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Forage Expo lets producers see equipment in operation Tuesday, June 19, 2007
Agri News staff writer
SPRING VALLEY, Minn. -- Forage took center stage at last week's Forage Expo.
Dan and Cara Miller have been hosting the annual event on their farm since 1995.
Forage expos are useful events because farmers really like to see demonstrations of the latest equipment, said Dennis Johnson, a University of Minnesota professor in dairy production systems based at West Central Research and Outreach Center in Morris. Johnson spoke at the Southeast Minnesota Forage Council and Midwest Forage Association Expo.
"You have a greater chance to use your own judgment in how these pieces of equipment work," Johnson said. "You see people look at it (and can see) 'but how would this work on my farm?' (running through their minds)."
Brynsaas Sales and Service of Decorah, Iowa, brought a Patz 620 cubic foot vertical total mixed ration mixer to the expo.
The vertical TMR chomped a round bale while attendees watched. The vertical TMR is an improvement over the horizontal TMR because it doesn't have a roller chain or a big sprocket, said Ryan Brynsaas. It is simpler than the horizontal model and will handle any dry hay.
Jay-Lor displayed their 4405 cubic foot vertical mixer next. The mixer can prepare rations with a variety of feedstocks consistently and quickly, said Chuck Fettkether, Jay-Lor territory manager. It's important to put the dry hay in the TMR first, he said.
A John Deere 568 round baler cruised up and down the field, making perfect bales every time. The model is new this spring and lists for about $40,000, Dan Miller said.
A 16-wheel H&S rake with plastic centers in the rake wheels prepared the windrows, raking two into one. The rake sells for about $12,000 new, Miller said. It can take three-, 13-foot rows into one and folds up nice for transport.
An H&S bale wrapper that can wrap dry to high-moisture hay was displayed on another side of the field. Danny Swenson of LeRoy placed round bales on the machine and Miller used the remote to wrap the bales in plastic.
Dealing with the plastic is one disadvantage of wrapping, Johnson said. Another is an inability to market the bale.
There are several advantages, he said. If adequately wrapped, the bale is well protected. Farmers using a wrapper are also able to bale at a higher moisture -- between 40 percent and 60 percent, Johnson said. That higher moisture spurs fermentation, which produces acid. If well sealed, the acid will preserve the forage.
The ag bag requires less investment than a chopper and chopper wagons. Instead, a farmer can round bale wet hay, wrap it in plastic and feed it much like silage as part of a ration. The wrapper is also well adapted to grasses, Johnson said.
Wrappers are a relatively new innovation, but he predicts more people will begin using them. Dairy producers have adopted them mostly, but Johnson said beef producers can benefit as well because of less forage loss.
If a bale isn't wrapped and it is exposed to the elements for any length of time, losses can be quite large, he said.
It's important to wrap the bale immediately after baling to preserve quality.
"You really don't want to wait until the next day, definitely not two days," Johnson said.
Another innovation in hay making is using wider swaths to speed drying and sending a rake through the field just before harvest to make bigger windrows and reduce the number of passes the baler or chopper has to make across the field. |
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