Ariel John Luminarias July 26, 2021

Procedures in silage making

Phase 1:  Phase 1 starts at harvest and under ideal conditions of moisture, chop length,
and firm packing lasts only a few hours.  This initial phase continues until either the
oxygen supply or water-soluble carbohydrates have been depleted.    The most notable
feature of this phase is the increased temperature of the newly fermenting crop resulting
from ongoing cell respiration where carbon dioxide, water and heat are produced.  In
poorly sealed and/or packed silos, bunk life of the resulting feed can be reduced since
the initial growth of aerobic spoilage organisms (yeasts and Bacillus species) occur
during this phase.  Once feed out occurs, yeasts can rapidly increase in numbers
causing heating in the feed bunk and lowered feed consumption.  

Phase 2:  Phase 2 begins when the trapped oxygen supply is depleted and generally
lasts no longer than 24 to 72 hours.  During this phase, anaerobic (without oxygen)
hetero fermentation occurs.  The primary bacteria during this phase
are Enterobacteria.  They can tolerate the heat produced during the aerobic phase and
are viable in a pH range of 5 to 7 which is found in the fermenting forage at this time. 
These hetero fermenters produce both acetic and lactic acid but tend to be inefficient at
producing these acids relative to nutrients lost in the fermenting crop.  The final
proportions of these acids depend on the crop maturity, moisture, and natural bacterial
populations.   When the pH drops below 5, homo-fermenters predominate and phase 3
of silage fermentation begins.    

Phase 3:  Phase 3 is a transitional phase that generally lasts only 24 hrs. During this
phase, the homo-fermentative bacteria, which are more efficient than the hetero-
fermenters, rapidly drop the pH of the fermenting forage by efficiently producing lactic
acid as an end-product.  As the temperature of the silage mass decreases and the pH
continues to drop, the bacteria in this phase become inhibited and phase 4 lactic acid
bacteria increase.

Phase 4:  This phase is a continuation of phase 3 with a stabilization of temperature of

the fermented crop.  Homo-fermentative bacteria convert water-soluble carbohydrates
to lactic acid, which is very effective at dropping the pH which helps preserve silage.  In
well-fermented silages, lactic acid can account for over 65% of the total volatile fatty
acids. 
The final pH of an ensiled crop depends on the type of forage and moisture content of
the ensiled forage.  Legumes, i.e., alfalfa, have less water-soluble carbohydrates, a
higher buffering capacity, and generally reach a final pH of about 4.5.  Corn silage, in
contrast to grasses and legumes, has a lower buffering capacity, more water-soluble
carbohydrates, and generally reaches a pH around 4.0. When the terminal pH is
reached, the forage is preserved within the silo.  Silage pH does not indicate the rate or
quality of the resulting fermentation.  To determine the quality of the fermentation, a
fermentation analysis is needed where the amount of acetic, lactic, and other acids is
determined.  

Phases 2, 3, and 4 generally are completed within 10 days to 3 weeks from harvest. 
Thus, the general recommendation is to wait at least 3 weeks before feeding newly
harvested forages.  The length of this fermentation process will vary depending on the
crop harvested (related to buffering capacity), moisture, and maturity of the ensiled
crop.  Properly applied, high-quality inoculants may decrease fermentation time
required.

Phase 5:   This phase lasts through the remainder of storage where the fermentation
process is stable as long as oxygen does not penetrate silage, i.e., through silo walls
with final temperature of well-preserved silage being 75 to 85° F.  However, changes do
occur in the digestibility of the nutrients found in these forages.  First, studies show that
with longer storage times, starches become more quickly degraded in the rumen. 
Secondly, changes also may occur in the digestibility of the neutral detergent fiber
(NDF).  Some studies have shown an increase in the digestibility of NDF with longer
storage times whereas another study has shown no changes with storage. In one study
where NDF digestibility was significantly increased, NDF digestibility appeared to
plateau 6 months from ensiling.

Phase 6:  This phase occurs during feed out, is just as important and often neglected
part of the fermentation process and can result in substantial dry matter losses as
oxygen is reintroduced into the fermented crop. Proper management of the silage face
and at the feed bunk can minimize dry matter losses and optimize feed intakes by dairy
cows.
 Steps in Milking

Step 1

Observation
Make sure to identify cows that must be milked last or that are receiving treatment (e.g.
those identified with a leg band).
 Step 2

Forestripping

This step is essential for detecting the early signs of mastitis. It flushes out bacteria
from the teat canal and stimulates the milk flow. In tie-stall barns, use a strip cup to
have a better chance of detecting the presence of clotty, stringy, or watery milk. The
strip cup must be cleaned and disinfected after each milking.

