Page 18—Foraging Around. Lancaster Farming, Saturday, February 7, IMS
Conference Brings Together Farmers, Researchers, Industry
(Continued from Pago 10)
“Once silage producers have a firm
handle on the factors that they control,
it is then and only then that silage addi
tives should be considered,” said Lutz.
“It is at this point that good silage can
be made better.”
Currently four classes of additives
are available: enzymes, non-protein
nitrogen, acids, and bacterial
inoculants.
“Bacterial inoculants ■account for
approximately 70 percent of the silage
additive business,” said Lutz.
Although additives are largely unre
gulated in the United States, in Canada
proof of efficacy must be shown before
the products can be marketed to Cana
dian farmers.
Positive effects from using the addi
tives have been shown in controlled
university and industry studies. Some
effects include lower pH, greater lactic
acid content, lower contents of acetic
and butyric acid, greater dry matter
recovery, improved digestibility, and
Maximizing Alfalfa
Yields A Look Back
(Continued from Page 14)
The table included here summarizes
production costs and net returns at
various yield levels for the years
1981-1984 for those participating in
the program.
Actual costs under today’s eco
nomic conditions may differ. But it’s a
good bet that the relationships of
yield, production costs (per acre and
per ton), as well as net return per acre
that we saw in the early 'Bos still apply
today.
Finally in the late ’7os, Dr. Robert
Wagner, then president of the Potash
and Phosphate Institute, said, “Mov
ing up to maximum economic yields
in the best way and about the only
way fanners can control their profit
55 - The “Model 55“ bale rack is the foundation on
which Steffen Systems Incorporated has built its
reputation of quality This model is available in
many frame-size options, as well as with attach
ments to fit bucket loaders forklifts and skidsteer
loaders, to accomodate nearly any bale size or
mounting application
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PIP ,
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950- The Bale “Accumulator*" are designed to
conveniently and easily arrange up to ten 2-tie or
eight 3-tie bales into a uniform package The fully
automatic electric over hydraulic controls operate
the accumulator without the need of an operator
With its quick and smooth functions the bale accu
mulator can accept up to five bales per minute
@8 as*
iproved bunklife when the ensiled
material is exposed to air.
When deciding to use an additive,
Lutz suggests farmers ask several
questions first, such as what animal
performance data exists in addition to
simple fermentation data?
“Improvement of animal perfor
mance is the most important factor
affecting economic return on invest
ment,” said Lutz.
Also of interest is if the products
have registered claims in Canada and if
so, what they are, and if the science of
silage making is basic to the business
of the marketing firm.
Hand in hand with producing qual
ity forages is being able to make them
stretch to feed all the animals for an
extended period of time. With this in
mind. Dr. lisa Holden, of Penn State
University, spoke about feed
budgeting.
“What feed budgeting is is looking
«t the shortages and the surpluses in the
maigains today. Research has given us
good components or parts high
yielding varieties, improved fertilizer
practices, new pest control method*',
better tillage and residue management
practices, and many others.
“We can expect research to turn out
still better individual components. But
greater strides toward high yield will
likely come through fitting these parts
into combinations that produce posi
tive interaction.”
During an eight-year period, neatly
400 Pennsylvania alfalfa growers co
operated in a program to show us here
they put these parts together to obtain
maximum yields.
And I have a hunch that Dr. Wag
ner’s observations are still true today.
200 - The “Model 200“ self-propelled yard loader
is a unique machine designed to move many bale
sizes and package configurations at high speed Its
stacking height of 20 feet and short wheelbase
allow the “Model 200" to maneuver in and out of
tight areas while making optimum use of the exist
ing storage space
FOR MORE INFORMATION CALL OR WRITE:
DAVID O. FINK
Germansville, PA 18053
610-767-1408
Fax 610-767-1312
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Steffen Systems, Inc.
8045 Stata Street, Salem, OR 97301
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65 - The “Model 65“ bale rack is specifically de
signed to match the needs of New Holland bale
wagon users, such as models 1003 1037 & 1069
With six hook bars this unit easily handles any
three-bale-wide package This model is also avail
able with several frame-size options and mounts to
suit your special needs
v jf
51-32- The “Model 51-32” bale rack is a perfect
match for most compressed bale loading or un
loading operations With a frame size of 86* x 86"
and powered vertical tilt The unit adapts nicely to
6000 to 7000 lb lift trucks Comes standard with 32
teeth. 2 hook cylinders The “Model 51 -32" is excel
lent for half cut bales
forage growth so you can optimize the
whole system,” she said.
“Why should you budget pasture?”
she asks.
According to Holden, most grazing
farms in the Northeast experience both
excesses and shortages of pasture in
the same growing season. The shor
tages are handled by supplementing
animals with stored feed and the surp
luses by harvesting the excess.
By budgeting the forage, there is a
more timely response to changes in
pasture quality.
“Without a feed plan, often the deci
sion to harvest paddocks or provide
supplemental forage comes too late
after the forage quality or animal pro
duction has declined. The manage
ment decision is made as a reaction to
declining performance rather than as a
preventative measure to ensure opti
mal performance and profit,” said
Holden.
Fanners can start budgeting their
forage just like they were budgeting
their finances.
“You need to estimate your
expenses for a given period of time.
The expenses in this case are the num
ber of animals in each production
group being grazed,” she explained.
Next the income, or amount of pas
ture cover plus the amount of growth
expected must be recorded.
Supplemental feed that is included
in the feeding program while the ani
mals are grazed must also be recorded.
Estimates are available for the
amount of growth that can be expected
throughout the year and animal
requirements and expected intakes can
be obtained from your nutritionist.
Rough estimates of pasture value
can be made using a yardstick: one
inch equals 300 pounds of dry matter
per acre.
“Feed budgeting with pasture can
help you to tighten your management
of both animals and pastures. Better
decisions about moving animals and
incorporating pasture into your overall
feeding program are likely to improve
income over feed costs,” said Holden.
Also mi the day’s agenda were Dr.
Marvin Hall of Penn State University,
who related experiences from his
recent trip to New Zealand and their
grazing program; Kathy Soder, docto
rate candidate, Penn State Dairy and
Animal Sciences, who gave some key
factors to look at when reading forage
sample reports; and Dr. John Comer
ford of Penn State, who compared pas
ture types to extend the grazing season.
Although turnout to the conference
was lower than last year, those who
attended thought this was a day well
spent.
John Beaty of Binghamton, N.Y.
agreed that the one-day seminar was a
positive experience. “I wanted to keep
up on the latest research regarding for
age and how that fits into the feeding
resources that we have. We always try
to maximize our resources.”
America's Alfalfa
Keeps Growing
with
Aleagr/ot
The Amazing
Hay-or-Graze
Alfalfa
The original dual-purpose
alfalfa Alfagraze delivers haying
and grazing yields like the best
hay-type varieties Alfagraze
often saves dairymen up to
$3/cwt in milk production costs,
cattlemen can get 1 5 to 2 75 lb
gain per day on pasture
Alfagraze offers high forage
quality and value, which makes
it great for pasture improvement
strong treading and
trampling tolerance, as well
F all dormancy rating: 2
AMERICAS
ant
Pi. ROHRER & BRO, INC.
Smoketown, PA
Hours: Mon.-Frl. • AM to 5 PM
Saturday t AM to 12 Noon; Closed Sunday
PH. 717-299-2571