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Hay & Forage Grower
USDA
Hay Prices
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Leading alfalfa growers in Idaho are claiming numbers related to
the state’s 2009 alfalfa crop in the latest USDA Crop Production
report missed the mark. The Aug. 12 report, compiled by USDA’s
National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), predicts that alfalfa
production in the state will be 5% higher than it was in 2008. NASS also
forecast state alfalfa yields will average a record 4.6 tons/acre in
2009.
“The numbers don’t add up,” says Don Hale, hay grower from
Blackfoot and president of the Idaho Hay And Forage Association. “I
just don’t see the hay anywhere that they’re claiming is out
there.”
Hale notes that an usually wet late May-early June forced many growers
to delay first-crop harvest. Depending on where they were located in the
state, some had just cut hay when the rains started. “That hay got
rained on for 30 days. It turned black and rotted in the field. Those
delays resulted in a lost crop. Where we would normally get four
cuttings, we will only get three. The possible increase in yields on
first cut will not make up for the lost crop.”
Click
here to read the entire story.
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gives you the latest electronic conveniences and push button simplicity,
the new T6000 Series tractors from New Holland are built for you. T6000
tractors are a natural choice for haying operations and heavy loader
work. To learn more, see your local New Holland dealer or call
1-888-290-7377. www.newholland.com/na
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Is your hay suitable for horses? Steve Foster, extension educator
with the University of Nevada-Reno, offers these guidelines for
evaluating hay:
- Horse hay should be 10-17% moisture and about 10% crude protein.
Crude protein is not likely to be a limiting part of the diet except in
lactating mares, foals or performance horses, which require higher
levels.
- Hay with an acid detergent fiber (ADF) value of 30-35% is good for
horses. The lower the ADF value, the more digestible the nutrients in
the hay. Hay at 45% or more ADF is of little nutritional value. Neutral
detergent fiber (NDF) levels should be 40-50%, and most horses won’t
eat anything above 65%.
- Equine feed analyses provide non-fiber carbohydrate (NFC) estimates
to help select feed for horses that show sensitivity to starches and
sugars and measure digestible energy (DE) in the hay. For a light
working horse, DE should be about 20 Mcal/day, and most hays range from
0.76 to 0.94 Mcal/lb of DE. Calcium and phosphorus ratios can vary among
different types of hay. An adult horse in a maintenance phase should
have a calcium-to-phosphorus ratio of 3:1 to 1:1.
- Rained-on hay may be fine for horses in spite of the color. Green is
ideal but overrated. Green is an indication of Vitamin A content and
means that the hay has not been rained on prior to baling. Actually,
rained-on hay (unless it received a lot of rain over several days) is
only slightly lower in nutritive value than hay that was not rained on.
That loss in value is usually due to more leaf loss due to more handling
to dry the hay for baling. If it isn’t moldy and it tests okay, it
should be fine to feed because horse owners should be supplementing for
the vitamins that tend to be lost in rained-on or older hay, anyway.
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According to last week’s Livestock, Dairy and Poultry Outlook
report from USDA, milk prices are likely to recover from this year’s
low-water mark in 2010. But prices will still remain below the highs set
in 2007 and 2008.
USDA says a general economic recovery in 2010 and slightly lower milk
production, due mostly to a continued reduction in the size of the
national milking herd, should help boost prices for all dairy products.
The ag department expects the all-milk price to average $12.10-12.30/cwt
in 2009, rising to $14.65-15.65/cwt next year.
To see the entire report, go to www.ers.usda.gov/Publications.pdf.
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 Enter Forage Superbowl, Win Cash
Cash prizes totaling more than $17,000 will be awarded in the 2009
World’s Forage Analysis Superbowl at the World Dairy Expo in Madison,
WI, Sept. 29-Oct. 3. The winners of six hay, haylage and corn silage
categories, two new quality categories, plus the grand champion forage
producer and top first-time entrant all will receive cash. Sept. 3 is
the contest entry deadline. For rules and entry forms, go to www.foragesuperbowl.org. or
call 715-758-2178.
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“The season is lost. With milk prices so low and this feed
disaster on top of it, farmers are like deer in the headlights.”
– Maine Dairy Industry Association spokesperson Julie Marie Bickford,
commenting on this year’s growing-season weather and its effect on
crop production in the state. Source: Bangor Daily News.
“They're devastating. They were so bad here on the ranch that we
sprayed our meadows because the second-cutting of alfalfa wouldn't green
up because they were eating it as fast as it was trying to grow.”
– Wyoming rancher describing this year’s grasshopper infestation in
hayfields and pastures in northern Great Plains states. Source:
Associated Press.