In the milking parlour, the foremilk can be stripped on the floor, but never into the hand
since this can promote further contamination. Forestrip all quarters. If milk is abnormal,
examine all quarters and teats by hand to detect early signs of mastitis (redness and
warmth) or other lesions.
 Step 3

Cleaning the teats

Use a disinfectant solution approved by Health Canada and adjust the cleaning time
depending on how dirty teats are. To be effective, the pre-dip solution must remain in
contact with the teats for at least 30 seconds.

Only the teats should be wetted and then thoroughly wiped with a dry single service
towel. Pay particular attention to teat ends. Alcohol swabs may be used as a test of teat
cleanliness.
 The order of Step 2 and Step 3 can be reversed

Step 4

Attaching the milking unit

The milking unit should be attached within 60 to 120 seconds after first stimulation. This
time allows the milk letdown reflex to occur and maximizes milking performance.
 Step 5

Adjusting the milking unit

Adjust the milking machine to avoid a twist in the hose and to obtain a square position
of the four teat cups under the udder. Teat cups must be aligned vertically. The unit
alignment should be such that, the claw outlet points between the cow’s legs. The claw
outlet should point between the cow’s front legs for tie stalls and herringbone parlours
and between the back legs for parallel parlours. Quickly correct any slipping teat cup.
 Step 6

End of milking
Complete milking should take from 4-6 minutes per cow for most cows. Observe the
milk flow carefully or use milk flow indicators to determine the ideal moment for shutting
off the milking unit. Avoid overmilking.
 Step 7

Milking unit removal

If the claw is removed manually, always shut off the vacuum before attempting
to remove the milking unit. When using automatic detachers, make sure that they are
properly adjusted.
 Step 8

Disinfection

Once milking is completed, dip the teats fully in a disinfectant solution approved by
Health Canada. Teat dip cups must be clean. Discard any unused solution, clean the
container thoroughly and prepare fresh solution at each milking.
 Feedstuff

Basic types of feeds

Animal feeds are classified as follows: (1) concentrates, high in energy value, including
fat, cereal grains and their by-products (barley, corn, oats, rye, wheat), high-protein oil
meals or cakes (soybean, canola, cottonseed, peanut [groundnut]), and by-products
from processing of sugar beets, sugarcane, animals, and fish, and (2) roughages,
including pasture grasses, hays, silage, root crops, straw, and stover (cornstalks).
Concentrate foods

Cereal grains and their by-products

In the agricultural practices of North America and northern Europe, barley,

corn, oats, rye, and sorghums are grown almost entirely as animal feed, although small
quantities are processed for human consumption as well. These grains are fed whole or
ground, either singly or mixed with high-protein oil meals or other by-products, minerals,
and vitamins to form a complete feed for pigs and poultry or an adequate dietary
supplement for ruminants and horses.

The production of grains is seasonal because of temperature or moisture conditions or a

combination of both. It is necessary to produce a full year’s supply during the
limited growing season. The grain is dried to 14 percent or less moisture to prevent
sprouting or molding; the grain is then stored in containers or buildings where insects
and rodents cannot destroy it. It is generally desirable to store more than a year’s
supply of the grains to be used as feed, because crop failures sometimes occur.
High-protein meals

Vegetable seeds produced primarily as a source of oil for human food and industrial

uses include soybeans, peanuts (groundnuts), flaxseed (linseed),
canola, cottonseed, coconuts, oil palm, and sunflower seeds. After these seeds are
processed to remove the oil, the residues, which may contain from 5 percent to less
than 1 percent of fat and 20 to 50 percent of protein, are marketed as animal feeds.
Cottonseed and peanuts have woody hulls or shells, which are generally removed
before processing—if the hulls or shells are left intact, the resulting by-product is higher
in fibre and appreciably lower in protein and energy value. The protein quality of these
meals for monogastrics varies greatly depending on the levels and availability of the
amino acids present. Ruminants in general require only protein or nitrogen sources for
the rumen microbes to synthesize amino acids.
These high-protein feeds supplement inexpensive roughages, cereal grains, and other
low-protein feeds in order to furnish the protein and amino acids needed for efficient
growth or production. The supplement chosen for a particular diet depends largely on
the cost and availability of supply.

