The first machines used in the preparation of hay and forage materials are mowers and mower-conditioners. Their proper maintenance and efficient use have a significant effect on the quality of hay for two reasons. Clean cutting and optimum conditioning are, of course, critical, but perhaps equally important is having the machines ready on time and operating with minimum downtime when the weather is right to cut the crop at the its greatest nutritive value.

First, he showed me the sheep – because that barn was the closest. There were about 20 of them, and they stared at me with wide, intrigued eyes. When Árni reached his hand over the gate they all feinted toward it.

Brookside Agra introduces advanced Bio Pro Concentrate Brookside Agra has developed an innovative, all-natural proprietary liquid blend of stable, highly active microbial cultures, enhancers and nutrients, specifically selected to biologically degrade a variety of odors associated with agricultural and environmental conditions.

In the last few months, I have seen newspaper articles about new technology on the farm. Frankly, I would be happier with some stronger duct tape; that hole in the slurry wagon isn’t going to fix itself. How about an electrical motor that never quits working on holidays? I know – a shovel handle that, when broken, grows back like a lizard’s tail. That would be technology.

John lives down the road from me. We have cattle across the fence from each other. He is good at a lot of things – carpentry, electronics, sports and hunting – but cows are not his strong suit. He runs a handful on 90 acres.

Sometimes producers may feel a little tied up, just like the man bound with red tape depicted in the picture that Kevin Abernathy, director of regulatory affairs for the Milk Producers Council, pointed to on his slide presentation. There’s a lot of red tape when it comes to California’s regulatory affairs, he said. The challenge for producers is managing the tape so they can move around.

In any organization expecting to deliver an output, the degree or level of sophistication is an important consideration. The appropriate level is a challenge for managers, the mid-level supervisors charged with implementing what the leaders decide to place in policy. Operationally, working towards an output can be described as standard operating procedure, or SOP. These take the implementer through the step-by-step process of completing a task as a course of action necessary at reaching the deliverable of a complete output.

I think it’s safe to say that when it comes to feeding cows, every dairy farmer has the same end goal in mind: a consistent ration the full length of the bunk. Considering the choices in ration ingredients, feed storage methods and processing methods, this common end goal can be achieved in a variety of ways. How can you select the mixer that is best suited for your farm? This article will discuss the capabilities and characteristics of the three most common TMR mixer types.