Forage harvesting

Forage harvesting of maize and grass

In livestock farming, cows are often fed with maize, grass or whole sprout stored in a silage stack such as maize silage and grass silage.

From field to stable

The foraging are done by harvesters where the models Claas Jaguar, Krone and John Deere are very popular in the UK. These harvesters can be fitted with different types of cutting tables, each of which has their function, including: pickup table and full-grain cutting table. A pickup table is usually used as a grass pickup, so grass in strings can easily be collected and cut. Before the harvester arrives to the field, the grass has been through a mower and has possibly. tedded and raked. The alternative to a self propelled harvester can be a forage wagon. A pick-up for maize harvesting gently slides between each maize to get as much of the plant in the cutter. A maize pick up often has 8, 10 or 12 rows. The machines often come with important extras such as dust meter, shredlage corn cracker lactic acid equipment and yield sensor that ensures the quality of the silage. When a the forage has been cut and gone through the harvester, it is thrown into a forage wagon which transports the silage home to the silo where it is dropped off. The forage pile is divided and squished by a wheel loader or a tractor mounted with a dozer blade, to compress as much as possible. The silage stack is now ready for the livestock.