Hay Archives - Page 101 of 124 - Manitoba Co-operator

Short hay this year? Try grain

MAFRD nutritionists have developed a feeding schedule to accommodate  producers’ wallets during feed shortages

By Meghan Mast December 12, 2014

Cheap corn could be a lifesaver for Manitoba cattle producers who are short of feed this winter, but a provincial livestock specialist warns it must be handled with care. “Grain might be the ideal part of your diet this year,” Ray Bitner, livestock specialist with MAFRD, told listeners during the latest Stocktalk webinar. After calculating

Forages, Livestock, Other livestock

Livestock producers, beware of sweet clover toxicity

Mould can convert the naturally occurring chemical coumarin into an anticoagulant

By NDSU Release November 5, 2014

Improperly curing hay made from certain sweet clover varieties such as white and yellow sweet clover can cause severe and often fatal hemorrhages in livestock such as cattle, sheep and goats. “Unfortunately, proper harvesting can be difficult,” says Gerald Stokka, North Dakota State University Extension Service livestock stewardship specialist and veterinarian. “If cutting is delayed

Forages, Livestock, Other livestock

Feeding round hay bales to horses has risks

Concentration of nutrients and overfeeding are among the potential problems

By Carol Shwetz October 29, 2014

Convenience and dollar savings are often cited as two major advantages when feeding round baled hay, especially when feeding groups of horses. At first glance these advantages may seem obvious, but for actual economic benefit certain conditions need to be met and the inherent health risks to the horses being fed round bales need to

Beef cattle, Forages, Livestock

Building winter cattle feed rations that won’t wreck your bottom line

Improving your feeding efficiency and reducing waste can help you  save money overwintering your cattle this year

By Jennifer Blair October 28, 2014

Despite record-high cattle prices and strong demand for beef, margins remain tight for cattle producers who are battling the high price of land and feed. But cattle feeders can widen their margins as they head into winter by taking measures to improve feed efficiency and reduce waste right now. “To prepare your cattle for winter,

Beef cattle, Forages, Livestock, Local news

Cattle producers have forage concerns after wet season

High nitrate levels in frost-stressed crops can be fatal for cattle

By Meghan Mast October 16, 2014

Cattle producers should test their feed this year because wet weather has compromised the nutritional value in late-seeded cereal crops, and cold weather could make them potentially dangerous, a provincial forage specialist says. “We’re quite concerned about nitrates this year after the stress that the plants have been under all summer and then with the recent

Forages and grasslands are not just about cattle and hay, they also provide a major environmental benefit for all Canadians.  top and above photo: Canadian Forage and Grassland Association

Forages, Livestock

The fight for the future of forages

There has been a dramatic drop in forage research, but it’s not just because producers could make more money growing canola

By Madeleine Baerg September 29, 2014

What’s Canada largest crop? The usual answer is “wheat,” which in 2012 was seeded on about 20 million acres. But that year, cultivated forages made up 33 million acres, and more than 36 million acres were in native or unimproved pastures and rangeland. Yet farmers who manage grasslands and forage fields say their industry is

Harvest has been a struggle for forage growers this summer. (File photo)

Forages, News

Farmers struggle with wet harvest

Some regions are  soggier than others

By Shannon VanRaes September 9, 2014

It rains. Then it pours. Now, will it freeze? With weather watchers raising the possibility of frost this week, Manitoba farmers are struggling to get harvestable crops into the bin — wet or dry — and keeping their fingers crossed later crops such as corn and soybeans will reach maturity in time. Many hay producers

Beef cattle, Forages, Livestock

Feed shortages could push flooded farmers to sell cattle

This year’s flood has created more uncertainty for Manitoba’s cattle sector

By Meghan Mast August 29, 2014

The stress of extended flooding losses followed by a harsh winter prompted Scott Kolomaya to make a tough decision in the spring. He sold three-quarters of his cattle herd. His hayfields were flooded in 2011 and had not yet been returned to production. After a long and bitter winter, he was running short of feed.

Beef cattle producers can save thousands of dollars by swath grazing cereals over the winter, says Vern Baron.

Cereals, Forages, Livestock

Swath grazing cereals saves half of overwintering costs in beef cattle

With new higher-yielding, higher-quality forage cereals in the works,  there has never been a better time for beef cattle producers to try swath grazing cereals

By Jennifer Blair August 22, 2014

Swath grazing cereals could save producers almost half the cost of overwintering cattle, says a federal forage researcher. “Extended grazing practices like swath grazing, bale grazing, and grazing second-cut grasses in the fall are one of the most effective ways to reduce your overwintering costs of beef cows,” Vern Baron said at the Lacombe Field

Although late, Manitoba’s first-cut hay is mostly up now and yielded well outside of the flood area, says John McGregor of the Manitoba Forage and Hayland Association. This field was being baled near Miami July 29. photo: allan dawson

Dairy cattle, Forages, Livestock

First-cut hay late, but plentiful in unflooded areas

Hay will be scarce and costly in flooded areas, but that could be offset by producers reducing cow herds

By Allan Dawson August 8, 2014

Manitoba’s first-cut hay crop, while late, is yielding average to above average in areas not hit by excessive moisture or flooding, says John McGregor of the Manitoba Forage and Grassland Association. “There’s a lot there, but they (beef farmers) don’t just rely on one cut,” McGregor said in an interview July 30. “They need to

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