Hay season will soon be upon us; how will your forage perform? This question is on the mind of growers who raise, feed and sell this precious commodity.

 With spring just around the corner, you may be starting to think about your forage plans for your operation. Whether you are ready to put your cows out on pasture or begin a new harvest of haylage, it’s important to know what you are feeding your animals.

As a consultant at a commercial testing laboratory, this is one of the most common questions I receive from producers looking at their forage report.

These three management decisions can help boost your income on your spring annual crop by $50 to $100 per acre.

Profit margins could be a challenge in 2022 as feed prices remain high, with premium-quality alfalfa hay over $240 a ton, shelled corn approaching $6 a bushel and soybean meal over $370 a ton. One solution is if you have adequate forage amounts and quality.

One factor to consider when determining the price dairy farmers should pay for a forage is the ability of the forage to support milk production.