# ideal moisture for silage bales



## mjedd12 (Jan 25, 2015)

Last year we purchased a NH 740 baler with crop cutter. made aprox 600 silage bales of first and second cutting mixed grass hay at varying moisture levels (as a reference year for future knowledge). As we have fed most of them, we've seen hay that probably could have been stacked and tarped with our dry bales not wasting the time and money to wrap, some that seem to have been perfect in quality, some that were damp/wet with no mold and some molded throughout the layers.

Most of our second cutting bales are fed to pregnant/lactating sheep so id like to keep them on the drier side, but for beef cattle, what is an optimal moisture range when baling? I plan on having a moisture tester on the baler this upcoming year.

Thanks,

Mike


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## Bonfire (Oct 21, 2012)

I like them at 60%. In summer here, it can be hard to get it at 40-60% because it dries out quickly over 24 hours.

I baled some forage corn this past summer. It was 60% plus when it got wrapped. Cut it one day and baled/wrapped the next. It turned out beautiful. I'm going to do more of it this year.


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## IH 1586 (Oct 16, 2014)

I aim for about the 50% mark. Have had no complaints from customers. Also make wrapped round bales for horses that are 25% - 30% moisture called sweet hay. They have turned out excellent.


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## lidaacres (Oct 11, 2014)

We do quite a bit balage. Under 60% is a must or it can get buteric (sp?) I had some that I cut day one. Raked day 2. Baled day 3 @ 35% moisture. If you get it almost dry but not quite it won't ferment but will be the same when you wrap it as when you feed it. Which our cows seem to like the best arguably but most of the time mother nature doesn't allow that. Also I tend to have trouble at around 45% moisture with baling. It's kinda sticky not wet or dry enough to slide through the chamber nicely I have no idea if there is that trouble with round balers. If you live somewhere cold the wetter the hay the more frozen it gets and that can be a problem.


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## PaMike (Dec 7, 2013)

I don't know what my moisture levels are but I know they are on the low end. I like it that way. Hay bales easier. Bales are lighter and don't slump as much. Probably not quite as much feed value since it doesn't fully ferment...


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## NDVA HAYMAN (Nov 24, 2009)

I keep mine between 35 and 45% if possible and they look as good unwrapped as when I baled them. I have heard that up to 60% is good but this was the first year for me wrapping so my knowledge is very limited. When I first started, I asked the same question and got answers all over the board. Good Luck. I like making those marshmallows as some people in my area call them. Mike


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## hog987 (Apr 5, 2011)

PaMike said:


> I don't know what my moisture levels are but I know they are on the low end. I like it that way. Hay bales easier. Bales are lighter and don't slump as much. Probably not quite as much feed value
> since it doesn't fully ferment...


In theory the sweet hay should have slightly higher feed value. To ferment the bacteria use energy. A loss of energy lowers the feed value cause in fact the bacteria are digesting the feed. In practise it all depends on when and how it is put up.


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## SVFHAY (Dec 5, 2008)

IH 1586 said:


> I aim for about the 50% mark. Have had no complaints from customers. Also make wrapped round bales for horses that are 25% - 30% moisture called sweet hay. They have turned out excellent.


Is the sweet hay for your own use? If not how do you get a potential customer to try it/switch from dry hay? How do they react when they see the film under the wrap? Marketing sweet hay would be a great fit for me if I was brave enough to try it.


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## IH 1586 (Oct 16, 2014)

My partner is the one feeding the sweet hay to his horses. Something we have been wanting to try for years to reduce his labor for making hay, just had to wait till I got a wrapper. They feed the hay only, no grain to the horses. I don't think they have fed grain to their horses in years. They have fed about 10 bales of it and so far the only one that was bad had mud in it. There is usually a thin layer that is not perfect that they feed to their beef calf. The hay is a alfalfa timothy mix. I will be trying to make some this year but I don't see them selling very well especially to horse people. In our area people still think that horses can't have hay that's made right. They wait till the middle to late June before starting. People may try the good hay and keep slugging the grain to them and then when they have issues blame the hay.


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## CaseIH84 (Jun 16, 2013)

I am IH 1586 partner that is feeding the sweet hay to horses. We have been very pleased with the results for the first year. Have been wanting to try this out for years. Finding labor in our area is very difficult as kids these days dont really like to work. Making the round bales is very effeicent and allows us to do our thirty acres of hay in one shot.

We aimed for 25 to 30 percent moisture. We triple wrapped the bales. Had all bales turn out excellent so far. We have fed about twenty bales with no film on bales to speak of. The horses seem to really like the hay. We do not feed any grain and horses have kept weight all winter.

The idea of sweet hay really appealed to us because it allows for less leaf loss and it makes baling alfalfa easy than trying to get it dry. It also decreases dry time and with the bad summer we had in western New York it worked out great.

I put up about thousand square bales last year as it was just an experiment and have not fed very much of it. I will be going to almost all rounds this year. Been very pleased with results.

Attached is picture of just opened sweet hay.


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