Best Hay Preservative ....(apart from sun )

[zetor-man]

What do people use now

I have a balers choice kit on a 80*90 new Holland

Have used eco bale DA on haylage very successfully

Balers choice is £650 for 200 litres

I'm looking for other alternatives

 

[Bald Rick]

Salt.

Back in the day (1982) my old boss liked to make "green" hay bales - all 18,000 of them, every one hand balled - then sprinkle salt on to each layer. After the bay was filled, used a large fan to blow air through the stack. Looked like the barn was on fire but dang, the hay at the end was like tobacco and smelt good enough to eat.

 

[Derrick Hughes]

Salt.

Back in the day (1982) my old boss liked to make "green" hay bales - all 18,000 of them, every one hand balled - then sprinkle salt on to each layer. After the bay was filled, used a large fan to blow air through the stack. Looked like the barn was on fire but dang, the hay at the end was like tobacco and smelt good enough to eat.

Horse women don't smoke tabacco [emoji1787]
And if hay don't smell like No 5 they walk away , the smell of chemical additive don't Rock their boat either [emoji1787]

 

[7610 super q]

^^^^^ Mugs game.

 

[mobileweld]

My mrs has a few horses and the guy she gets hay from has started wrapping hay. Not haylage this is wrapped hay.

 

[The Seeker]

Put anything in a plastic bag and it sells

 

[Dave645]

My mrs has a few horses and the guy she gets hay from has started wrapping hay. Not haylage this is wrapped hay.

It’s because it cuts the dust, dust = mould from air moisture, even the best hay can go dusty exposed to damp air over time, in comes. . . rapped hay. . .
I am not sure I would want to do it while it can solve one problem and supply dust free hay if it was made well in the first place, you still have all the storage issues etc.
Some of the crafty ones claim to get a part bad bales, and when you have not seen it before they open it, as it’s wrapped, and you don’t know how long they have had it open sat outside in there yard. . .
while insisting on seeing what’s left sometimes works, it’s not fool proof.
Wrapping is more trouble than it’s worth for the most part unless your short on dry storage space.

 

[cows sh#t me to tears]

Salt.

Back in the day (1982) my old boss liked to make "green" hay bales - all 18,000 of them, every one hand balled - then sprinkle salt on to each layer. After the bay was filled, used a large fan to blow air through the stack. Looked like the barn was on fire but dang, the hay at the end was like tobacco and smelt good enough to eat.

s**t hay with no nutritional value. The caramelization that smells like tobacco is all the sugars and energy being used up. Stock might like it but it's a waste of time.

 

[cows sh#t me to tears]

To the OP. I use the agco branded crop saver from harvest tec. It works well and is around a $4 / litre. (£2 for you roughly) . Buy it in a shuttle. Worth it for the piece of mind to not burn one of my 10 big hay sheds.

 

[zetor-man]

Any body using

Perstrop proside MI 700? is it suitable for hay and straw....i see it gain be used for grain as well

where is the best place to buy it

 

[M-J-G]

My mrs has a few horses and the guy she gets hay from has started wrapping hay. Not haylage this is wrapped hay.

Yes, I've done that for years.

 

[Goweresque]

Any body using

Perstrop proside MI 700? is it suitable for hay and straw....i see it gain be used for grain as well

where is the best place to buy it

I've been using ProSid MI700 on my hay for over 5 years now, absolutely no problems, in fact I think its better. Though that maybe because its cheaper (about half the cost of BC last time I bought some) you tend to be a bit more liberal with the rates and thus you may get a better result. As far as I can ascertain Prosid is exactly the same active product as BC, a buffered propionic acid, the only difference being BC has some citric acid added in for smell. Its available through For Farmers.

As with all hay additives they are not a replacement for plastic, they just give you a small extra band of moisture that you can bale in and still get a saleable product. Its particularly good in that iffy range where you can bale hay and it doesn't actually go mouldy, but does get dusty, which the additive will stop happening. I will happily bale up to 20% in full confidence I'll get clean dust free hay, between 20 and 25% it will discolour but still be dust free, above 25% you will start to get mouldy bits because the additive coverage will never be perfect. Also very good for being able to get on and bale a field that is largely fine, but just a few damp bits round the outside or under trees etc.

 

[Goweresque]

s**t hay with no nutritional value. The caramelization that smells like tobacco is all the sugars and energy being used up. Stock might like it but it's a waste of time.

Not when you're selling it to horse owners at £5/bale......................

 

[Derrick Hughes]

My shed smelt like an aircraft hanger for years , I happened to ask the farmer if he was close to an airport .I can smell avaition fuel on the hay , he said it's the additive we put on , no thanks

 

[cows sh#t me to tears]

Harvest tec crop saver only smells for a few weeks maximum. Still better than burning a shed down.

 

[Bury the Trash]

Harvest tec crop saver only smells for a few weeks maximum. Still better than burning a shed down.

What sort of applicator do you use as a matter of interest?

 

[Derrick Hughes]

Harvest tec crop saver only smells for a few weeks maximum. Still better than burning a shed down.

You only burn a shed down if you don't know what your doing , ,

 

[Goweresque]

My shed smelt like an aircraft hanger for years , I happened to ask the farmer if he was close to an airport .I can smell avaition fuel on the hay , he said it's the additive we put on , no thanks

IMO you shouldn't move hay for 4-5 months after its been baled with additive, especially if you're using the full rate. Stick it in a shed and leave it there, it needs to go through a curing process, warm up a bit and then cool down. And the acid breaks down too I expect, so you lose the smell as well. If I've baled hay with lots of additive on it I won't send it out to customers until nearly Christmas. And I've never had any complaints, in fact I had one lot that I had to bale in an emergency that was up to 25% when baled was chosen by several customers as what their horses liked the best, over far 'better' hay.

 

[Bury the Trash]

You only burn a shed down if you don't know what your doing , ,

But We can't control the weather.

 

[cows sh#t me to tears]

You only burn a shed down if you don't know what your doing , ,

Yes, I'm aware of that. Been making hay for 42 years... not 50 yet