Silage Advisory Centre

The many advantages of high quality big baled forage are only fully realised when used within an effective feeding system.

In cases where bales form part of a total or partial mixed ration, this means having feeding equipment that is capable of handling, chopping and mixing the forage so that it is presented in the optimum state for the animals.

As Kuhn has found speaking to users of its vertical auger Euromix complete diet feeders, machine performance really can be the key to a range of benefits when big bales are being fed.

Bales no barrier for ‘complete diet’ system

Converting to a mixed forage “complete diet” feeding system five years ago has allowed Shropshire dairy farmer Peter Gibson to increase yields in his 118-cow herd by a third to a consistent 7,500 litres/cow.

The uplift came within months of the arrival of a vertical auger diet feeder that enabled big bale grass silage to be chopped and mixed with maize silage, and fed down a central feed passage, replacing the previous ring feeder system.

Now, with an eye on breaking the elusive 8,000 litre/cow barrier, Peter – who farms with his son Ben at Alford Green Farm, Childs Ercall – is varying the forage diet further with the introduction of baled lucerne silage.

Despite entering its sixth year of service, the Kuhn Euromix 1270 diet feeder is still going strong despite its relentless workload. Used for buffer feeding during the summer as well as throughout the winter months, the diet feeder continues to operate at the heart of the farm’s forage-based system, with little maintenance.

“Apart from a couple of punctures when we were hauling silage from some distance away, we’ve really had no problems at all with the feeder,” reports Peter. “We change the blades on the vertical auger roughly once a year, and grease it once a month, so it is very low maintenance.”

With its 12 cubic metre hopper, the Euromix will typically chop and mix about four tonnes at a time, sufficient for about 60 cows on the full winter ration. Fodder beet (or potatoes) is chopped first, followed by big bale or clamp grass silage and then other ration components including maize (if available), brewers’ grains and minerals. The automatic weighing system on the machine helps to ensure accurate rationing.

Baled lucerne silage has been introduced for the first time in the last year, to vary the forage diet and provide home grown protein.

Bale handling capability boosts efficiency

Upgrading the farm’s diet feeder from a paddle-style wagon to a vertical auger mixer is saving dairy farmer Osian Edwards 90 minutes every day whilst also boosting milk yield and quality in the 132 cow Holstein Friesian herd.

So dramatic a change is hard to believe simply from changing one piece of equipment, but on a farm where round bale grass silage is the mainstay of the winter ration it is the new machine’s vastly superior ability to chop and mix long fibre forage that is making all the difference.

“We are now mixing the milking cow ration in 35 minutes with a single load compared with two loads that took two hours before,” explains Osian. “This has made a tremendous difference to the working day, and also means we are feeding the cows earlier with a more consistently chopped ration. Intakes have increased as a result and we’ve seen an uplift in yields and milk protein.”

Pen-y-Bryn, near Cwiliog, is situated on the Lleyn Peninsular in west Wales and extends to 140 acres. The relatively mild climate lends itself to extended grazing, so cows are typically outside on a rotational paddock system from March to October, when baled silage is sometimes fed in ring feeders.

Winters are still long enough, however, and feeding had become the biggest chore of each day.

“We choose to make our silage as big round bales because it is a more flexible system, and we typically aim for around 30% dry matter,” explains Osian. “The Kuhn Euromix has revolutionised our operation and ensured our system of using big bales is sustainable for the future.