XtraBlatt Issue 02-2017

ST BE RIGHT
weather, there were a few things that could have been
done to improve forage quality where more knowledge
and sensibility on the part of some of those involved had
been brought to play.”
Because of the forage maize harvest results in 2016
and 2017 it was plain how difficult it is to produce optimum
silage, says the vet, who himself runs a farm.
“At least in our region, the dry matter content in both
these years differed greatly. Hot weather in 2016 led to
the maize ripening too quickly. And in 2017, the spring
drought coupled to our heavy, loamy soil meant emergence
was late. Accordingly, ripening was very uneven
with resultant too-low dry matter. Sometimes water
was running out of the silo during consolidation. From
the point of view of the cow, however, optimum silage
quality must remain in the foreground. Despite the
QUALITY BEFORE SPEED
This advice he writes not only in the guest book of the
harvesting contractor, but also in that of the farmer. For
grass silage, good feed quality already begins in the care
of the grass sole and entails at the least regular reseeding.
And with forage maize, variety selection means
the foundations for good silage can be laid right at drilling
so that all areas do not need to be cut at the same
time within a very short window. Practical here could be
contractor and farmer planning together. The same also
applies, from this vet’s sight, for timely and regular sampling
of dry mater content before the harvest. “Here, the
contractor can have a very positive effect, when he makes
an effort and when the farmer accepts the advice. Incidentally,
this applies not only to maize but also at least
as intensively to grass silage. Mostly, too much is mowed
at one time and driven in to the clamp too late. The grass
then has a dry matter of 40 to 45%, and not 35% as it
should be. With an exactly planned logistic operation,
this can be avoided.”
He also sees as unacceptable the efforts to harvest
as much material as possible from each area. The crop is
mowed too low, and turning grass can be akin to grubbing,
with the very last leaf scratched together during
tedding. “The result is an ash content way over the sensible
margin, i.e. substantially above 10% of dry matter.
This means the silage has already lost out as far as a cow
is concerned, before it has even landed in the clamp. And
the result has to be sorted out later by we vets. Surely
the better way is to avoid illness from the beginning.”
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