WSU Extension Q&A: Measuring moisture in hay isn’t cut and dried

Q. How can I measure moisture in hay?

A. The following methods are ranked from most to least accurate with error enclosed within parentheses: 1) convection oven drying (plus-minus 1 percent); 2) microwave oven drying (minus 2 to plus 1 percent); Koster tester and near infrared reflectance spectroscopy, NIRS, (plus-minus 3 percent); and 3) electronic probe (plus-minus 5 percent). Moisture is not uniform in windrows, bales or stacks. Regardless of the procedure used, 12 to 20 random samples are necessary to accurately determine forage moisture. The electronic probe has the advantage of allowing for many samples done quickly.

Q. Besides market animals, what kind of stuff can 4-H members do that you don’t have to have a farm for?

A. Our Exploring Your Environment project focuses on two concepts: ecosystem services and Earth’s capacity. The activities focus on careful observation of the local environment and development of scientific thinking and science abilities. The curriculum makes science fun and relevant to all youth, farm or no. If you’re interested in this kind of fun, contact the WSU Franklin County Extension Office at 509-545-3511 or franklinco@wsu.edu.

Q. I had some barley hay tested and the forage quality report shows that it is relatively high in starch (about 15 percent). What does this mean for the steers I’m feeding out for beef?

A. Let’s think about what is going on with regard to forage quality as the plant is maturing. In general, as cereal forages such as barley progress from a vegetative to full maturity several things happen: protein (an indicator of quality) typically goes down, and the fiber fraction increases, which can make the hay less digestible. When the seed head emerges from the plant, it starts to fill with seed. As the seed matures, it becomes a depot for starch, which is a carbohydrate. From an animal standpoint, such as with your steers, the increase in starch in the hay serves to increase its energy. Therefore, the increased energy in the hay may serve to be a substitute for other energy sources in the diet. When balancing the ration for the steers, one may be able to reduce the amount of grains or other energy sources in the diet due to the increased energy in the hay. Your WSU Extension professionals can provide assistance in balancing diets for your animals based on your available feeds.

This story was originally published August 26, 2017 at 2:09 PM with the headline "WSU Extension Q&A: Measuring moisture in hay isn’t cut and dried."