# Hay & Forage Grower... Feeding straw to cattle....



## ARD Farm (Jul 12, 2012)

Interesting article in as much as we have been feeding bailed (in rounds and small squares) wheat straw ro our feeder cattle for years as a hay extender....

August 2012
Hay and Forage Grower. page 34
Authot? (I presume staff as no one's name appears to take credit...)

Amoniating low quality roughages can tide over forage depleted beef herds.

We've been doing this for years. We must be pretty progressive or maybe cheap or both.









However, unlike this article, we don't amoniate to melt the lignin-cellulose bonds in wheat straw, we just mix the straw in the ration. We've never experienced any issues with digestability or had any ill effects or a longer time frame to market weight.

It states that amoniating (with anhydrous amonia) will take relative protein in common wheat straw from 3-4% average to 8-9%.

It's an interesting article and we may try using anhydrous in their prescribed regimen for increasing the protein and digestability of the straw.... for kicks and grins... and possibly further extending our forage inventory for overwintering.


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## Crookhorn Farms (Jul 3, 2012)

i grind wheat straw right in my grinder mixer with corn and barley. works great.


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