Making one big bulky cut, may appear to get you more silage in the yard, however with delayed/late first cut silage, both quality and quantity are compromised. A delayed heavy first-cut reduces annual yield/ha and can create problems when it comes to salvaging second/third-cut crops later in the year. Alongside this, grass growth rates are typically at their highest over the next few weeks, so delaying first cut means that farmers are not taking full advantage of rapid regrowth.

A general rule of thumb is to target a 50:50 split in quantity in both first and second cut (E.g., 20 tonnes per acre to be achieved in total. Ideally, this is a 10-tonne high quality crop in both cuts. Where first-cut is let go to a 13-tonne crop, the ideal quantity of harvest for second-cut crops may only be approximately 7 tonne).

Farms that routinely take earlier first cuts have higher and better-quality annual silage yields. Not only this, but in years such as 2012/13 or 2018 when farmers faced fodder shortages across the country, having higher quality silage was far more valuable. When high-quality silage is available in the yard, options of stretching supply are endless (e.g., dilution with straw, using cheap alternative straights, restricted intakes where headspace is sufficient). However, from a nutritional point of view, the option with poor quality silage is simple, ad-lib access and more meal.

Completing a fodder budget?

A good starting point is how much silage is leftover this spring. Check the current silage stock on your farm. From there, estimate how long you typically feed for in the winter months and always allow for a 3–4-week safety reserve. Finally, complete an assessment of stock numbers that will be carried over the winter months.

Silage requirements based on animal type: 

Measuring pits on farm

Length x breadth x average height in metres, divided by 1.35 = tonnes of grass silage

Or

Length x breadth x average height in feet, divided by 45 = tonnes of grass silage

Can we get more silage in the pit?

Agritech’s GrasZyme Sugarboost is proven to retain a higher proportion of silage in the pit post-harvesting. Losses on average will be reduced by 6.1%, this would equate to 6.1 tonnes of extra silage in every 100 tonnes ensiled. For example 1,000 tonne silage pit, + 61 tonne more available silage. With current silage costs, this would equate to a return on investment of 2:1, before taking animal performance benefits into account from treated silage.

More Information: 

For more information on assessing current silage stocks, and on GrasZyme Sugarboost, contact your local Agritech Sales Advisor.

With increasing costs involved in silage making this year, coupled with higher feed prices, having high quality silage is a valuable asset on farm. However, do we really understand the science behind turning high quality grass into high quality silage? 

Fermentation

The aim of preservation is to retain silage quality as close as possible to the grass being harvested and avoiding unnecessary ensiling losses. Silage fermentation is the key process in the preservation of silage, which ultimately turns fresh harvested grass into grass silage. The success of this process hinges around several factors, such as decisions made when cutting, harvesting, ensiling, whether an additive is used and/or how the grass was managed before cutting.

During the process of fermentation sugar is converted into acid by bacteria (ideally lactic acid as this encourages a rapid pH drop, thus pickling the silage and avoiding nutrient/energy losses). The main issue on farm is that the process of fermentation in many clamps can be quite poor – resulting in much more of the silage dry matter and nutrient content being lost.

Where poorer fermentation occurs, bad bacteria can persist and result in the conversion of lactic acid (which we need) into butyric acid – resulting in unpalatable silage and up to a 17% loss of the original sugar content in the silage.

GrasZyme Sugarboost Silage Additive

Our high qulaity silage additive, GrasZyme Sugarboost works efficiently at dropping pH with the increased production of lactic acid, assisting a faster more efficient overall fermentation process. This rapid fermentation results in reduced energy loss and protein breakdown.

Research conducted on treated and untreated silage using our GrasZyme SugarBoost has highlighted that the desired target pH level for correct preservation of silage was reached (pH level of 4) within 48 hours, relative to untreated silage reaching this pH target after 21 days. This faster fermentation process resulted in higher nutrient retention and less energy losses within the silage clamp.

Advanced technologies in GrasZyme SugarBoost include the presence of a fructan based bacteria that can produce a fructanase enzyme if sugar levels are low. This releases additional sugars from fructans (the natural sugars found in grasses), which are unavailable in conventional silage additives. The addition of this technology has resulted in treated silage having double the available sugar for fermentation to occur.

Change in pH over time in silage treated with and without GrasZyme Sugarboost

Grass Protein

Grass protein is made up of long chains of bound amino acids which is called true protein. During the fermentation process the chains of amino acids are broken down reducing its benefits, so it no longer acts as a true protein. Furthermore, the amino acids can then be broken down to ammonia, which reduces intake and increases the pH. The role of GrasZyme SugarBoost is to speed up the fermentation process to ensure 20% less true protein is broken down, making it more available to the animal.

Need help or advice?

For a tailored plan on improving forage quality on your farm, contact your local Sales Advisor.

In the current climate of rising farm input costs, the focus must be turned towards increasing efficiencies inside the farm gate – which includes improving the quality of our core home-grown feed, grass silage. Silage quality and profitability of the farming enterprise have long been assessed side by side, with the current climate emphasising this even more for the upcoming silage making season.

Below we outline our 4 key concepts for best practise silage making this season:

1. Cutting date

At one point, every farm will have 80% DMD (dry matter digestibility) grass available to them in the field, however, the decision is often made too late regarding the cutting date,
resulting in poor quality silage. Cutting grass younger improves digestibility and protein content, resulting in a reduced requirement for high-cost supplementation.

