Introduction
In recent years the quantity of grass ensiled in big bales has increased considerably. Improvements in baling and wrapping technology would indicate that a significant proportion of grass will continue to be preserved within big bales. The big bale system has a number of advantages over conventional systems:
- It allows farmers who normally make hay to produce fodder under adverse weather conditions.
- It provides the opportunity to preserve small amounts of grass, for example, taking out paddocks for cutting as silage
- It provides a convenient method of buffer feeding silage in situations of summer grass shortage without resorting to opening clamp silos
- A wrapped bale system does not require the capital investment necessary for conventional silage
- Provided the grass is wilted to 25 percent dry matter (DM) or higher there should be no effluent problem
- It is readily available as a contractor service
Baled silage is a system requiring a high degree of management. Problems can only become evident at feeding. However attention to detail at all stages of ensiling should prevent problems developing.