“If every U.S. dairy were to adopt this approach, in less than one
year the amount of greenhouse-gas emissions we could reduce would be the
equivalent of taking more than half a million cars off the road.”
– Nancy Hirshberg, vice president of natural resources at organic
yogurt maker Stonyfield Farm, explaining a potential benefit of the
company's Greener Cow Project. The project encourages organic dairy
producers to feed cows a diet high in natural omega-3 sources (grasses,
alfalfa, flax) in order to reduce methane emissions. Source: Stonyfield
press release.
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Florida
After back-to-back drought years and severely reduced yields, hay
growers in Suwannee County are enjoying an excellent growing season,
reports Elana Toro, county livestock agent for University of
Florida/IFAS Extension. “It’s been an amazing year so far,” she
says. “We’ve had plenty of rain throughout the season. In May, which
is ordinarily a very dry month here, we had rain amounts that you only
see every 10 years or so. The challenge this year has been to work
around the rains to get hay off the ground.”
Around 85% of the hay in the county is Coastal bermudagrass. The
remaining acreage is devoted to bahiagrass, other bermudagrass varieties
and perennial peanut. “Because of the favorable weather, we’re on
track to have one of the largest hay crops in the last five or 10
years,” says Toro. “By the time the first frost arrives in late
fall, we’re expecting hay barns throughout the county to be full.”
With supplies up, most growers are expecting hay prices to fall off
slightly. “In the last couple of years, horse owners and livestock
producers were accepting anything they could find. This year, they’re
likely to be a little more picky about the kind of hay they want and
what they’re willing to pay for it. At the same time, though, this
could be offset by exceptional quality this year. Growers with a sound
marketing strategy in place will definitely have an advantage.”
To contact Toro, phone 386-362-2771 or email etoro@ufl.edu.
Wisconsin
The alfalfa haymaking season is starting to wind down in the southern
part of the state. “Overall, it’s been an excellent year for hay
production,” says Ted Bay, extension crops & farm management agent in
Grant and Lafayette counties. “We had adequate moisture throughout the
summer. And this year we didn’t have the dry period we typically get
in July and August.”
A hailstorm in late July presented a glitch for growers in some areas.
“People were either wrapping up second cutting or just getting going
on third cutting. Depending on where they were at (most of the hail
damage occurred along a nine-mile-wide swath in Grant and neighboring
counties), some did lose some tonnage to the hail. For the most part,
though, growers seem to be happy with quality and yields this year.”
Ample hay supplies were especially good news for dairy producers dealing
with slumping milk prices. “Dairy producers who put up their own hay
have been able to postpone purchasing hay because they have enough on
hand,” he says.
Bay has been reminding growers to plan on wrapping up dry-hay harvest by
Sept. 8. “Based on weather history in our area, that will give the
alfalfa about six weeks of growth before the first killing frost. That
will help replenish the root system and put plants in good condition for
overwintering.”
To contact Bay, phone 608-723-2125 or email ted.bay@ces.uwex.edu.
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 Use
our site to search for forage production tips! Plus, read what other
growers are doing to stay profitable.
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Hot, dry conditions are creating a favorable environment for fall
armyworms in Alabama. There have been reports of damage to forage
grasses – particularly brown top millet – in the southern and
central regions of the state.
According to Auburn University extension entomologist Kathy Flanders,
there may be as many as five or six generations of armyworms in Alabama
every summer. She says beneficial insects, which provide some natural
control, cannot keep pace with the rapid population expansion of fall
armyworms in hot, dry weather.
“Farmers may first notice brown patches in hayfields as a result of
armyworms eating all but a thin strip of each blade of grass,” says
Flanders. “Unconsumed foliage quickly turns brown. Insecticides are
only effective when the worms are quite small. If they are larger,
farmers may have to wait for the next generation to hatch in about two
or three weeks before attempting to control them.”
Don Ball, extension forage agronomist at Auburn, says armyworms are just
another stress on forage stands still recovering from the severe
droughts of the last several years. “Continued stress can thin forage
grass stands, restrict root growth and reduce productivity,” Ball
says. “Pastures and hayfields don’t develop problems overnight. The
solutions to those problems are not going to happen overnight,
either.”
Flanders says early detection is a key to controlling fall armyworm
outbreaks. “Young fall armyworms, under a half-inch in length, don't
eat much,” she says. “As the caterpillars get bigger, their food
demands increase dramatically and the bigger they are the harder they
are to control.”
