*If small squares, you can spread them out
*with the bales on edge (the ragged sides
*where the stems are sticking out). Apply the
*salt on top of that edge side. Salt draws
*the moisture out and there's no harm in your
*cattle eating the extra salt, far better than
*eating moldly hay.
Hi,
Salting hay improves palatability somewhat but it doesn't
prevent spontaneous combustion of hay, nor will it always
prevent spoilage.
Too great reliance on salt is actually considered to be very
dangerous by many farmers. It certainly is considered as
such by my family.
By the way, so that you know, the amount of salt used is
usually about 20 pounds per ton.
I'm grinning to myself as I now may have identified Dave as
the guy that drives the baler on his farm <smile>. I
inferred that as it's extremely rare that a farmer stacks
hay with the "cut edge" down as he apparently described
above. (Maybe I misunderstood his meaning.)
People learn very quickly to stack the "cut edge" up as the
cut edge makes an infinitely better walking surface for
mowing hay.
Walking on the fuzzy edge of the bales is an extremely tough
slog compared to walking on the cut edge. You would have
to be a glutton for punishment to do it that way more than
a few times. <smile>
I also think the salt works better on the cut edge.
--
Kindest regards,
=======================
F. W. Owen
Owenlea Holsteins
9430 Spencer Road
Homerville, Ohio 44235
e-mail fwo@bright.net
home page http://www.bright.net/~fwo
voice & fax 330.625.2369
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