Farms.com Home   News

Corn Stalk Quality After Weathering

Corn Stalk Quality After Weathering
By Bruce Anderson
 
Late fall was rainy and now, snow comes and goes.  Plus, it’s always windy.  How does all this weather affect the feed quality of your corn stalks or winter pasture?
 
Here in the Great Plains, rain is usually a good thing.  Even during winter it can aid survival of winter wheat and alfalfa.  And snow can provide an insulating layer to protect from the coldest nights.
 
But rain, as well as melting snow, also reduces the feed value of corn stalks as well as winter pastures.  And lately many fields have had some pretty significant moisture on those stalks and pastures.
 
Moisture reduces corn stalk quality several ways.  Most easily noticed is how fast stalks get soiled or trampled into the ground when fields are muddy. 
 
Less noticeable are nutritional changes.  Rain soaks into dry corn stalk residue or winter grass and leaches out some of the soluble nutrients.  Most serious is the loss of sugars and other energy-dense nutrients, which lowers the TDN or energy value of these already low energy forages.  These same nutrients also disappear if stalks begin to mold or rot in the field or especially so in the bale.  And as mold or spoilage occur, palatability and intake also decline.
Click here to see more...

Trending Video

WM23- Tar Spot and White Mold Disease Forecast Apps

Video: WM23- Tar Spot and White Mold Disease Forecast Apps

This is one of a series of videos on "Balancing Sustainability & Innovation in Wisconsin Agriculture".