July 1, 2025• Iowa State University Extension is hosting a forage field day in Castana, Iowa, on July 31. Topics will include growing summer annuals for silage, baleage, and grazing; interseeding
Waiting days for a good-quality hay crop to dry and then have it rained on just as it was getting close to baling moisture can be demoralizing. It’s like losing a baseball game with two outs in the
Hopefully, no haymaker puts up a crop that they know will mold; however, many haymakers have pushed the moisture limit and hoped the mold fairy wouldn’t pay a visit. Sometimes, she just comes uninvi
The concept of preserving forages as baled silage has become more popular throughout many regions of North America, and particularly in areas where weather norms make baling dry hay difficult and frustrating
Baleage is no longer the novel haymaking practice that it used to be. Many farmers in the humid U.S. region have now jumped on the approach of turning the balers loose in the field before hay ha
Bermudagrass is a staple species in many Southeastern hayfields. Even so, unpredictable rainfall patterns and extended periods of wet weather can make harvesting this warm-season grass a daunting task
Being an early adopter is a double-edged sword. On the one hand, it’s possible to gain a competitive advantage; on the other hand, mistakes need to be made in real time as there is little experience
Somewhere between the territories of making dry hay and chopping haylage is the land of baleage. Its acreage is expanding at a rate that would gain compliments from the former Macedonian king
Managing bale moisture is an important consideration in properly conserving high-quality baled silages for subsequent cash sale or use in livestock feeding operations
Most farmers think their machinery salesman is just someone who wants to sell the next unit, but a good sales representative also wants to help you succeed with your operation
Baleage, the ensiling of wilted forage in round bales wrapped in UV-resistant, stretch wrap plastic, is a beneficial option for making high-quality stored forage in the humid regions of the U.S
Some things just make sense. That would be the case for baleage in an area that gets nearly 90 inches of rain annually. It’s in this situation that Norm and Blaise Bennett find themselves
Hay harvesting is around the corner and with that comes the question of what is the most cost effective and efficient storage option. Baleage involves additional costs, but producers across the countr
Botulism is a deadly disease with a direct relationship to certain types of compromised forage fermentation. Historically, it has not been a common occurrence, but with a higher volume of baleage bein
BALEAGE, or making silage in bales of wilted forage that are wrapped in plastic to create an anaerobic environment, allows for the more timely harvest of forage crops