What happened to trailed forage harvesters?
all the forage harvesters that followed, actually did follow, because they were all trailed back in the day. Fast forward a few decades and everything is self propelled, so why the change?
What is the best way to fill a silage clamp?
The Irish love to build a steep clamp with a ramp that resembles the north face of the Igor, whilst the Germans build a clamp that has more in common the the flat lands of the neighbouring Netherlands…. Steep or shallow, high or low, what is the best way to fill a silage clamp?
Cost of bale silage vs clamp silage
Spending a fortune on a new silage clamp has got to have a payback; it has got to make financial sense and the reduction in harvest costs might be one of the most important areas to study. That means it’s vital to calculate the costs of making silage in bales against the cost of making silage in a clamp.
Push-off buckrake or silage fork flick?
When it comes to levelling silage on the clamp are you a fork flicker or a push over?…. But here is the thing - in my opinion there is no such thing as the perfect flick!
Why is Silage Effluent so pollutive?
there are a whole load of rules and regulations concerning how you deal with the stinky stuff. So exactly what is it about silage effluent that makes all those strict rules so necessary?
Why wet silage is bad silage
Our silage results are good apart from the low dry matter and low sugars, but why are the sugars so low? ….because there are three silage values that are tightly linked together, low dry matter, pH and available sugars.
Bale silage vs Clamp silage
Bite sized silage bales are first class for convenience but, when it comes to silage quality, bales are often considered as second class to clamp silage but is that fair?
Automated silage clamp sheeting - fantasy or future?
a machine that sheets the whole silage clamp, weighs the covers down and can also do the whole thing in reverse to open up for feeding
The temperature of silage and how hot is too hot?
it’s common knowledge that hot silage is not great silage, but silage does heat up during fermentation so when does this heat become a problem?
Choosing the right tedder to make good silage
Getting the right size tedder is important, too big is a waste of money (and a liability in the wrong hands) whilst too small will give you all sorts of headaches.
Silage or haylage?
Silage is wet at 20-45% DM, haylage drier perhaps 50-75% DM and hay has to be dry usually at least 88% dry matter, so does that put haylage in the Goldilocks zone, the best of both worlds?
Is bagged silage better silage?
maybe silage in bags (or should that be silage sausages) offers the best of both worlds, the flexibility of bales without the building cost of clamps?
Steering silage trailers into the future
Steering the axles of a silage trailer can make the whole rig much more nimble and manoeuvrable in a tight spot… But manoeuvrability is only part of the story, steering trailer axles can also drastically reduce tyre wear - by up to 60% - and damage to grass sward in the field too.
How to avoid mud on the road in a wet silage harvest
Mud on tyres inevitably leads to mud on road and as forage harvester output increases the amount of soil carting tractors and silage trailers can deposit on the highway increases too. Bigger foot prints spread mud on more tarmac and loads come thick and fast as does the brown stuff.
Are big mowers better mowers?
New trailed combination mowers from SIP and Kuhn are being introduced offering 13m to 15m of cutting capacity with each pass; as long as you can muster enough horsepower to drive them. But what are your chances of seeing one cutting your or your neighbours grass?
Why and how to make pea silage
Peas can be a great fit into a crop rotation. They are spring sown, fast growing, a break crop to cereals that require low inputs and they also fix nitrogen. On top of all that - they are a great forage protein so what’s not to like? Well although they can make great tasty silage, there are some things you need to be careful of.
Is it worth tedding out grass silage?
Most of us are well aware of the (theoretical) benefits of tedding out grass, but its a faff and its expensive so many just don’t bother….. Well in an attempt to upset as few as possible, I’m going to try and steer a middle course and explore why you might want to change your view on tedding grass for silage.
Silage chop length for AD plants
chop length influences the stability of the silage once its open to the elements, or how chop length effects aerobic stability. This is important to all producers of silage but the chop length of silage for an aerobic digester is super important for more than the usual reasons.
How to identify the best land to produce silage
Back in the day, the herd at grass was a constant barometer of the sward quality and quantity….. But for those housing cows 365 or feeding bacteria in an AD tank, how do you know which ground is pulling its weight and which fields need some TLC?