jma 71)6
Dairy
ra Business
By
* Newton Bair
Choose Efficient Crop Systems
What is the most efficient to obtain the best possible mix of
cropping system for your farm? crops to provide the maximum
The goal on every farm should be amounts of protein and energy, at
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thi least east pei >.;ut ot iUN and
protein. For dairy farms, the usual
mix of crops is about 40 percent
corn, 40 percent alfalfa, and the
rest distributed between soybeans
and small grain. The percentages
may vary greatly from farm to
farm, and the reasons for the
distribution of crops are endless.
Some of the reasons for variation
in the distribution between com,
alfalfa and small grains are soil
type, slope, rock outcrops and
drainage. Of these, drainage is
probably the most critical, and
most often determines where we
grow alfalfa. Crops that tolerate
‘wet feet’ must be substituted.
Other soil hazards are usually
either ignored or tolerated in
planning crops in Pennsylvania.
A crop plan should be fine-tuned
around the most efficient way to
provide protein and energy to the
cows. A quick look at some figures
on yields and nutrient content of
various crops gives a picture of
what to expect from different
crops.
For total TON you can’t beat
corn silage. A yield of 20 tons of
silage per acre will furnish 8,222
pounds of TDN, and 555 pounds of
protein. Five tons of alfalfa per
acre, which is average for good
farms, can produce about 5,000
pounds of TDN and 1,100 pounds of
digestable protein. The only other
crop which comes close to alfalfa
in protein is the soybean crop, and
that has to yield much higher than
average to do it. For example, it
would take about 57 bushels of
soybeans per acre to match the
protein content of five tons of
alfalfa. This many beans will also
furnish about 2,930 pounds of TDN.
So some beans probably will be
grown and fed for a more con
centrated form of protein and
TDN, since cows can eat only so
much bulky forage like silage.
Looking at returns over costs per
acre, we are not interested so
much in the market price as we are
in the feeding value of a crop. If the
crop can be bought for less money
than the total cost of raising it, we
would be better off with purchased
feed. But since most of us already
have a considerable investment in
land and machinery, we keep on
using it to produce our feed, even if
it could be bought cheaper. It takes
a lot of ciphering and deciphering
Crop
Com silage
HM ear com
Alfalfa hay
Soybeans
• Zinc Methionine
• Niacin
• CDL
• Choline
• Kelp
So There Is NO FEAR OF DRUG RESIDUES!
THE ABOVE NUTRIENTS:
• Increase Milk Production • Increase Appetite
• Increase Conception Rate • Increase Food Efficiency
• Decrease Somatic Cell • Make Your AVERAGE
Counts (SCC) COW A TOP COW
• Decrease Foot-Rot Problem
Two ounces of DAIRY POWER daily add
enough power to year average cow. Ask fey V
name - UAS DAIRY POWER. Do not settle \ \
for substitutes!
Lancaster Farming, Saturday, October 18,1986-A37
to figure that one out! When we
figure the cost of borrowing
money to buy land and machines,
it may be worth the effort.
Aside from the bare bones
nutritional content, the only way
we have to compare returns from
one crop against another, is by
using a fair market price. So if we
want to look at the margin of profit
over cost of a crop, we can take the
price per unit times yield and
subtract the costs of production.
This only applies when the crop
is sold, however. If it is fed, market
price make little difference. The
important thing then is what it
actually costs to raise the crop. Or
more important than that is what it
costs per unit of protein of TDN,
when comparing crops.
The computer figures fast and
easy. We compared 10 acres each
of corn silage, shelled com, high
moisture ear com, alfalfa, and
soybeans (57 bushels per acre.)
It is immediately apparent that
the lowest cost TON per ton is
obtained from com silage. The
lowest cost per ton of crude protein
is from alfalfa. Four ton of good
alfalfa per acre even beats HM ear
com in cost per ton of TON.
This little exercise may not
change your cropping program
immediately, but it does point out a
valid trend in future planning, if
we are to maintain efficiency in
our cropping system.
Cost Per Ton of TDN and CP
Yield/acre
20 ton
120 bu.
4 ton
SObu.
IT CONTAINS:
• DDS - Lactobacillus acidophilus
• Amylase, protease and cellulase
enzymes
• Vitamin E • B Vitamins
• Vitamin A and D
Cost/Ton
TDN CP
28.81 194.22
51.45 457.40
34.00 108.23
88.00 173.00