march pics
- Thread starter Rancher3!
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Justin
Well-known member
how many days worth of feed are you putting out? how many pounds does that figure per cow/per day?
oldblood
Well-known member
I buy alot of hay and that killes me seeing it get wasted like that. The cheapest around here is 465 a ton for grass grinding hay. Straw is $20 per bale that was last fall matbe dbl that now. Injoyed you pictures.
Justin
Well-known member
you would be suprised, maybe shocked in your case of how little is wasted.
i put out enough for 5 days, works out to around 45 lbs. It was -31C this morning and i was glad to have the feed there for them. Hay here is selling for around $30-35 per bale so if they waste a little I am not thay worried. First year i have tried this I am looking forward to see what the grass looks like this year.
jodywy
Well-known member
I set bales out if I need to be gone a day or 2, usually takes a couple hits with the spike tooth harrow after the snow melt in the spring.
sic 'em reds
Well-known member
I have seen many of you that bale graze write about helping the grass where you do this, but I don't get how it helps the grass? To me it seems like the grass would be damaged under the bale? I understand that you concentrate alot of manure in areas, but that still takes a while to break down and become a source of nitrogen. Please explain if you would.
jodywy
Well-known member
I feeding on top of a few feet of snow, so even a feed ground in a long line on new snow every day , as I feeding on hay meadows we drag a harrow over it to break up the manure and any little ples of hay, I feed where the meadow needs the manure and fore go spreadding fertalizersic 'em reds said:
Shortgrass
Well-known member
If possible, I would like to see some pictures of the same area after the snow goes, both before and after you drag it. Then some pictures when it is ready to mow.
Big Muddy rancher
Well-known member
At one time I heard they figured $9 worth of nutrients in a bales of hay.
I find where we are drier the mat doesn't break down as well so I don't do much of it. I do use a processor and feed in rows out on the hay land.
I find where we are drier the mat doesn't break down as well so I don't do much of it. I do use a processor and feed in rows out on the hay land.
Northern Rancher
Well-known member
If I go up flying with my neighbor I'll take a pic of where we've bale grazed in previous years-you can see where every bale sat. There are two benefits the nutrients and the bit of mulch to retain moisture. I put enough out for 30 lbs/cow/day-the horses pick through whats left. I don't harrow mine as it's not needed-I don't think I'd do it on native range-it might change your grass species composition. It looks wasteful the first few days but by the time they're done it's all used up. There is some waste no matter how you feed and starting and maintaining feeding equipment isn't free. We get ours hauled a delivered to the cows mouth for $8 bale. So we are getting hay hauled 15 miles and fed for $.16/day/cow for yardage costs the feed costs add up to $.75/cow/day. There are twenty head of horses out there too that I didn't include. Our costs this winter if snow bares off April first will be 120 feeding days @ $.91/day/cow=$110/cow. It could be cheaper if winter would let off some.
Northern Rancher
Well-known member
Not alot of waste
We left calves on the cows that year
Even the brahmers lived
Licking snow
Grass the next year-rain helped too
The pickers
jodywy
Well-known member
just some pictures of feed grounds the first 2 are the first day of Spring last yearShortgrass said:
that is all matted hay on top of packed snow, March 20,2010
this pc is Feb 4th the feed ground the hay is cleaned up better, it will grag easy
you can see how high that old meadow grass can get
this was fed on and some bale grazing in this area the winter before, the meadow cut clean , no plugged cutter bar
