I use round bales and have been in the practice of setting them outside and tarping them but fighting tarps all winter is increasingly disinteresting to me. Any idea how much hay you lose in say a 4X5 tight wound round bale that's left to sit out?
tarping hay
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bigbull338
Well-known member
you really dont loose any etable hay.unless the hay is weedy an junky.some say you loose 40%.but i dont think thats the case.
backhoeboogie
Well-known member
The ground is the worst part in my opinion. Get the hay up off of the ground and it helps more than the tarp. I am using the old billboard tarps for long term storage with pipes in the side sleeves. They work well. I am using pallets for getting it off of the ground and other folks hate them. Some prefer tires or gravel etc. There's been a lot of discussion on it in this forum as well as tarping and everything else.
gerardplauche
Well-known member
backhoeboogie":2bvq3f1g said:
Same here. We get them off the ground with wooden racks (6" high). I believe most of the rot comes from the ground.
I was also going to say like backhoe said get it off the ground. I finally got tired of fighting the tarps too. We put down some number 4 gravel or what they use in field line best money I ever spent. Just put down enough to let the water get out from under it. Little higher than finding used pallets but don't have to worry about moving them or being frozen to the ground. My 2 cents worth!!!
1982vett
Well-known member
http://foragesoftexas.tamu.edu/pdf/haystorag.pdf
http://www.ext.vt.edu/news/periodicals/ ... orage.html
Build a barn. It will pay for itself in a few years.
http://www.ext.vt.edu/news/periodicals/ ... orage.html
Build a barn. It will pay for itself in a few years.
kb5iod
Well-known member
If my math is correct, if you lose the outer 6" of a roll of hay that is a 20% loss.
Jim62
Well-known member
Is that loss the nutritional value from the outer 6" ? They still eat the outer 6", but it's just filler, right? I mean, it's about the same as the junk hay that you normally get when you buy hay.........
kb5iod
Well-known member
Jim62":3o1hrzc3 said:
Yes, didn't mean that the 6" disappears but just used 6" as an example of what might be wasted from being exposed to the elements. Although I have seen more that 6" disappear off the bottom of some bales that were setting directly on black soil. It seems to eat hay.
ToddFarmsInc
Well-known member
it also depends on the length of time the round bales sit outside in the elements. I've had some bales in the past that sat outside so long, they become ditch filler.
We set up a large pole shed and we can store a few of our better round bales under a roof.
we stack our round bales on ground with a slope, so there is a nature water runoff when it rains. That helps, Also butting the bales up tight back to back helps.
One year we tried stacking two rows close together and a third row on top. That didn't work too well, the rain water ran around the top bales and then set inbetween the top row and the bottom row, and I think that year we had more rot than placing the rows all at ground level.
The best way to eliminate round bale hay spoilage, is to bale the hay in small square bales, and stack them in the barn. ;-)
We set up a large pole shed and we can store a few of our better round bales under a roof.
we stack our round bales on ground with a slope, so there is a nature water runoff when it rains. That helps, Also butting the bales up tight back to back helps.
One year we tried stacking two rows close together and a third row on top. That didn't work too well, the rain water ran around the top bales and then set inbetween the top row and the bottom row, and I think that year we had more rot than placing the rows all at ground level.
The best way to eliminate round bale hay spoilage, is to bale the hay in small square bales, and stack them in the barn. ;-)
ToddFarmsInc":3dqlrk3t said:
Agreed, but them square bales don't fit in my hands as well as they used to. Brother and I bought a Farmhand accumulator several years ago. We probably put up 3000 bales of hay and another 2500-3000 in straw. Don't have to hire much help at all.
backhoeboogie
Well-known member
bandit80":3lgs90r9 said:
They don't fit mine to well either.
If I put out 6 rounds in cradles, I am good for a couple of days - espeically if they have some rye or wheat to forage on rotation. With squares, I'd have to put out some every day like everyone did back in the 60's.
ToddFarmsInc
Well-known member
Ya, I wouldn't put up as many as I do without my farmhand forks and accumulator. (about 5000/year) I also put up a lot of round, but the square go into my stom shelter barn, where I can feed the cattle when the wether gets to bad for me to get out in a tractor. Also I find the square bales much easier to sell.
I find when I feed 100 square bales every day, that gives me an excuse to be down with the cows looking everything over every day. :dunce:
I find when I feed 100 square bales every day, that gives me an excuse to be down with the cows looking everything over every day. :dunce:
Phil in Tupelo
Well-known member
Where you are is also a factor. In Mississippi if round hay is stored outside most research indicates a 30% loss of hay and /or quality. Hay doesn't go as far and more supplement is needed to help the cows maintain condition. If you have to purchase it would seem that a barn helps in two ways. First less loss of nutrition and volume. Second if any of the purchased hay is left after feeding season it should be good enough for feeding next year which is a slight head-start on hay needs. If your in it for the long haul, purchase or put up quality hay and are on you own land, I think the hay barn is likely a good investment.
backhoeboogie
Well-known member
Phil in Tupelo":2osqfxv1 said:
It probably has a lot to do with climate and humidity as well. I have a neighbor with plenty of barn who never puts hay in it. He stores it outside. Most years he puts up 15 to 16% coastal and it tests really well a year later. There is very little nutrition loss. Much of it has to do with the condition of the hay when baled and how tight you can bale it. Other grasses cannot be baled as tightly.
There are T-Posts on my property that were driven 30 years ago that look newer than 8 year old T-Posts I drove over in East Texas. I attibute that to moisture but I may be wrong.
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