Reading Time: 4 minutes Feeding corn silage to cattle comes with some risks in Alberta — but there are ways you can manage that. “There are a lot of different factors that will affect yield and quality in corn silage,” said federal research scientist Karen Beauchemin. “You have some control over some of these factors, but not all. So […] Read more
You can’t make heat, but you can pick the right variety for corn silage
Harvesting at the right time to maximize digestibility is also key
Corn slowly winning converts in Alberta
New shorter-season varieties are ‘night and day’ when compared to what was available a decade ago
Reading Time: 5 minutes [Updated May 29, 2017] Corn has come a long way in Alberta since Tony Schmidt started growing it in the early 2000s. “Early on, our corn would barely get a cob on it because it was such long-season corn we were trying to grow here, and now we’ve got it to where we can combine […] Read more
Tips for dealing with greenfeed that saw snow before harvest
Heating can greatly lower the feed value, moulds will reduce digestibility, and the potential for nitrites is higher
Reading Time: 2 minutes Greenfeed that saw snow before being harvested this year presents some extra challenges when feeding. Bales containing 18 to 20 per cent moisture (or higher) have the potential to heat, and some of the sugars will be used by the microbes during the heating process, said provincial forage specialist Barry Yaremcio. “This will reduce the […] Read more
If the rain won’t go away, you still have options when haying
Making haylage is a good option, but there are several things to keep in mind, says crop specialist
Reading Time: 3 minutes What do you do when the weather conspires against you and hay refuses to dry? “You start looking for alternatives,” said provincial crop specialist Harry Brook. “A number of alternatives is available to consider when hay will not dry down to the 16 per cent moisture level that’s considered suitable for long-term storage.” One form […] Read more
How to establish a fair price for standing hay
Buyers should pay by the ton, not the acre, and there should be 10 to 30 per cent allowance for weather risk
Reading Time: 2 minutes Determining a fair price for standing hay isn’t an exact science, says a provincial farm business management specialist. “Hay prices are difficult to establish as they are affected by a combination of factors such as spring inventory carry-over, pasture conditions, feed competitors, cutting date, quality, yield, and location,” said Dean Dyck. “As we saw in […] Read more
It was a big year for greenfeed in 2015
Reading Time: < 1 minute Producers in Alberta harvest significant acres of annual crops for greenfeed and silage every year, but production statistics are not available from Statistics Canada, nor any other source. “To fill this gap, we initiated a greenfeed and silage production survey in 2002,” said provincial crop statistician Ashan Shooshtarian. The latest survey (available at agriculture.alberta.ca) shows […] Read more
Diamond City couple newest Outstanding Young Farmers
Reading Time: 2 minutes Two city kids and a 32-year-old with nearly two decades of farming under his belt were among the entrants vying to be Alberta’s Outstanding Young Farmers for 2016. In the end, Shane and Kristin Schooten were selected to represent the province in the national event, which will be held in Niagara Falls in November. Kristin, […] Read more
Put more jingle in your jeans this winter
Shopping around, alternative feeds, and how you store your hay can make a huge difference to the bottom line
Reading Time: 3 minutes With cattle prices off their record highs, many producers are sharpening their pencils. And it can be well worth it. “We have to watch our input costs — that’s the one thing we can control,” said Dean Dyck, a farm business management specialist with Alberta Agriculture and Forestry. “If our incomes go up but our […] Read more
Alternative feeds can cause health issues
Too much sulphur can lead to polio and a shortage of nitrogen can reduce feed intake
Reading Time: 2 minutes Using unusual feeds such as canola, straw, and slough hay increases the need for feed testing, says a provincial forage specialist. “Knowing the quality of the forage being used this winter is going to be critical to make it through on a short feed supply,” said Barry Yaremcio. Many canola crops being cut for silage […] Read more
Province creates online listings for alternative feed uses
Reading Time: < 1 minute In response to numerous calls to the Alberta Agriculture and Forestry’s Ag-Info Centre about options for alternative use of crops, a new category has been created under hay and pasture listings on the department’s web page. “Called Standing Annual Crop, the new category gives producers the option to list their crops for alternative uses so […] Read more
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