7/16/2009 7:49:00 AM Consider ammoniating low quality forages
By Kindra Gordon for Angus Productions, Inc.
As an alternative to higher feed costs, ammoniating low-quality forages may be worth considering this fall.
Treating wheat, barley and oat straws, corn stalks or very mature, low-quality grass hay with anhydrous ammonia can boost crude protein levels to 8-9%, increase digestibility 10 to 30%, and improve livestock intake of those feeds by 15 to 20%.
The caveat in deciding whether or not to ammoniate low quality forages hinges on anhydrous ammonia prices, says North Dakota State University Extension beef specialist Greg Lardy. He suggests producers look at this on a case by case basis.
Lardy gives this example for calculating costs:
• Estimated costs to treat one ton of forage are $25.50 to $30.00 for anhydrous ammonia (based on $850 to $1000 per ton of ammonia), and
• $5.43 to $9.05 for plastic ($181 for 6 mil. black and white plastic, 40 by 100 feet), for a total of $30.93 to $39.05 per ton.
• If wheat straw costs $45 to $50 per ton,
• Total cost of ammoniated wheat straw in this example would be $75.93 to $89.05 per ton.
But, given the increased costs for many feeds, Twig Marston, district director of the University of Nebraska's Northeast Research and Extension Center at Norfolk, believes there are opportunities where ammoniating may be economical - even with the increased cost of anhydrous.
One tip Marston suggests to help make ammoniating more cost effective is to reduce the amount of anhydrous applied. For instance, the process normally takes 3% of anhydrous ammonia per ton of dry forage (about 60 lbs.) to get the full chemical reaction on feed intake and digestibility. Instead, Marston says producers might consider only applying 2 to 2.5% anhydrous to cut costs and still get 80 to 90% of the desired results on the forage.
Other Considerations
In addition to the cost of anhydrous ammonia, Lardy and Marston say producers should also consider:
1. Straw costs. Specifically, Lardy says, "You need to have a cost-effective source of straw or crop residue to make this work. If you are not in an area where these are available, it probably isn't going to make sense to pay somebody to truck in straw and anhydrous from long distance in order to ammoniate it. In that situation, it may be better to look at other alternatives such as transporting higher quality feeds, having somebody custom feed your cows or haul your cows to corn stalks."
2. Safety. Lardy says, "Safety has to come first with this chemical. It is extremely hazardous. Having the right safety equipment and taking the proper precautions will prevent accidents."
Marston adds, "If you can not handle the bale stacking, plastic covering, and/or the anhydrous ammonia application and storage, then consider some other alternative to improve forage quality."
3. How you'll feed it. Lardy and Marston agree that ammoniated forage works best for wintering gestating cows up to 50 days prior to calving. But, Marston says, "If you start a winter feeding program with ammoniated forage and switch mid-season, cattle do not seem to want to go back to the ammoniated forages."
Marston has also found that young cattle can be finicky and may not eat ammoniated forages. Mixing it with other forages can improve acceptance.
As a final tip, ammoniated feeds should be analyzed prior to feeding to determine actual nutrient content. And, phosphorus, trace minerals and vitamin A should be added to the diet whenever ammoniated residues are fed.
North Dakota State University has an updated Extension bulletin detailing the process of ammoniating low quality forages and calculating the economics. View it at http://www.ag.ndsu.edu/disaster/drought/ammoniationoflowquality.html.
