Baleage best management practices
Around
Our State
Growers are
tapping into a
sweet industry
The WV Maple Producers
Association, with the help
of the state symbol, is
proving that the Mountain
State makes some of the
nation’s best pure maple
syrup.
“West Virginia
can be used
for maple syrup
production, and
we can make maple syrup
just as good as, if not
better than some of the
New England states,” says
member, Robert Reed.
The group is spreading
the word through social
media and at various
conferences. They hope
their higher profile will
increase marketing
of WV-grown maple
syrup, and increase their
membership by attracting
veteran producers and
others interested in the
industry.
For more information,
email wvmaplesyrup
[email protected]
or connect at
www.facebook.
com/wvmaple
syrup.
ii / Spring 2015
Plastic-wrapped round bale silage or
“baleage” is forage that is preserved by
anaerobic (without oxygen) fermentation.
Bacteria ferment forage sugars into acids
which lowers the pH (preferably to ≤5.5)
and preserves the forage. Good anaerobic
fermentation needs proper bacteria,
a high sugar content, and no oxygen.
Farmers are advised to follow these best
management practices (BMPs) to make
high quality baleage:
1. Harvest early growth forage high
in sugar.
2. Mow without conditioning into a
wide swath for exposure to sunlight.
3. Wilt to 50 to 60% moisture.
4. Don’t ted forage.
5. Bale a tight, dense bale to remove
oxygen.
6. To exclude oxygen, wrap bales in
plastic within 2 hours, using 6 mils
of plastic (8 mils is better) with
50% overlap and 50% stretch.
7. Store bales with the multi-layer
plastic end on the ground.
8. Inspect stored bales weekly. Repair
tears and holes to prevent spoilage.
To determine the importance of
following these BMPs, WVU Extension
Service faculty worked with farmers in
12 counties for 3 years. They noted the
management practices used by farmers
when making baleage, and evaluated
forage samples from the baleage of
162 fields.
Moisture and pH
Bales should be covered tightly with
6 to 8 mils of plastic for best results.
Baleage with <50% moisture fermented
well (pH 5.3) if bale density was 20 to
30 lb/ft3.
When moisture was >50%, bale density
had little effect on pH. As moisture
dropped from 50 to 30%, bale density
had to increase from 20 to 30 lb/ft3
to maintain a pH below 5.5.
Baleage with higher total digestible
nutrients had lower pH since there
was more sugar in these early cut fields.
Cutting forage without conditioning
tended to result in lower baleage pH.
Not tedding tended to reduce heat
damage but had little direct effect on
pH. Since te [