This article was originally written by Joel Bagg in 2016. It was edited August 22, 2025 by Christine O’Reilly to fix broken links to further resources. With the dry weather this year and low forage yields across much of the province, many producers are looking for alternative forages. There is a lot of stressed corn […]
Reseeding alfalfa following alfalfa is not a recommended crop rotation practice because of autotoxicity, seedling diseases and insect pests that can build up in the old stand. Alfalfa autotoxicity occurs when established alfalfa plants produce toxins that reduce establishment and growth of new alfalfa plants. Autotoxicity can occur when alfalfa is reseeded into an old […]
Hay fields must be driven on to harvest a crop. Unlike haylage systems, where the forage is completely removed a day or two after cutting, dry hay harvest results in a great deal of wheel traffic that often occurs 5 days or more after cutting. Additional traffic activities include raking, baling and bale removal with […]
In a pure stand, seed alfalfa at a rate of 13–22 kg/ha (12–20 lb/acre) of pure live seed. Under excellent management and favourable conditions for establishment, these rates may be reduced up to 25%. When coated seed is used, do not reduce these rates, because coated seed contains fewer seeds per unit weight. Do not […]
The fall rest period (sometimes called “critical fall harvest period”) for alfalfa is 450 growing degree days, base 5°C (where plant development occurs at 5oC or higher), or approximately 6-weeks before the average date of the first killing frost (-4°C for several hours), when alfalfa stops growing. Not cutting during this period allows alfalfa plants […]
The growth stages of the alfalfa plant from germination to full maturity are shown in Figure 1 and Figure 2. The first leaf of the alfalfa plant is unifoliate (a single leaf) occurring above the cotyledons. Subsequent leaves are trifoliate (three leaflets per stem) or multifoliate (more than three leaflets per stem), depending on the […]
Cutting places stress on an alfalfa plant. Consider terminating healthy stands after 9-12 cuts, as they become very susceptible to disease and winterkill. Maintaining alfalfa past this point may not be as economical as terminating the stand, rotating the field into a different crop and establishing a new alfalfa stand elsewhere. Harvest is the most […]
Mowers and Mower-Conditioners Cut height affects forage yield and quality, as well as crop regrowth and persistence. A low cutting height creates a risk of scalping the field and throwing soil into the forage, which increases ash content and can contaminate the feed. Cutting is a stressor, and cutting crops too low can remove growth […]
The key to good baleage is the exclusion of oxygen quickly and completely. Start with a very compact bale to reduce air pockets in the bale. Tight bales are made by reducing the tractor speed and picking up hay directly from the windrow that has not been raked. If raking is required to allow faster […]
Fast drying is key to successful haymaking. In this part of the world, good haymaking periods without rain are frequently narrow. It is often a struggle between getting the hay dry enough to bale before the next rain or baling before the hay is quite dry enough and getting mouldy, dusty hay. Conditioning and raking […]
The stages of silage harvest prepare the crop for efficient fermentation in storage. Efficient fermentation preserves forage quality and minimizes dry matter losses and spoilage. Wilting Wide swath haylage to achieve “haylage-in-a-day” and improve forage quality is becoming a popular management practice. This is contrary to the more typical practice of using the mower-conditioner to […]
Correctly timing how long to let the crop wilt when harvesting a forage crop will help ensure that it stores well. It either needs to have enough moisture to ferment correctly without seeping, or low enough moisture content to preserve as dry hay. There are three types of moisture to consider when wilting a forage […]
When forage is first put into a silo, conditions are aerobic (oxygen is present in the silage). Plant respiration and aerobic bacteria convert carbohydrates into carbon dioxide, water and heat, and use up the oxygen present. This phase should be as short as possible. The silage then becomes anaerobic (without oxygen). The growth of anaerobic […]
When forages are harvested for silage, anaerobic bacteria (i.e., lactic acid and acetic acid) are involved in the fermentation process. Weather, forage species, maturity, and harvest conditions can impact fermentation. The goal of using an inoculant may be to improve fermentation efficiency in storage, improve aerobic stability once the silo is opened or both. Silage […]
Weather conditions and agronomic practices affect the amount of nitrates in plant material, which set the stage for the production of nitrogen dioxide (NO2) in the silo. For example, a dry period during the growing season followed by abundant rainfall will encourage a corn crop to take up high levels of dissolved nitrates. If the […]