The Juice

Canadian Hay & Silage Ltd. offers Nuhn Bio-Tech “The Juice XP” hay preserver to our customers.

Why “The Juice XP”?

• improves preservation of dry matter in hay baled up to 32% moisture
• inhibits and reduces molds in hay baled up to 32% moisture
• liquid applied means better coverage
• high levels of active ingredients include: buffered propionic acid; citric acid and exclusive dispersing agent
• premium product designed to keep hay’s original freshness and colour
• 200 kg barrels or 1000 kg totes

It is important to carefully pick situations that would be most benefical to use hay preservative.    A major advantage of using a hay preservative is that it allows for baling hay at 24% moisture.  This eliminates having bales heating or developing mold while being stored.  Baling at a higher moisture level can also reduce leaf loss which is where the nutrients are contained.  The acid may also make the hay more palatable/softer for consumption.

Another advantage is that the window for harvesting can be increased by using hay preservative.  Because hay can be baled at a higher moisture content, baling can begin earlier in the day and continue on later in the evening which means more acres can be harvested.

According to many studies, hay that is rained on after cutting can lose up to 30% of its nutrient value – the economics of using hay preservatives shows that some of this risk can be cut.  For example:  if dairy hay were to sell for $180/ton and there is a yield of 2 tons/acre, the value of hay in a 50 acre field would be $18,000.  If 25-30% of the nutrients were lost due to rain damage, that would amount to $5000-$6000.  If acid costs around $10/ton, the total cost for 50 acres would be about $1000 to prevent rain-damaged hay.

Adding application equipment to a baler can be done for a minimum of $1,250.00 or less (for basic equipment such tanks, hoses, nozzles and pumps) This cost can be recovered relatively quickly by being able to put up high quality hay.  It is important and recommended to wash/clean equipment after using hay preservatives to avoid baler corrosion.

(*information taken from Hay & Forage Grower (April 1, 2009), article by Rick Mooney)

You can also visit www.nuhnbio-tech.ca for more information or call Richard (403-994-7207) or Hans (780-206-4666).

Hay moisture content

Hay moisture content is the largest single factor contributing to leaf loss Figure 1 shows the importance of baling at higher moisture contents. Hay baled at a moisture content above 15 percent has much less leaf loss than hay baled below 15 percent moisture.

Figure 1. Leaf loss during baler operation. Accumulation of data for several large round balers over a range of hay moisture contents in fields of mixed alfalfa, crested wheatgrass and bromegrass. Data source: Prairie Agricultural Machinery Institute.

The upper moisture level depends on the type of hay, density and size of bale, drying conditions after baling, and other factors. The upper limit for moisture for large round alfalfa bales is typically 18 to 20 percent. Hay baled much above 20 percent moisture will usually spoil unless chemical preservatives such as propionic acid are added to the hay. Effective hay preservatives will prevent excessive heating and mold growth when applied uniformly and at the correct rate.

When the hay becomes too dry and brittle and losses become excessive, stop baling and resume in the evening or morning when the leaf moisture level increases. This dew-moistened hay can be baled at a slightly higher moisture level than when it was drying down because dew moisture in the hay is more easily released during curing than internal moisture.

**Hay Moisture Content info/table from Virginia Tech Virginia Cooperative Extension website (http://pubs.ext.vt.edu)