By-products of sugar beets and sugarcane

From the sugar beet industry come beet tops, which are used on the farm either fresh or
ensiled, and dried beet pulp and beet molasses, which are produced in sugar factories.
Cane molasses is a residue from cane sugar manufacture. These are all palatable,
high-quality sources of carbohydrates. Sugarcane bagasse (stalk residue) is fibrous,
hard to digest, and of very low feed value. In Europe, beets and some other roots are
grown as animal feed. Citrus molasses and dried citrus pulp, which are generally
available at low cost as by-products of the citrus juice industry, are often used as high-
quality feeds for cattle and sheep.
Other by-product feeds

Large quantities of animal feed are by-products or residues from commercial processing
of cereal grains for human consumption. The largest group of these by-product feeds
comes from the milling of wheat, including wheat bran, wheat middlings, wheat germ
meal, and wheat mill feed. In some areas, bakery wastes, such as stale and leftover
bread, rolls, and various pastry products, are ground and used as filler or feed for pets
and farm animals. Rice bran and rice hulls are obtained in similar fashion from the mills
that polish rice for human food. Corn gluten feed, corn gluten meal, and hominy feed
are produced as by-products from the manufacture of starch for industrial and food
uses.

Brewers’ grains, corn distillers’ grains and solubles, and brewer’s yeast are useful
animal feeds and are collected from the dried residues of the fermentation industries
that produce beer and distilled spirits. Waste products from pineapple-canning plants
include pineapple bran or pulp and the ensiled leaves from the plant. By-products from
the abattoirs and meatpacking plants that process animals into meat include such feeds
as meat and bonemeal, tankage (animal residue left after rendering fat in a
slaughterhouse), meat scraps, blood meal, poultry waste, and feather meal. Various
types and qualities of fish meals are produced by fish-processing plants. These animal
by-products typically contain 50 percent or more high-quality protein and the mineral
elements calcium and phosphorus. Steamed bonemeal is particularly high in these
important minerals. Dried skim milk, dried whey, and dried buttermilk are feed by-
products from the dairy industry.
Roughages
Pasture

Pasture grasses and legumes, both native and cultivated, are the most important single

source of feed for ruminants such as cattle, horses, sheep, and goats. During
the growing season they furnish most of the feed for these animals at a cost lower than
for feeds that need to be harvested, processed, and transported. Hundreds of different
grasses, legumes, bushes, and trees are acceptable as feeds for grazing animals. The
nutritive value of the cultivated varieties has been studied, but information is incomplete
for many of those that occur naturally.

Hay

Hay is produced by drying grasses or legumes when they approach the stage of
maximum plant growth and before the seed develops. This stage has been shown to
give maximum yields of digestible protein and carbohydrates per unit of land area. The
moisture content is typically reduced below 18 percent in order to prevent molding,
heating, and spoilage during storage. Legume hays, such as alfalfa and clovers, are
high in protein, while the grasses (such as timothy and Sudan grass) are lower in
protein and vary considerably depending on their stage of maturity and the amount of
nitrogen fertilization applied to them. Stored hay is fed to animals when sufficient fresh
pasture grass is not available.

Bales of hay
Silage

Silage is made by packing immature plants in an airtight storage container and allowing
fermentation to develop acetic and lactic acids, which preserve the moist feed. Storage
may be in upright tower silos or in trenches in the ground. The initial moisture
concentration of the forage should be between 50 and 70 percent, depending on the
type of silage. Lower moisture levels can cause difficulty in obtaining sufficient packing
to exclude air and may result in molding or other spoilage. Too high a moisture content
causes nutrient losses by seepage and results in the production of excessively acidic,
unpalatable silage. Ensiled forage can be stored for a longer period of time with lower
loss of nutrients than dry hay. The nutritive value of silage depends on the type of
forage ensiled and how successfully it has been cured. Corn, sorghums, grasses, and
sometimes leguminous forages are used in making silage.

Making silage for cattle on a farm, Al-Qaṣrayn, Tunisia

Root crops

Root crops are used less extensively as animal feed than was true in the past, for
economic reasons. Beets (mangels), rutabagas, cassava, turnips, and sometimes
surplus potatoes are used as feed. Compared with other feeds, root crops are low in
dry-matter content and protein; they mostly provide energy.
Straw and hulls

Quantities of straw remaining after the harvesting of wheat, oats, barley, and rice crops
are used as feed for cattle and other ruminants. The straws are low in protein and very
high in fibre; digestibility is low. Straw is useful in maintaining mature animals when
other feeds are in short supply, but it is too low in nutrition to be a satisfactory feed for
extended periods unless supplemented with other feeds that supply the protein,
digestible energy, and minerals needed for growth and production. Treatment of straw
with alkali markedly increases the digestibility of the cellulose, augmenting its value as a
source of energy for animals.

Corncobs, cornstalks, cottonseed hulls, and rice hulls can also be used as sources of
fibre in ruminant diets. Rice hulls are lower in value, while the others are similar to
straw.
 Weeds for Ruminant Animal

Canada thistle - Exotic Perennial Yes No adverse effects;

Easiest weed to train on;
Rumen microbes need
5-7 days to adapt during
the training period.

Perennial sow - Exotic Perennial Yes No adverse effects; No

toxins of concern.

Hoary cress - Exotic Perennial Yes No adverse effects; Easy to train on.

