Tedding research

Sid

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
South Molton
In the dairying magazine I was reading about the research done on tedding

Grass cut and left took 20hrs to get to 30% DM
Grass cut and ted right behind the mower only took 5 hrs to get to 30%DM

Therefore conserving more of the nutrients.
 

Agrivator

Member
All depends on the weather though ,but after 24 hours whatever you do you are losing feed value

Of course it does, but it doesn't lose as much feed value as leaving it until its standing hay.

And Davis Leaver - Dairy Research Inst., Wye College, SAC, and Cirencester? Principal, reckons that silage made from late Autumn sappy wet grass, has a higher feed value than the original grass. But only if its not over-rolled in the pit.
 

nails

Member
Location
East Dorset
Where i used to work on a dairy they cut with mower conditioner and picked up next day in good sunny weather. Two foragers running and a whole gang of assorted trailers. They then gave the job to a contractor who cut tedded , raked, and picked up and their silage was never as good as the previous system .
I do all my round bales behind a Mo Co, never ted it.
 

Derrick Hughes

Member
Location
Ceredigion
My bullocks have been on round bale silage this winter...but i can honestly say they looked a lot better last year when fed on Hay from the same pasture...how does drying it lose feed value?
As soon as grass is cut, proteins start breaking down while sugars are converted to carbon dioxide and water by respiration. This decreases the proportion of digestible material going into the clamp.”
target dry matter content should be about 30%, but even if conditions are not ideal, there is little to be gained by leaving cut grass in the field for longer.
 

Bury the Trash

Member
Mixed Farmer
My bullocks have been on round bale silage this winter...but i can honestly say they looked a lot better last year when fed on Hay from the same pasture...how does drying it lose feed value?
Beyond Respiration losses ( which silage suffers from as well as in the point the op makes ) it will be leaf loss, as when the leaves dry they get more and more brittle and broken and consequently get left behind in the field when tedding raking and baling , which is such a loss of the best bits especially with younger grass and clover leaves.
 

Sid

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
South Molton
Where i used to work on a dairy they cut with mower conditioner and picked up next day in good sunny weather. Two foragers running and a whole gang of assorted trailers. They then gave the job to a contractor who cut tedded , raked, and picked up and their silage was never as good as the previous system .
I do all my round bales behind a Mo Co, never ted it.
In what way not so good?

Only way you can really compare is in side by side trials not different years tbh
 

Chae1

Member
Location
Aberdeenshire
Beyond Respiration losses ( which silage suffers from as well as in the point the op makes ) it will be leaf loss, as when the leaves dry they get more and more brittle and broken and consequently get left behind in the field when tedding raking and baling , which is such a loss of the best bits especially with younger grass and clover leaves.
Not if you use a fancy belt swather!

Wonder if anyone has analysed difference in silage gathered with a belt type swather and a rake.
 

SFI - What % were you taking out of production?

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Red Tractor drops launch of green farming scheme amid anger from farmers

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As reported in Independent


quote: “Red Tractor has confirmed it is dropping plans to launch its green farming assurance standard in April“

read the TFF thread here: https://thefarmingforum.co.uk/index.php?threads/gfc-was-to-go-ahead-now-not-going-ahead.405234/
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