When discussing earlier cutting dates, silage quantity is often raised as an issue. However, it’s important to remember cutting earlier allows for quicker and earlier regrowth’s, leading to increased annual yield/ha. In some circumstances (e.g., silage only land blocks), earlier cutting will also facilitate a third cut in late August, further boosting total annual silage production.

Once seed heads appear, DMD will be around 70% at most, and will drop by 1% DMD every 2-3 days thereafter. The advice to improve average quality is to cut from mid-May. Some flexibility in harvest date (4-5 days) is usually necessary to ensure favourable cutting conditions.

2. Adapting to changes in weather

Weather is the main variable on Irish farms when it comes to silage making. Unexpected changes in weather can and will delay harvesting, however when the window of opportunity arises, seize the ‘first-cut option’. Unfortunately, last year, where the decision was made to wait – the weather broke, and many farms were forced to delay harvesting for two weeks.

Optimum mowing time is late afternoon/evening when sugars are highest (following several hours of sunshine). Sugar is the fuel for fast and efficient fermentation.

3. Effective wilting

Once cut, grass should be tethered out immediately and allowed, in ideal conditions, no more than 24 hours in the field to achieve an effective wilt. We are aiming for a dry matter content of approximately 25%. Where wilting continues for long periods, grass quality is starting to deteriorate, and significant energy losses are seen.

Over the last number of years, we have become over-reliant on long periods of wilting, and in many cases over-wilting, leading to dry silage and unstable pit-faces. Dry silage is prone to secondary fermentation, heating and energy losses.

4. Using a silage additive

With the value that is now placed on home-grown forage, achieving a good fermentation to preserve it is more critical than ever. The use of an additive has long been proven to improve fermentation, leading to less waste. Aside from less dry matter losses, the main aim of using an additive is to retain as much nutritional value as possible from the field to the pit. Silage treated with an additive has been proven to achieve a better feed-out, with increased dry matter intakes, added energy content and increased digestibility, resulting in improved animal performance.

Our GrasZyme SugarBoost is proven to:

• Increase ADG by 110 g/head/day in beef situations
• Increase milk production from forage by 1 litre/cow/day
• Increase DM intakes by 0.4 kg/head/day
• Increase milk protein percentages by 0.09%
• Reduce fermentation losses by 6.1% (equates to 30t in
a 500t pit)

Need help or advice?

For a tailored plan on improving forage quality on your farm, contact your local Sales Advisor.

Silage fields that have not been grazed or that were closed up before the end of March are already at or maybe even slightly beyond optimum quality. The question is ‘do I cut or do I wait?’

To answer the ‘cut or wait’ question, the key factors of quality silage must be taken into consideration. The first and most important factor is cutting date. The second one is the weather conditions. Thirdly, the application of a quality silage additive, and finally, having ticked off all of the above boxes, the silage clamp must be covered and sealed properly.

According to Agritech’s Sales Director, John Kenny, “deferring the cutting date too far may result in additional and unnecessary expense for farmers.”

“Farmers currently have excellent quality material for harvesting and it is a huge pity to let the current fine spell of weather pass without harvesting silage and possibly end up making lower DMD silage in poorer conditions later in the month.    

“I am also concerned that when this spell of dry weather passes, there will be a surge of growth that will also draw more nitrogen up into the plant. This material when harvested, will bring its own issues with regards to fermentation and the making of a palatable feed for livestock”, says John.

With lengthy dry cow periods no longer in existence, quality silage is an essential requirement for the spring calving cow in late lactation and again when freshly calved, as it will help support early lactation body condition, milk yield and to allow the cow to return to cyclicity as quickly as possible.  

For beef cattle, a daily live-weight gain of 0.6 kg is considered the optimum for winter performance where the animals are returning to grass in the spring. Quality silage will again play a key role in achieving this growth level.

Ensiling Process – Key to quality

 “The application of a proven silage additive at ensiling is a very important part of securing as much of the quality in the winter forage as possible. It speeds up the preservation and retains more of the feed value within the pit, in addition to retaining more actual silage in the pit”, says John.

Agritech’s GrasZyme Sugarboost Forage Additive has long proven itself as an effective silage preservation aid. The unique technology used in the additive has been scientifically proven to reduce unnecessary plant breakdown and ensure reliability even in difficult low-sugar conditions.

GrasZyme Sugarboost is independently proven to deliver on key silage additive criteria, namely improved animal performance and reduced dry matter losses.

A total of 19 independent trials have been shown to deliver:

• + 1 litre of milk per cow per day and .09% milk protein increase
• + 110g daily live-weight gain in beef animals
• 6.1% reduction in dry matter losses

The reduction in dry matter losses alone will cover the cost of purchasing the silage additive, with the extra animal performance coming for free.

John concludes, “With farm margins ever reducing, it is no longer economical to use purchased concentrates to offset poorer quality silage. Farmers must now take the opportunity to make the most efficient use possible of homegrown forage and especially grazed grass and grass silage.”

Get in touch

All Agritech sales representatives and distributors are trained to assist farmers in getting the most from their silage. Assistance is available with choosing the best grass mixture, right up to the point of harvest and the use of a quality silage additive.

To find out more about, GrasZyme Sugarboost, click here

To find your local Agritech sales representative/distributor, click here