Frustrated by rains during the haying season, a growing number of Manitoba producers are wrapping their round bales in plastic.
The white plastic wrap enables producers to put their hay up wet while helping to prevent mould from setting in and spoiling the bales.
Glenn Friesen, provincial business development specialist for forages, said there can be a number of benefits to that approach. However, he advises producers to look before they leap.
“Make sure you do your homework. What it’s going to cost per bale, and most importantly what it’s going to cost for pound of beef gain?”
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A big advantage of the plastic wrap is that producers can harvest their hay soon after cutting without having to wait for it to dry down to 15-18 percent moisture, which is optimal for bales that will not be wrapped.
Friesen said 50-60 percent moisture is ideal for producers wanting to wrap their round hay bales in plastic. At that moisture level, conditions are favourable for the hay to become silage.
The plastic wrap seals the bales. That keeps out oxygen that can foster mould growth while temperatures are still mild.
Bales harvested at 50-60 percent moisture and wrapped with plastic usually turn into silage within three weeks, Friesen said. The bales should then be able to hold their feed value for up to a year.
Producers planning to use the wrap should do it immediately after baling to prevent heating and mould development, which will lower feed quality, said Friesen.
There is still more being learned about the circumstances when plastic wrap should or should not be used on round bales.
At this point, Friesen does not recommend wrapping bales that were made when the hay was at 25 percent moisture. That hay may not convert to silage, which creates a risk that mould could set in during mild temperatures in the fall or following spring.
It is probably wiser to treat hay at 25 percent moisture with a preservative that can counter the risk of mould, Friesen said.
“My opinion is the preservatives would be a more recommended practice. We’ve only seen this lower moisture wrapping in the last year or two and we’re still learning about that.”
If people choose to wrap bales at 25 percent moisture, there could be a greater risk of heating. When bales reach temperatures between 45 to 65 C, the proteins and fibre of the hay become less digestible for cattle. Temperature readings from inside the bales can reveal whether that is happening.
At 40 percent moisture, it is possible for hay to ensile inside the plastic wrap, but it is still not something that Friesen recommends. People are doing it, he said, but the results are not consistent.
The cost to wrap round bales in plastic is $5-$8 per bale, including the cost of the plastic and the implement that wraps the bales. Because of that cost, wrapping tends to be more practical with higher value forages, such as alfalfa.
For many producers, their operations may not be large enough to warrant buying a bale wrapper. An alternative could be to share that purchase with neighbours or have the work done by a custom operator.
“The majority of livestock producers in Manitoba are cow-calf with 100 cows or less,” said Friesen. “That operation is not big enough to justify the cost of buying a wrapper.”
Bales harvested with a high moisture content will be a lot heavier than those harvested at 15 percent moisture. Producers need to consider whether their farm equipment is capable of handling those heavier bales.
Friesen said hard core bales are preferable when producers are planning to use the plastic wrap. The tighter bales hold less oxygen inside, which makes them less susceptible to spoilage when the hay has been harvested wet.
Another recommendation from Friesen is to wrap the bales so that the plastic around them is at least six millimeters thick. Make regular checks for punctures once the bales are stacked since those holes could let air in and cause spoilage. Some kind of waterproof and airproof adhesive should be used to seal punctures.
By using the plastic wrap to quickly harvest a crop like alfalfa, producers could also improve the potential of yields from future cuts. The greater the length of time between cutting hay and baling it, the greater the damage that will be done by the tractor and baler tires to the regrowth coming from the crowns of alfalfa plants, said Friesen.
