Question for you 'real' farmers

[dooleysm]

I've got a 40 mile commute each way to work so I have plenty of time to look around and take things in. Farmers have been harvesting corn for a couple weeks now due to the drought and heat we've been having. I noticed one field in particular last week where they had picked the corn and then gone through and mowed off all the stalks. Yesterday on the way home I noticed they had baled the cornstalks into large round bales. I've never seen that before, what gives? Is that a new thing, or are they maybe worried about not being able to find hay this winter and are planning on feeding this to their cattle?

 

[tydp]

Baled corn stalks is used for cattle feed.

 

[Soundguy]

Yep.. and in hard times you will see chopped sour oranges rolle d out into the pasture as well..

Soundguy

 

[hudr]

I have seen cows w/ bloody noses from what they had to eat during hard droughts. We have been to the point of baling soybean stalks in the past. Last year around here a roll of junk hay was worth $50-$60 a bale. Now you are lucky if you can sell it at all. Talk about feast or famine.

 

[ScottOkla]

Their are now places where the stalks are being harvested for their sugars that can be fermented into ethanol. I just read today about studies looking at how little of the stalks/leaves/cobs can be left on the ground to keep the soil intact, while harvesting the rest for feedstock or especially ethanol.

 

[Trac-Tech]

I'm intrested to hear what sort of round baler they used to bale the stalks? Just thinking about it, was it a chain and slat baler? I cant imagine a belt baler or fixed chamber roller baler being able to handle the stalks?? It's just for the information in the head that you might use one day??? I'm sure you know what I mean, so any answers or photos would be appreciated.
Cheers

 

[Farmwithjunk]

Not a great deal of nutrient value in dried corn stalks, but they're better than nothing. Filler for the most part. With what will surely be a severe hay shortage around mid winter, anything that you can wrap a string around is getting baled.

 

[dsb5610]

In my area it is common to use the stalks for bedding in the winter. I've seen the cattle chew on them but that's about it. Never seen anyone put them out for feed.

Almost 30 years ago when I was a kid working for a large farmer we used a 'stacker' to make large stacks of stalks. When round balers became more popular we used that. There are attachments for the front of at least some round balers that will cut the stalk just before it goes into the baler reducing the number of passes through the field. The one I ran was a belt version.

dsb

 

[MossRoad]

I've got a 40 mile commute each way to work so I have plenty of time to look around and take things in. Farmers have been harvesting corn for a couple weeks now due to the drought and heat we've been having. I noticed one field in particular last week where they had picked the corn and then gone through and mowed off all the stalks. Yesterday on the way home I noticed they had baled the cornstalks into large round bales. I've never seen that before, what gives? Is that a new thing, or are they maybe worried about not being able to find hay this winter and are planning on feeding this to their cattle?

I noticed that same thing up here in northern Indiana for the first time last year. Never seen baled corn stalks before that.

 

[ScottOkla]

I noticed that same thing up here in northern Indiana for the first time last year. Never seen baled corn stalks before that.

Do you have an ethanol plant nearby?