Planning must begin now for next year's crop selections and pasture plans. Corn silage might be a good consideration as a feed for your livestock.
Corn silage is one of the most important forms of feed used for livestock based on the following factors:
1. High yields of high-energy feed per acre.
2. It is a palatable and consistent feed.
3. It can be stored at the time of cutting if harvested under ideal conditions.
4. It can be harvested rapidly.
5. Storage costs tend to be low.
According to the University of Missouri, the ideal time to start chopping silage should be from early to middle September. That’s when conditions should be picture perfect, assuming all the circumstances were right for planting and harvesting. Planting times are critical, especially for the many varieties of seed corn available. An early planting season works best for hybrids designed for silage production, but the drawback is that they have a slower maturity rate compared to regular grain varieties. Also grain hybrids yield a higher feed value but produce less of an overall total volume than the silage selected varieties.
Having the right conditions will have an influence on the quality and the outcome of high quality livestock feed in the ensiling process.
Harvesting corn silage with the kernels on the ear fully dented, while green leaves are still on the stalk, will produce the most volume and quality. Corn usually will be well dented somewhere between the 32- to 35-percent moisture stage.
The ensiling process is complex and simple at the same time. What happens during this production of feed for ruminant animals is that when the corn is chopped, it is hauled to the silo and is compressed then the naturally occurring good bacteria will begin to go to work through the process of fermentation. The work of the bacteria and the compaction, along with covering the finished product immediately, is the key to achieving a good quality feed source. The lack of air will cause the starches and sugars in the corn to drop to a pH level of 4.5 or lower which is considered ideal for the process. Heat will be generated by the microbial action of between 80 and 100 degrees under the proper circumstances.
This is normally done by packing in a bunker style pit with a heavy tractor and the silage is spread throughout the pit with a front or rear mounted blade attached to the tractor. Compression of the silage feed is important to be able to provide quality feed with minimal waste.
It is good silage making practice to limit the aerobic phase as much as possible since during this phase the water-soluble carbohydrates are consumed and other nutrients may be destroyed.
In the end, corn silage should have a light, pleasant smell with only a negligible vinegar odor and the color should be light brown to dark green. If the color is a dark brown or the odor is fruity, yeasty, burnt or rancid, then there has either been excessive heating or improper fermentation.
Transportation from the field to the storage facility depends on several factors. The rule of thumb is to have at least one truck for every row that the chopper is equipped with. For example two rows equal a minimum of two trucks or silage wagons. Other things come into play such as storage options, distance from the field to either the pit or silo. All this and more needs to be considered for the process to move smoothly. Typically storage in an upright silo yields a better product with less waste, but unloading the wagons into a silo is slower than dumping a truck into a bunker style pit.
When it comes to storage, many dairy farmers prefer the upright silo due to the automation of the feeding systems that have been developed over the years. Many systems are designed so that the operator can flip a switch and a series of “feeder chains” pull the feed out of the silo and the feed is put on a conveyer belt and dumped into a row of cement feed bunks.
Although silage can be made from many different crops in Missouri, corn is a widely used crop for silage and the nutritional benefits are well documented.