In scouting for the pests, Flanders recommends walking into the pasture
from all four sides or walking in an X pattern across the field to
ensure you check a large-enough area. Stop at about 10 places in the
field and look closely for small caterpillars feeding on the grass, then
estimate the number per square foot. Fall armyworms can be found on
foliage at any time of day, but may be more easily detected in early
morning or late afternoon. In heavy infestations, look for caterpillar
droppings on the ground. Look in the leaf litter. Some of the worms may
be curled up there. Flanders says control is justified when the
population exceeds three 0.5-inch caterpillars/square foot.
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The University of California will hold an alfalfa and forage field
day at the Kearney Ag Center near Parlier on Wednesday, Sept. 2. Topics
will include alfalfa weed control, strategies for producing alfalfa
under deficit irrigation and possibilities for using alfalfa and
switchgrass as biofuels. There will also be a variety-trial tour.
For more information, contact Shannon Mueller at 559-456-7261 or scmueller@ucdavis.edu.
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Aug. 27 -- 2009 Arlington Agronomy And Soils Field Day,
University of Wisconsin Agricultural Research Station, Arlington.
Download the program at ipcm.wisc.edu/LinkClick.asp.
Sept. 2 -- Wisconsin Forage And Tillage Expo, D and D Hawkins
Farm, Chippewa Falls. Phone the Chippewa County UW-Extension office at
715-726-7950.
Sept. 3 -- Clemson University Fall Field Day, Edisto Research and
Education Center, Blackville, SC. Phone 803-284-3343.
Sept. 3-5 -- Stockman’s School For Profit, Rockin H Ranch,
Norwood, MO. Phone 417-259-2333 or email cdholmes@hughes.net.
Sept. 14-16 -- South Dakota Grazing School, Oacoma. Sponsored by
South Dakota Grass Coalition. Phone 605-688-6623 or 605-280-0127 or
visit www.sdgrass.org.
Sept. 17 -- Purdue Forage Day, Eric Miles Farm, Cambridge City,
IN. Visit www.agry.purdue.edu/forageday/.
Sept. 17-19 -- National Hay Association Convention, Cadillac
Jack’s Gaming Resort, Deadwood, SD. Contact Don Kieffer at
800-707-0014 or visit www.nationalhay.org.
Sept. 22-23 -- Georgia Grazing School, University of Georgia
Livestock Instruction Arena, Athens. Go to www.georgiaforages.com/.
Sept. 29-Oct. 3 -- World Dairy Expo, Alliant Energy Center,
Madison, WI. Visit www.worlddairyexpo.com.
Oct. 20-22 -- 2009 Southeast Hay Contest/Sunbelt Ag Expo,
Moultrie, GA. Contact University of Georgia extension forage specialist
Dennis Hancock at 706-542-1529 or dhancock@uga.edu.
Oct. 23-24 -- Virginia Tech University’s 2009 Mid-Atlantic
Grass-Finished Livestock Conference, Holiday Inn Conference Center,
Staunton, VA. Contact Margaret Kenny at 434-292-5331 or makenny@vt.edu.
Oct. 29 -- Kentucky Grazing Conference, University of Kentucky
Research and Education Center, Princeton. Visit www.uky.edu/Ag/Forage.
Nov. 4-6 -- DHI-Provo 55th-Annual Herd Management Training
Conference, Provo, UT. Details forthcoming at www.dhiprovo.com.
Nov. 10-11 -- BEEF Quality Summit, Stoney Creek Inn, St.
Joseph, MO, hosted by BEEF magazine. Visit beefconference.com for details to
come.
Nov. 18-19 -- McCook Farm And Ranch Expo, Red Willow County
Fairgrounds, McCook, NE. Visit mccookfarmandranchexpo.net
or call 866-685-0989.
Dec. 1-2 – Manitoba Grazing School, Victoria Inn, Brandon. Call
204-622-2006.
Dec. 2-4 -- Western Alfalfa And Forage Conference, Grand Sierra
Resort & Casino, Reno, NV. Go to alfalfa.ucdavis.edu/+symposium/2009/.
Dec. 13-16 -- Fourth National Conference On Grazing Lands, Reno,
NV. Presented by the Grazing Lands Conservation Initiative. Visit www.glci.org.
Feb. 16-17, 2010 -- Idaho Hay And Forage Conference, Best Western
Burley Inn, Burley. Contact Glenn Shewmaker at 208-736-3608 or gshew@uidaho.edu.
April 8-9, 2010 -- Hay Production School, Spence Field, Moultrie,
GA. Go to www.georgiaforages.com.
June 20-22, 2010 -- American Forage And Grassland Council Annual
Conference, University Plaza Hotel, Springfield, MO. Go to www.afgc.org.
Read Now
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