soarwitheagles
True BYH Addict
Hi again everyone!
Well, we are trying another experiment [never ending process here].
We have large numbers of dairy farmers in our area. I constantly see them create massive silage piles [200ft. x 80ft. and 20-30 ft. hight] and I believe they are using the field corn they grow and maybe throwing in some of their hay too.
To be honest with you, I am not sure what is in their silage, but I see them creating massive amounts of silage year and after year.
Last year our feed bill was over $1200, as in, say good bye to any and all profit, and waking up to discover much more money went into the sheep than came out of the sheep. The most expensive time of the year for us was summer, when everything here dies and we had to purchase large numbers of hay and alfalfa and clover bales.
So this year, I am experimenting with some perennial pastures with the hope of lowering our feed costs.
I am also deeply interested in creating a supplement for the sheep that is either low cost or no cost.
Hence, the experiment with fava beans. Last year we planted 100 plants and had an incredible harvest of approximately 20-30 pods per plant. We also discovered the sheep love eating the beans, the leaves, the pods, yep, everything except the wood stock. I also believe the fava plant with the beans is providing approximately 16-24% protein. After doing a little reading, I understand protein is important for sheep.
Now the million dollar question:
How do we create silage out of fava beans?
I asked a local and they told me a number of interesting factors:
1. Silage must be semi dried to a specific percentage of moisture to facilitate fermentation.
2. Silage must be "compressed" before being covered with the plastic.
3. Silage has specific percentages of various ingredients [for dairy farmers].
5. Silage must be cut up and they use a special machine to do so [I have watched when they harvest the field corn and the entire plant along with the corn is immediately and instantly shredded to tiny 1/4" pieces].
Can anyone help me make some awesome silage out of fava beans? I have no clue what I am doing!
I am attaching a pic of 1000 fava bean plants we planted in November [October planting would have been much better].
Here is the good news so far:
1. Fava beans can be purchased for only $25 per 50lbs of seed. 50lbs could easily cover a half acre.
2. Our water bill to grow fava beans is zero [we are growing during the rainy season].
3. Our winters are mild enough to grow all winter long [Fava's are the only "legume" which we can overwinter successfully in a maritime climate, as they are frost hardy to about 7̊F].
4. Each plant when fully ripe has approximately 2lbs of eatable silage [so this would equate to 10 tons of silage per acre (5 tons on dry biomass per acre].
5. We have the land to plant a number of acres of fava beans and would like to make use of the land.
6. Sheep love the fava beans [they love the leaves, the pods, and the beans themselves].
7. If we can figure a way to make this work, our supplement feed cost would go to nearly zero.
8. Fava beans will fixate 200 pounds of nitrogen per acre into the existing soil.
Here are some ideas that have come to my mind so far but not so sure about implementing them:
1. Could I use our large wood chippers to cut up the fava beans and plants?
2. Could I repeatedly run over the chipped fava beans and plants with my large tractor to provide the "compression"?
3. What about simply harvesting the plants with the beans still intact and simply letting them dry out on concrete, then chop them up and place in storage?
4. In the future, would it be ok to plant a clover "cover crop" in between the 3ft. rows of fava beans?
Ok, as you can see, I have no clue what I am doing, but most certainly want to discover a way to make this work.
Thank you!
Well, we are trying another experiment [never ending process here].
We have large numbers of dairy farmers in our area. I constantly see them create massive silage piles [200ft. x 80ft. and 20-30 ft. hight] and I believe they are using the field corn they grow and maybe throwing in some of their hay too.
To be honest with you, I am not sure what is in their silage, but I see them creating massive amounts of silage year and after year.
Last year our feed bill was over $1200, as in, say good bye to any and all profit, and waking up to discover much more money went into the sheep than came out of the sheep. The most expensive time of the year for us was summer, when everything here dies and we had to purchase large numbers of hay and alfalfa and clover bales.
So this year, I am experimenting with some perennial pastures with the hope of lowering our feed costs.
I am also deeply interested in creating a supplement for the sheep that is either low cost or no cost.
Hence, the experiment with fava beans. Last year we planted 100 plants and had an incredible harvest of approximately 20-30 pods per plant. We also discovered the sheep love eating the beans, the leaves, the pods, yep, everything except the wood stock. I also believe the fava plant with the beans is providing approximately 16-24% protein. After doing a little reading, I understand protein is important for sheep.
Now the million dollar question:
How do we create silage out of fava beans?
I asked a local and they told me a number of interesting factors:
1. Silage must be semi dried to a specific percentage of moisture to facilitate fermentation.
2. Silage must be "compressed" before being covered with the plastic.
3. Silage has specific percentages of various ingredients [for dairy farmers].
5. Silage must be cut up and they use a special machine to do so [I have watched when they harvest the field corn and the entire plant along with the corn is immediately and instantly shredded to tiny 1/4" pieces].
Can anyone help me make some awesome silage out of fava beans? I have no clue what I am doing!
I am attaching a pic of 1000 fava bean plants we planted in November [October planting would have been much better].
Here is the good news so far:
1. Fava beans can be purchased for only $25 per 50lbs of seed. 50lbs could easily cover a half acre.
2. Our water bill to grow fava beans is zero [we are growing during the rainy season].
3. Our winters are mild enough to grow all winter long [Fava's are the only "legume" which we can overwinter successfully in a maritime climate, as they are frost hardy to about 7̊F].
4. Each plant when fully ripe has approximately 2lbs of eatable silage [so this would equate to 10 tons of silage per acre (5 tons on dry biomass per acre].
5. We have the land to plant a number of acres of fava beans and would like to make use of the land.
6. Sheep love the fava beans [they love the leaves, the pods, and the beans themselves].
7. If we can figure a way to make this work, our supplement feed cost would go to nearly zero.
8. Fava beans will fixate 200 pounds of nitrogen per acre into the existing soil.
Here are some ideas that have come to my mind so far but not so sure about implementing them:
1. Could I use our large wood chippers to cut up the fava beans and plants?
2. Could I repeatedly run over the chipped fava beans and plants with my large tractor to provide the "compression"?
3. What about simply harvesting the plants with the beans still intact and simply letting them dry out on concrete, then chop them up and place in storage?
4. In the future, would it be ok to plant a clover "cover crop" in between the 3ft. rows of fava beans?
Ok, as you can see, I have no clue what I am doing, but most certainly want to discover a way to make this work.
Thank you!
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