Forage barley is early maturing, but since it is a beardless variety quality does not decline as rapidly as with other small grain forage crops. Forage barley should be cut for hay or silage at any point from the late boot stage through the early milk stage of the seedhead. Forage barley is safe to graze if other harvest options become limited. Forage Barley is commonly followed with a second forage crop such as hay millet, sorghum-sudangrass, or grazing cover crop mixtures.
Should I cut barley forage for hay?
When barley forage is cut for hay at the milky stage, NO 3 -N levels are not higher than 0.14%, which is a safe level for livestock ( Cash et al, 2008; Surber et al, 2003 ). Because of its good carbohydrate content, barley is easy to ensile, and with a rapid fall in p. H produces a good quality silage ( Helm et al, 2002 ; Aasen, 2000 ).
Barley can be cut and dried to make hay. It is a valuable source of winter forage in various regions, especially in the USA. Barley hay can be an inexpensive available feed source (Llewellyn et al, 2000). It should be cut early (milky stage) to make hay.
When is the best time to cut hay?
Hay can be cut whenever you have excess growth and stored for long stretches with little loss in nutritional value. To get the most value out of your hay, you have to cut it at the right time. Hay isn’t a plant. It can come from many different crops.
What is barley hay?
Barley hay Swath grazing of barley forage or barley/legume is a way to increase the grazing season in northern areas (WBDC, 2002). Barley can be cut and dried to make hay. It is a valuable source of winter forage in various regions, especially in the USA.
Barley ( Hordeum vulgare L.) is a major cereal crop primarily grown for its grain, but it also yields valuable forage that can be grazed, cut for hay or silage while still green, or cut after grain harvest as straw ( Duke, 1983 ; Göhl, 1982 ). The barley plant is an annual, erect and tufted grass, up to 50 to 120 cm high ( Ecocrop, 2011 ).
Is it safe to graze on barley?
Cutting earlier will result in higher quality forage while cutting later will produce higher dry matter yields. Forage barley is safe to graze if other harvest options become limited. Forage Barley is commonly followed with a second forage crop such as hay millet, sorghum-sudangrass, or grazing cover crop mixtures.