell walls and roots. For example, phosphorus (P) is an essential part of the process of photosynthesis. It effects rapid growth and encourages root growth. I wasted a lot of time in high school agriculture class if fertilizer does not affect yields.
Nesikep
Well-known member
If you have alfalfa, clover, or any other legumes, They can supply at least a portion of the nitrogen.. Phosphorus and potassium are harder to come by.
TexasBred
Well-known member
Banjo we do put up a lot of it but a majority of it is mediocre at best.Banjo":1ie8fbr7 said:
TexasBred
Well-known member
Nobody said it didnt' affect yields. I hope you also studied some in agriculture about the value of water in growing grass....without it what happens to your fertilizer?? And your yields???inyati13":3g57e6pi said:
Fire Sweep Ranch
Well-known member
inyati13":1z0ym1ne said:
I think people are saying they prefer fertilized hay. Some will not feed hay that has not been fertilized. I think all people know that when we add nitrogen to grass, and mix some rain in, it grows like crazy! Look at our lawns, for those that have a lawn. It grows like crazy when we put down a little fertilizer, and makes it greener.
We always use fertilizer, since we are pushing too many cows on our small acreage. We are able to graze and get a cutting, the hard part is figuring out the exact time to put it on the ground, using the weather as your key indicator! No rain - waste of money; too much rain - your neighbor benefits from your fields draining the N before it soaked into the ground! :nod:
On a side note; When I ran the pig buildings at Cal Poly University, I had to dump my sludge each cycle of a building (about every 90 days). The horse facility would beg for it, knowing that a good week after spraying that liquid manure on the pasture they would not be able to find the horses in the grass! :lol2: Who cares if it smelled a little for a few days, it was worth the grass it produced!