Russian knapweed - Exotic Perennial Yes No adverse affects; Easy to train

on; High protein; Can offset other
low quality forage; Some ranchers
managing as forage.

Purple loosestrife - Exotic Perennial Likely Should have no adverse effects; No

listed toxins; Likely could train on
it; Likely relatively short
palatability; Probably similar to
reed canary grass (phalaris
arundinacea).7

Salt cedar - Exotic Perennial No Info No trial information available.8

Absinth - Exotic Perennial No Info No listed toxins; Plant is high in

 terpenes; Supplement this with
proteins; Vegetation high in protein
can serve as supplement; Don't start
with this weed, teach others first.

Black henbane - Exotic Annual, Likely, Caution: Wyoming rancher

Biennial Caution reported cattle ate it with no
training and no adverse effects. It
can cause hallucinations, coma,
and death to humans. Voth
recommends not specifically
training on this plant.

Bull thistle - Exotic Biennial Yes No adverse effects; No known

toxins; Cattle trained on Canada
thistle generally move to bull thistle
and other thistles on their own.

Chicory - Exotic Biennial, Yes Cattle consumed on their own after

(Cichorium Perennial being trained on other weeds.
intybus)

Common burdock - Exotic Biennial Yes No adverse effects; No toxins of

concern; Voth has not trained on
this, but other ranchers have used
her system successfully.

Common mullein - Exotic Biennial Yes No specific targeted training on this

plant. Cattle trained on other species
began eating it on their own. Cattle
seem to select for it when in flower.
Cattle bite off the flower stems which
then regrow, curving out from the
original stem.

Common tansy TOXIC Exotic Perennial Caution Do not train on this plant; Not edible
 and it is preferable if cattle avoid it.
Do not worry if cattle take some in,
they can mix their own diets.

Dalmatian - Exotic Perennial Yes No adverse effects; Colorado herd

trained in 2008 still eating this; All
plants in 500 acre pasture were
bitten off in 2012; Graze early and
often, cattle will learn to graze after
flowering. Protein content drops
after flowering.

Diffuse knapweed - Exotic Annual, Yes No adverse effects; Cattle prefer this
Perennial plant; Trial herd were trained to eat
it when plant was bolting and when
crude protein dropped to 7%; When
combined with biocontrol, trained
herds can reduce populations of this
weed.

Field bindweed - Exotic Perennial Yes Cattle consumed on their own after
being trained on other weeds;
Bindweed is a nitrate accumulator,
but no adverse effects reported.

Giant knotweed - Exotic Perennial   No trial information available.8

(Polygonum
sachalinense)

Hound’s tongue TOXIC Exotic Perennial Caution Toxic; Do not train on this plant; Not
edible; Causes liver problems
resulting in wasting; Trial goats have
acclimated to it; Voth speculates that
cattle trained on other weeds may be
able to mix diets successfully but no
specific trial work has been
performed.
Musk thistle - Exotic Biennial, Yes No adverse effects; No specific
Perennial training trials; Cattle move to it
naturally after training on Canada
thistle; Cattle could be specifically
trained on this.

Ox eye daisy - Exotic Perennial Yes No adverse effects; Rancher trained

on it successfully.

Phragmites - Exotic Perennial Likely Should have no adverse affects; No

listed toxins; Likely could train on it;
Likely relatively short
palatability....probably similar to reed
canary grass (phalaris arundinacea).7

Plumeless thistle - Exotic Biennial Likely Edible; No specific experience;

Should be similar to bull or musk
thistle.

Poison hemlock TOXIC Exotic Biennial Caution Toxic; Don't train on this plant;
Many report livestock do eat this
plant, but as of yet it is poorly
understood; Cattle may be able to
select dietary offsets, but Voth
recommends avoiding specific
training to the plant.

Puncturevine TOXIC Exotic Annual Caution Toxic; Do not train on this plant; Can
(Tribulus lead to photosensitivity; Large
terrestris) quantities can lead to trouble walking
and death.

Scotch thistle - Exotic Biennial Yes No adverse effects; Train when

plant is small because can be
difficult for cattle to bite adult
sized plants.
Spotted - Exotic Biennial, Yes No adverse effects; Easy to train;
Perennial Cattle utilize as a base forage; July
grazing is preferred; protein is
highest while native forb protein is
low.

Sulfur cinquifoil - Exotic Perennial No Info No trial information available.8

St. Johnswort TOXIC Exotic Perennial Caution Toxic; Do not train on this plant;
Can lead to photosensitivity; Cattle
may be able to select dietary
offsets; Voth recommends
avoiding specific training.

Yellow toadflax - Exotic Perennial Yes No adverse effects; Cattle do well,

most plants grazed.