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- When it comes to making
bales there's some management
considerations we need
to take into account.
We're gonna talk with Tim Schnakenberg
Regional Agronomy Specialist with the
University of Missouri.
Tim, what are some of the
things we need to take into
account, specially like moisture?
- [Tim] Well we run
and shoot for somewhere
between 45% and 60% moisture.
It really varies a lot
from the type of forage
that you have, because
really it can dry out
so quick and when that happens then you're
to gonna get the lactic acid formation
that you really need to
make that silage to occur.
- So once I bale my wet bale
how long should I wait to wrap it?
- Well we wanna get on
it as soon as possible.
I mean we don't any infusion
of oxygen in that bale
and so the earlier the
better, but for sure
within five to eight hours after baling
we want to get it wrapped.
- Any recommendations as
far as number of wraps
of plastic I should put on it?
- Well there's a lot opinions on this
but ideally if you can get it between
six and eight wraps you're
gonna be in pretty good shape.
And a lot of times it depends upon
the term that you're gonna be storing it.
If you're gonna be
storing it for two years
you'd better put the high wrap on.
The number of wraps can
influence the amount
of vole damage and rodent
damage that you might have.
There's been some university studies
that have shown that consumption by cattle
will decrease significantly by the lower
number of wraps on a wrapped bale.
So it's important to not
skimp on this at all.
- Thanks for the information Tim.
With a Makin' Hay
Minute, I'm Bryan Setzer.
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Hope you enjoyed this
episode of Makin' Hay Minute.
Please check out some
of these other videos
or find us as makinhay.com.
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