Month: November 2013

Grazing Corn Residue

– Rory Lewandowski, Extension Educator Wayne County

A lot of acres of corn has been harvested over the past several weeks. For every bushel of corn harvested by the combine, between 14 to 16 pounds of corn residue dry matter is left in the field. Graziers need to view that residue as a resource opportunity. That remaining corn residue is composed of corn grain, cob, husks, leaves, and stalks, all of it with some nutritional value. Corn residue, when grazed during a mid-October through December time frame is a suitable feedstuff for most classes of ruminant livestock. The exceptions are livestock in a late gestation or lactation stage of production. In addition to using a low cost feedstuff, grazing corn residue removes animals from grass pastures during the late fall period. This can benefit pastures, insuring that they are not overgrazed before they go dormant. Grazing corn residues can help Continue reading Grazing Corn Residue →

Online Mortality Composting Certification

– Amanda Douridas, Champaign and Union Counties AgNR OSU Extension Educator

Composting livestock mortalities can be an efficient and inexpensive method of disposing of on-farm mortalities. Rendering facilities are becoming harder to come by and so are landfills that accept mortalities. Transportation costs are increasing as well. Composting offers a year round alternative that may be more cost effective than other disposal methods. Once the compost cycle is complete, the finished product can be land applied to the farm’s fields as a nutrient resource.

To start composting livestock mortalities, one must complete Continue reading Online Mortality Composting Certification →