You’ve invested time, money, and effort into growing and harvesting high-quality hay. Now, it’s time to protect that investment. Like the food we eat with our families, proper storage is crucial to maintaining the nutritional value and overall quality of your hay, and that’s where hay covers come in. They shield your hay from the elements, preserving a valuable feed source and ensuring your livestock receive the nutrition they need to thrive. This chapter will explore the key threats to hay quality during storage and how using hay covers can help you maximize your returns.
The Enemies of Hay Quality
Moisture Damage
Hay acts a lot like a sponge. Leave it exposed to rain or snow, and it will soak up moisture like there’s no tomorrow. While some extra moisture might benefit the seller, it’s a different story for the farmer buying the hay. Once the hay is in your storage, excess moisture becomes a serious issue because it sets the stage for mold growth and nutrient breakdown. The result? Significant dry matter loss, potentially ranging from 5% to 30% or even higher. That’s money down the drain! Using hay covers can help you avoid these losses so you get the most out of every bale.
Sun Bleaching
The same sun that helps your crops grow can also rob your hay of essential nutrients. The ultraviolet (UV) radiation in sunlight breaks down essential vitamins in the hay, with vitamin A being particularly vulnerable. According to Kentucky Equine Research, hay can lose up to 50% of its vitamin A content within the first 24 hours of curing if left exposed to direct sunlight. And the vitamin losses don’t stop there. If your hay is uncovered while it sits in storage, that sun keeps working against you. As those vitamins disappear, the hay becomes less nutritious and less tasty. Your animals might start turning their noses up at it, which means they’re not getting the nutrients they need to produce milk, gain weight, or stay healthy. Don’t let the sun steal the goodness from your hay! Protecting it from UV damage is crucial for maintaining optimal animal performance.
Weathering
Hay bales stored outdoors face the full brunt of Mother Nature: driving rain, swirling snow, and harsh winds. This constant exposure creates an effect we call “weathering,” where the outer layers of your bales become wet, discolored, and often moldy – not exactly an appetizing meal for your livestock! But it’s not just about looks. Weathering significantly reduces the quality and palatability of your hay. Animals may outright refuse to eat weathered portions; even if they do, they’ll get less nutritional value. In fact, studies have shown that prolonged exposure to the elements can result in the loss of up to 8 inches of the outer layer of your hay bales! That’s a significant loss of valuable feed.
But the problems with weathering go beyond just lost nutrients and unpalatable feed. Mold often develops on weathered hay, posing a serious health risk to your animals. Moldy hay can cause respiratory problems, digestive upset, and even more serious issues due to the toxins some molds produce.
Benefits of Using Hay Covers
Reduced Spoilage and Losses
Hay covers shield stored feed from rain, snow, wind, and even UV rays. This protection significantly reduces spoilage and dry matter loss. In fact, studies have shown that uncovered hay stored outdoors can lose a whopping 25% to 30% or more of its dry matter—that’s like throwing away a quarter of your hay! Those losses shrink dramatically with effective covers, saving you money and ensuring you have enough high-quality feed to last the season.
Nutrient Preservation
Hay covers don’t just protect against the elements—they also lock in essential nutrients. With effective covers, Vitamins A and D, protein, sugars, and digestible fiber are all preserved, ensuring your animals get the most nutritional bang for their buck, keeping them healthy and productive.
Improved Palatability
Your animals dislike bland or off-flavored food almost as much as you do! Fortunately, covered hay retains its fresh color and enticing aroma, making it more appealing to your livestock. Better taste means they’ll eat more of what you offer them, leading to better overall health and those results you’re after, whether it’s weight gain, milk production, or strong performance in the field.
Improved Feed Efficiency
Higher quality hay means happier, healthier animals, which translates to improved feed efficiency. Simply put, your animals will get more out of every bite, maximizing the nutritional value of your hay and making your operation more profitable.
Reduced Need for Supplements
When hay loses nutrients, you may end up spending extra money on supplements to make up for those deficiencies. When hay covers are used, those nutrients are protected naturally, and costly additives are unnecessary.
Maximizing Forage Value
Hay covers help you get the absolute most out of your forage investment. By preserving quality and nutritional value, you can rely more on your homegrown hay, reducing your dependence on purchased feeds and supplements. You’ll have greater control over your livestock’s diet, which helps you maintain consistency and is key to optimal animal performance.
Real-World Impact
Seeing is believing, right? Let's crunch some numbers to show just how big of a difference hay covers can make to your bottom line.
Imagine this: You’re a rancher with 30 cows averaging 1200 lbs. You plan to feed 2.5 percent of the cow’s body weight over the winter. Based on your expected DM, each cow will need about 27 pounds of hay daily to stay in good condition. To make sure you have enough, you do some calculations and figure you’ll need around 76 tons of hay to last the season.
Now, let's consider two scenarios:
Scenario 1: Covered and Secured
You’ve invested in hay covers and proper storage techniques. You’re a pro at minimizing losses, so you only expect to lose about 5% of your hay during storage. In this example, you’ll need to harvest or purchase around 77 tons or one extra ton to account for those losses.
Scenario 2: Exposed and Vulnerable
In this scenario, your hay is baled and stacked, but left exposed to the elements. Rain, snow, sun—it's taking a beating. Under these conditions, you could lose up to 35% of your hay to spoilage, meaning you’ll need a whopping 117 tons of hay to feed your herd!
That's a difference of 40 tons just from spoilage! Now, let’s think about the extra land and labor it would take to harvest that much hay.
Dollars and Cents
Harvesting Costs
If you harvest your own hay, those extra 40 tons could cost you an additional $1,200 to $1,600 per year just for mowing, conditioning, raking, and baling.
Purchasing Costs
If you buy hay, you could be looking at an extra $3,120 to $4,095 (based on hypothetical hay prices ranging between $80 and $105/ton).
Suddenly, those hay covers seem like a pretty reasonable investment, don’t they? They can save you serious headaches, heartaches, and wallet aches in the long run.
Wrapping It Up
Your hay is an investment; like any good investment, it needs protection. Unfortunately, leaving valuable feed exposed to the elements is like throwing that investment away.
Ultimately, hay covers are your first defense against moisture damage, sun bleaching, and weathering. They preserve your hay’s quality and nutritional value, ensuring your animals get the best possible feed.
Chapter 2 will look at the ins and outs of hay covers in detail and equip you to choose the best material and style for your farm.
