Farmland has been susceptible to boom-bust cycles where a large run-up in land prices is followed by a rapid decrease in prices. Two such cycles occurred in the last century, one beginning in the 1920s and ending in the 1930s, and the other from 1973 to 1986. The end of these cycles is marked by farm financial distress due to accumulated debt and the inability of earned cash flow to make the interest and principal payments.

You’re in your easy chair with your boots off, settling in for the night after a good supper, just starting to doze off when the neighbor calls, “Hey, your cows are out.”

Hay is an important part of beef cattle nutrition in most operations. Good-quality hay is high in energy and, depending upon plant composition and amount of fertilization, it can be high in protein. It is used to replace depleted nutrients in standing forages during winter months and periods of prolonged drought.

Hay feeding season will be here soon. Before it arrives, livestock producers can take actions that will enable them to use their hay resources efficiently as well as prepare for even the worst storms.

Rained-on hay – nearly everyone has to feed it sometime. How should feeding practices be adjusted, though, to account for any damage caused by the rain?