Help me with this hay report

Help Support CattleToday:

rjbovine

Well-known member
Joined
Dec 28, 2010
Messages
198
Reaction score
0
Location
southern il.
Results from my hay samples Grass hay.
Sample #1 : Adjusted crude protein 8.69% , Total digestable nutrients 58.21%
Sample #2 : ACP 8.27% TDN 52.31%
Sample #3 : ACP 8.77% TDN 57.55%
Sample #2 hay was baled 2011 kept under tarp . Sample # 1 and #3 were baled 2012 All sample are grass hay . Fescue making up most with a trace of orchard grass and red clover . Hay feed to cows to calve in nov/dec Thank you for your help . Also should I supplement this hay with any grain ? rj
 
Looks like medium to low quality hay that would maintain dry pregnant cows in 1st or 2nd trimester, but would need supplement for cold / wet stress, 3rd trimester, or if you needed them to gain anything.
 
Any suggestion on how to get quality of hay up. The 2012 hay was rolled under ideal conditions. And was fertilizer per soil sample requiments. Just needing ideas for better quality next year . Or is this about the best I can hope for with fescue . Thanks rj
 
rjbovine":1mehwycn said:
Any suggestion on how to get quality of hay up. The 2012 hay was rolled under ideal conditions. And was fertilizer per soil sample requiments. Just needing ideas for better quality next year . Or is this about the best I can hope for with fescue . Thanks rj

Do your neighbors grow hay? What are their results? Illinois doesn't come to mind when I think of hay but hey....what do I know. :) I feel your pain ............I'm trying to hope that something will grow without any water.......
 
most of us cut our hay especially the 1st cutting way too late....going for the volume/quantity. I noticed this...this year on my own hay, if I had cut it the 1st of May instead of the 1st of June I would have had a hay field regrowed and ready to pasture going into the hot dry weather we had. Instead I had a freshly cut hayfield just sittin there needing rain like the rest of my pastures.

Live and learn, cut the hay off and let it be growing back for more hay or pasture.
 
It's not uncommon for fescue hay here to run 13-16% acp, tdn @60%, rfv in the 90's. We cut it earlier than most, waiting for volume will kill the quality. If you wait until it turns "woody" your pretty much baling straw. You can supplement with distillers grains or alfalfa to keep them happy.

Sizmic
 
yes
#1 ADF 39.40% NDF 61.79%
#2 ADF 46.97% NDF 70.03%
#3 ADF 40.25% NDF 61.19 %
Please explain what this means thanks rj
 
rjbovine":39tjyvdw said:
yes
#1 ADF 39.40% NDF 61.79%
#2 ADF 46.97% NDF 70.03%
#3 ADF 40.25% NDF 61.19 %
Please explain what this means thanks rj
ADF (Acid Detergent Fiber) is an indication of the digestibility of the hay and the energy content. Ideally it would be between 30-35...The lower the better...NDF is an indication of the "fill factor" of the hay. Should be around 50......seems to me this hay was well past prime when it was baled and not highly fertilized either. Will fill her up but a huge amount of it will pass thru undigested. You can still feed it but may need some supplementation thru the winter.
 
To me those ADF and NDF numbers show that the hay was pretty mature when cut. It is not very degistable hay with those fiber numbers.
The nutrient content of hay is very highly affected by the stage of growth when the hay is cut. Cutting the hay earlier will improve the quality. Doing that will decrease the quanity. However, if you are able to take several cuttings you can make up that decrease in total tonage. But you will have gone over your fields more times. So you will end up with about the same amount of hay but of better quality. But your harvest cost will have increased.
 
Dave":1z425wfw said:
To me those ADF and NDF numbers show that the hay was pretty mature when cut. It is not very degistable hay with those fiber numbers.
The nutrient content of hay is very highly affected by the stage of growth when the hay is cut. Cutting the hay earlier will improve the quality. Doing that will decrease the quanity. However, if you are able to take several cuttings you can make up that decrease in total tonage. But you will have gone over your fields more times. So you will end up with about the same amount of hay but of better quality. But your harvest cost will have increased.
Any production increase you get in hay is lost in usually the part the cow can't digest. You're only fooling yourself into thinking more is better. Cut hay on time even if it's clouding up to rain. Wet hay will dry out and lose very little nutrition unless you get a two week monsoon....standing grass gets more worthless everyday it stands.
 
TexasBred":1aqdt17e said:
Dave":1aqdt17e said:
To me those ADF and NDF numbers show that the hay was pretty mature when cut. It is not very degistable hay with those fiber numbers.
The nutrient content of hay is very highly affected by the stage of growth when the hay is cut. Cutting the hay earlier will improve the quality. Doing that will decrease the quanity. However, if you are able to take several cuttings you can make up that decrease in total tonage. But you will have gone over your fields more times. So you will end up with about the same amount of hay but of better quality. But your harvest cost will have increased.
Any production increase you get in hay is lost in usually the part the cow can't digest. You're only fooling yourself into thinking more is better. Cut hay on time even if it's clouding up to rain. Wet hay will dry out and lose very little nutrition unless you get a two week monsoon....standing grass gets more worthless everyday it stands.
I agree, only problem is we don't know if it's just a shower or days and days of rain. ever had hay get so wet that it turned black and moldy and stuck to the ground?
but back to the hay in question, without a doubt you let it mature too much. if it has seed heads you waited too long. also, how much nitrogen are you using per acre (actual lbs of N). u should be able to easily get 14% protien out of fescue. u said that you fertilized according to the soil test. what did the test say and what was the exact blend and lbs/acre did you apply
 
That is typically the values that my mommas over winter on with no supplement. Last trimetster of gestation is on green grass.
 
MasseyFerg":1uvt9ijq said:
I agree, only problem is we don't know if it's just a shower or days and days of rain. ever had hay get so wet that it turned black and moldy and stuck to the ground?
but back to the hay in question, without a doubt you let it mature too much. if it has seed heads you waited too long. also, how much nitrogen are you using per acre (actual lbs of N). u should be able to easily get 14% protien out of fescue. u said that you fertilized according to the soil test. what did the test say and what was the exact blend and lbs/acre did you apply
True but we usually have some indication if we're expecting scattered showers or if 3-4 days of heavy rains or coming. Around here those seem to be coming less and less frequently.
 

Latest posts

Top