Horse owner and feed specialist Bill Hodges says many south Georgia horse owners have supplemented their horses diets with feed like alfalfa because typical feed isn't available. Twenty five horses have been sickened so far from eating alfalfa hay from Michigan containing hoary alyssum. Hodges once lost six horses in two hours because of a bug in alfalfa hay and is now extremely cautious about what he feeds his 22 horses. A weed in alfalfa hay is sickening horses. The weed is toxic to...

Forage experts say farmers should make good use of their pastures and consider rotation grazing as a way to stockpile forage. Experts: Farmers should make good use of pastures Midwestern hay supplies will be scarce this year due to a late freeze and too little rain. Stockpiling involves setting aside some of the paddocks -- usually about 25 percent -- around mid-August so it can produce forage for future grazing. Hay producers should watch for pests and treat leafhoppers before they...

And landowners with hay, even if it's grass hay, are wondering how much they should charge per bale for someone else to come in and bale the hay. Anecdotally, one farmer reported that his alfalfa was rebounding well after the first cutting, but that grass in the mix was not coming back very well. The same farmer who sold him the hay was selling hay at $4 per bale in central Indiana if he delivered it. Because alfalfa in their area froze back and new regrowth then came through, much of the...

Many producers mention bloat as the reason they do not graze their alfalfa. Is your alfalfa in full bloom but not tall enough to mechanically harvest? One option you have is grazing it. Grazing mature, moisture stressed alfalfa would allow you to utilize the crop and rest your pastures. Rotational grazing during the summer seldom harms the alfalfa stand. Do not put animals out onto alfalfa pasture if a heavy dew is present. However, its likelihood can be greatly reduced when grazing...

The NGFA believes that a voluntary self-inspection program (VSIP) should be a cornerstone of FDA s initiative to develop a more comprehensive and risk-based approach to feed safety under its Animal Feed Safety System (AFSS) initiative, the NGFA said in a statement submitted to the agency. The NGFA believes that a voluntary self-inspection program (VSIP) should be a cornerstone of FDA s initiative to develop a more comprehensive and risk-based approach to feed safety under its Animal Feed...

Menu Foods, North America's largest producer of private label wet pet food, which recalled more than 60 million containers of pet food during the contaminated pet food scandal, is in essence, a public trust company. While pet owners across the continent feed their pets the only food they trust--homemade--pet food manufacturers are scrambling to make a comeback and drive up their flagging profit lines. Two companies from China that supplied pet food...

As you recall, the summer drought of 2006 caused some producers to overgraze their summer pastures, greatly impacting pasture productivity and leaving very little opportunity for any fall forage production. Mismanagement, or overgrazing, of pastures can have the most detrimental effects on overall production cost for a producer, especially during times of drought stress. The closer you graze a pasture, the longer the rest period is required for forage recovery, impacting the productivity...

Dairy producers have adopted them mostly, but Johnson said beef producers can benefit as well because of less forage loss. Forage Expo lets producers see equipment in operation. That higher moisture spurs fermentation, which produces acid. It is simpler than the horizontal model and will handle any dry hay. It can take three-, 13-foot rows into one and folds up nice for transport. Jay-Lor displayed their 4405 cubic foot vertical mixer next. An H&S bale wrapper that can wrap dry to...

The average acre of Bermuda or alfalfa used for hay will reap 6 to 8 tons of hay per acre per year with four cuttings, said Dr. Hay growers usually cut the fields of grasses used in hay production two to four times a year. There are no numbers or estimates for hay bales produced in 2006 or produced so far this year, Hayes said. While states like Kansas are struggling to get wheat and other commodities out of flooded mid-west fields, Tennessee farmers and ranchers are struggling to grow or...