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For the first time in several years, the prices of corn grain and many corn byproducts are at favorable levels that encourage increased use of these ingredients in dairy diets.
Corn distillers grains are particularly appealing because they offer both a higher protein and higher energy content, so you get more bang for your buck. However, the higher energy or fat content, which is largely due to the corn oil in the distillers, also can be quite variable.
Essential forage concepts
Increasingly, our goal is to successfully feed higher-forage diets to dairy cattle. The two components of forage fiber – digestibility and physical effectiveness – must be in balance to optimize feed intake, promote rumen health and boost milk component output.
Nitrate is a water-soluble form of nitrogen required for plant growth. It can become a health problem if present in high levels in groundwater.
For this reason, and to save on fertilizer cost, it is desirable to keep the nitrate in the crop root zone. In contrast to rain-fed agriculture, irrigated agriculture systems can be managed to avoid conditions where nitrate leaching can occur.
As CEO of the first certified organic dairy and creamery in the western U.S., Albert Straus is always looking for ways to be more sustainable and utilize all of the resources around him.
Almost 16 years ago, Dave Eisentraut of Eisentraut Ag Services began custom-hauling manure.
In the first year, he handled four million gallons of manure and now moves 200 million gallons on an annual basis.
Dairy producers from New York to Wisconsin met in central Michigan recently at the Car-Min-Vu Dairy Farm to check out the latest technology in manure management.Owner Chad Minnis, the next generation of the family, adopted a new generation of manure handling with the McLanahan Nutrient Separation System.
As I have taught school for many years and raised 11 children in the school system, I have seen many programs come and go. Educators are always looking for a new way to help children learn.
In 2013, about two million full-size pickup trucks were sold in the U.S., and though it has not been verified, I will go out on a limb and say that every farm in the U.S. has a pickup truck. Pickup trucks have long been associated with the farm, the ranch and the job site.
Eight years ago, I stood in line in front of the Vatican. I had a friend living in Italy at the time, and we took the train into Rome. Although we had gotten there early, there were – unsurprisingly – a lot of people ahead of us.
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