Does processing corn silage pay?
There is currently much interest in processing (rolling) corn silage to increase kernel digestibility. Researchers at Washington State University with physiologically mature corn plant that had hard kernels have demonstrated increased digestibility and improved milk yields. Does it work with typical corn plant harvested at earlier stages? Joe Harrison and Lynn Johnson reported in Dairy News, a Washington State University publication, that cows receiving hard dough (before denting) corn silage produced 1.3 lbs. more milk when silage was processed. Milk from cows fed corn silage harvested at milk line was 2.6 lbs. greater. Assuming milk at $.13/lb., this results in $6,169 more income per 100 cows per year with hard dough and $12,337 with milk line corn. This also assumes that cows will continue to milk throughout lactation at this difference. This may not be true, but extra energy would be available for body condition replenishment and would not be wasted unless cows were over conditione
