Wheat straw

[DCA farm]

Found some baled wheat straw any of y'all feed it. Just my thought I can buy it pretty cheap I know it's not as good as hay but fed along side hay or with a 16% protein feed I'm wondering if it will work. It's gotta be better than nothing I guess

 

[Son of Butch]

Good idea, but It works best to grind and mix with good hay, rather than feeding along side.
Fed along side, boss cows will eat the good hay or feed and timid or smaller cows will get stuck eating only straw.

I know a guy who rotates every few days between feeding a bale of cornstalks and feeding a bale of good hay.
Not as good as grinding and mixing, but helps with the problem of dominant cows hogging all the good stuff.
His rotation is 1 bale cornstalks, followed by 2 bales of good hay and repeat, so 1/3 of his roughage ration is stalks.

 

[DCA farm]

At 1/2 the price I paid for my hay this year im gonna buy about 20-25 bales and try it just mix it in like you said i

 

[TCRanch]

We use wheat straw as bedding but they always munch on it. Lot of people around here inject liquid feed into the bales, say their cattle love it.

 

[DCA farm]

I'm gonna go look at it tomorrow I called the man looking for rolls of hay he only has square bales left that he's willing to sale I'm defiantly going to buy as many of them as i can it's good fertilized hay for $6.50 a bale said he's got rolls of wheat straw abd square bales of straw for cheaper than the hay. If grazed my cows on wheat but never fed them straw I figured it be about the sane but it may not be

 

[DCA farm]

After looking it over and talking with the guy I might not buy the straw but it's worth the 20 minute drive for the hay

 

[Son of Butch]

You don't give your location or what wheat straw sells for in your area.
Here in Minnesota wheat straw generally sells for $90 - $100 ton, and feed grade $105 ton
(tops & bottoms of course bring less)

 

[DCA farm]

Louisiana the straw priced at 30 a roll and $5 a square bale

 

[elkwc]

Wheat straw here is used mainly for bedding unless it is ground and mixed in. In the drought some did spray it with molasses and use it as more of a filler. I'm glad I don't have to pay your prices for straw.

 

[Allenw]

It's a good filler you need a source of protein to feed with it. We've fed a third to a half of feeding of alfalfa with it to cows when hay was short and they done well on it.

 

[DCA farm]

I passed on the straw after me and the fella talked he said he sells it for mulch and people's gardens not as a feed source I just loaded my trailer down with Bermuda squares bales instead $6.50 a bale for fertilizer Bermuda grass is worth buying when I can't find any more rolls