The entry deadline for the 2010 Oregon Hay King Contest is Nov. 3 and the competition will take place Nov. 13 at Pro-Line Fabrication in Prineville.
Sponsored by the Oregon Hay and Forage Association in cooperation with Oregon State University (OSU), the annual contest has seven classes: dairy alfalfa, retail alfalfa, grass, grass-legume mix, cereal, cereal-legume (pea or vetch) mix and timothy. Growers are asked to submit core samples by the entry deadline, then bring a bale from each sampled stack to Prineville on Nov. 13.
Bales will be judged and awarded points based on quality testing (RFQ score) and sensory evaluation. This year’s judges are Steve Fransen, Washington State University Extension forage specialist, and Mylen Bohle, OSU central Oregon area Extension agronomist. The NIRS quality testing will be done at the Klamath Basin Research and Extension Center and will include estimates of crude protein, ADF, NDF, TDN, RFV and RFQ.
Core samples, along with a completed entry form and $25/entry fee, should be delivered to a local collector or shipped directly to the testing lab. For the lab’s mailing address, local collectors’ phone numbers, contest rules and other information, click here.