Tim,

Let's just say that I have a lot to learn in this area. First off, I have no idea looking at a field what sort of silage tonnage it would yield. Corn dry bushels I am not too bad, silage tonnage I have no idea.

If we take MSU's est of "15-20t" if I hear you right that is 15-20t AT 65% silage moisture?

If that is the case then the other 35% (of the 15-20t?)must be dry matter which will be somewhere in the 5-7t range??? or 10,000 -14,000lb dry matter.

Then if I could somehow hold them to 50% waste there would be 5,000-7,000lb of useable dry matter per acre in that cornfield?

If a 1200lb cow eats 3% or 36lb of dry matter each day there is somewhere between 5,000lb/36lb/day= 138 cow days and 7,000lb/36lb/day= 194 cow days of grazing in that field?

This is about the same as your 200 cow days?

I think I understand it better now if this is correct.

These Herefords will eat about anything if you restrict them - and do well at it. I think they are much different than the dairy breeds.

I tool a picture of some of them during their mid-morning cud-chewing siesta after their first day in the corn. Seemed to be doing well. As another poster pointed out on crop talk, a key to not wasting so much may be giving them a different place to lay down.

Jim at Dawn