Carbon, hydrogen, oxygen and nitrogen – known colloquially as CHON – are the four elements that form the building blocks of all life. Without CHON, fundamental elements such as water, protein and even DNA simply would not exist.

Working in a commercial agricultural-testing laboratory, I see all different types of feed and forage samples submitted in all kinds of ways. A silage sample might be sent to us in a large vet glove, while a corn grain might come in a coffee can, even when most labs provide sample bags for submission. Which brings me to the first of four common mistakes made when submitting forage samples to a commercial laboratory for testing.