When should I wrap my haylage?
Producers have about 24 hours to wrap bales in order to get good fermentation and a highly digestible end product; however, delays beyond 24 hours will result in incremental declines in silage quality.
What is the difference between Balayage and haylage?
What is balage? Balage, silage, and haylage are names for the same basic product: ensiled grass. It doesn’t matter whether the grass is going into a massive silage pit or a plastic-wrapped bale – the process is the same. The grass is baled when much greener than hay.
How long does haylage last wrapped?
Once opened, the bales should ideally be used within 6 days, but will last up to 10 days in the winter.
Why is haylage wrapped?
Haylage tends to be cut earlier in the season and is left to wilt for a shorter period of time in the field before being baled and wrapped in several layers of plastic. Due to a greater amount of moisture in haylage you actually need to feed more haylage by weight than hay to provide the same amount of dry matter.
Is wrapping hay worth it?
“I think it’s worth the cost. Wrapping our bales cuts down on hay waste considerably. Once hay is wrapped and stored in white bale plastic wrap (Wise said they’ve used black plastic wrap before, but it has a tendency to promote more spoilage due to heat absorption), it can last well over a year.
Is haylage wrapped?
Haylage tends to be cut earlier in the season and is left to wilt for a shorter period of time in the field before being baled and wrapped in several layers of plastic. Haylage is typically between 50 and 70% dry matter.
Is haylage more expensive than hay?
Haylage is often considered more expensive than hay but that is in terms of fresh weight consumed. If its higher nutritional value is taken into account there is really little difference, it may even be cheaper on a total feed cost per day basis, and it has additional health and welfare benefits.
Is haylage good for horses?
Haylage is great for horses in regular work, young horses with greater energy and protein requirements for growth and older horses who need an easily digestible source of forage. Additionally, haylage is dust free so is an excellent choice for horses with a compromised respiratory system.
Why do farmers wrap their hay in plastic?
Most farmers seem to have their preference on moisture levels. Bales at lower moisture may have little to no fermentation, but wrapping protects them from spoiling. On the other hand, moisture levels too high can cause clostridial fermentation with resulting high levels of butyric acid and ammonia.
How much does it cost to wrap a round bale?
Plastic can cost upward of $6 to $8 per bale, depending on the size of your bale, and a new wrapper itself can cost between $15,000 and $25,000. When made correctly, individually wrapped bales are usually dense, exclude oxygen, and have the least amount of time between being baled and wrapped.
Is wrapped hay good for horses?
Dust extracted and wrapped Pure Hay also provides a ‘clean’ option for both horse and owner, along with moderate levels of protein, energy (calories) and fibre, ideal for supporting the requirements of the working horse.
Should you wrap hay bales for haylage?
For haylage production, if there are no silos available, wrapping bales is a less expensive alternative for making a 15 to 20 percent protein forage feed. “If you are wrapping dry hay, it will improve the forage’s digestibility,” says Marvin Hall, professor of forage management at Penn State University. However, there is a caveat.
How is haylage harvested and wrapped?
Basically, haylage is harvested like hay except for wrapping bales in plastic with a wrapper pulled behind the baler. In addition to harvesting at the proper time, it is important to correctly wrap haylage to form a tight seal of the plastic.
When is the best time to wrap haylage?
The best candidates for wrapped haylage are first and fall cuttings. When making plastic-wrapped haylage, the win-or-die breaking point on preserving forage quality is a producer’s willingness and ability to wrap bales the same day hay is harvested. Carbohydrates in forages increase from the moment of cutting throughout the day and peak at sunset.
What is haylage?
“Haylage is cut forage sealed in a plastic sleeve,” explains Rocky Lemus, extension forage specialist at Mississippi State University. “Forage harvested as haylage requires 40-60% moisture with a targeted average of 50%. This is an intermediate level between optimum moisture contents for hay and silage.: