Iowa Farmer Today
11-24-07
Short hay supply provides profit opportunity
By Jeff DeYoung, Iowa Farmer Today
DOUDS --- Rick Plowman’s cows aren’t exactly sitting at the head table when it
comes to dividing up the Southeast Iowa cattleman’s hay crop.
“We sell a lot of our hay to dairy operations, so our cows usually get the worst
hay we have,” he says. “But, in our TMR (total mixed ration) with corn silage,
they are getting what they need.”
Plowman, who farms with his father, Jerry, and son, Cale, near here in Van
Buren County, runs about 500 commercial cows.
He calves heifers in January, embryo recipient cows at the end of February and
first of March, and most of the others in April. Plowman also has a small fall
calving herd.
Most of his ground is devoted to alfalfa with some brome/alfalfa mix.
“The dairy hay has been good to us,” Plowman says. “If the stands stay good, we
can get six to eight years of production out of it.”
Because much of his hay is sold, Plowman needs to make his remaining hay
supply last through the winter.
“The only time cows might get some free-choice hay is after calving. The rest get
the TMR that we feed out in tractor tires or a trough,” he says.
“We limit-feed our cows, and while it is usually gone in 45 minutes, we are
meeting their nutritional requirements.”
In the spring and summer, Plowman says most of the cows are on pasture.
Rations are still mixed about 80 percent of the time, he says, particularly for
heifers he is developing.
Statewide, hay supplies appear to be short heading into winter, says Byron Leu,
Iowa State University Extension beef specialist in Fairfield. An early frost
affected the season’s first cutting, he notes.
“Suddenly, that 2-year-old hay you have around looks pretty good,” Leu says.
“We did get some rain in the fall, so the last cutting was pretty decent, but it does
appear we will be short. We have a lot of hay acres in corn production right now,
and that hurts as well.”
Leu says substituting hay with silage or ethanol co-products can help stretch out
winter supplies.
“You may have some higher-quality hay you want to sell, so you could substitute
distillers or gluten and mix it with your poorer hay,” he says. “You just need to
make sure the cows are getting what they need nutritionally.”
For example, if a producer figures he is spending $1.60 per day, per cow on hay,
he could reduce it to $1.27/day by reducing hay and replacing it with corn silage.
“You would need to be able to pro-rate that through the winter, and we know a
tough winter can change plans, but I think you would be able to save some
money if you can use silage or distillers,” Leu says.
Barring a change in rations, he says producers could realize some savings
through better management.
“We figure 10 percent loss when it comes to more a free-choice feeding concept,
and I think that’s probably too low,” Leu says.
An Indiana study indicated about 5 percent of hay is wasted in a traditional hay
ring. But, when no ring or other device is used, that jumps to 11 percent loss.
“That’s pretty significant, and it should tell you that it pays to manage your hay
more carefully,” Leu says. “Just keeping an eye on the little things can make a lot
of difference.”
Plowman treats alfalfa like other farmers treat corn and soybeans. He fertilizes
his fields and sprays for insects.
When a stand is converted into corn, it’s burned down in the fall and planted in
the spring.
“We don’t usually do much fall seeding, but this year we did do some of it on a
couple of fields,” Plowman says. “We also had some alfalfa that was really hurt
with that early freeze, so we’ll plant it to corn next year.”
Most of the hay goes into large square bales. Not only does that make it easier to
transport, Plowman says, but it also works better in a mixer than does hay from
big round bales.
While using hay in a TMR works for him, Plowman adds it might not work for
every producer.
“We’re very happy with how it works, but you have to put the pencil to it,”
Plowman says.
“It can cut costs tremendously. For what we do, it works very well.”