Once a producer cuts hay in the Southeast, worries over the weather forecast begin immediately for optimal hay curing weather. What can a producer do to maintain good quality forage in variable weather conditions? One option that is gaining popularity is baleage.

Baleage is made by wrapping hay bales at high moisture content (45-60%) and allowed to ferment. The single white wrapped hay bales or long white tubes seen across the state of Georgia are examples of baleage.

Some of the benefits of baleage in comparison to dry hay include a major decrease in storage loss (since the majority of round rolled hay is still stored outside), decreased feeding loss, increased preservation of nutrients through the ensiling process and a shorter field drying time which decreases the chance of rain of cut hay in the field.

Those who are making baleage across the state are often utilizing this technique on winter and summer annual forages. This is because these forages such as ryegrass, oats, wheat, pearl millet, sorghum sudan, etc. are high quality forages. And through the baleage process, a producer preserves those qualities much more effectively than dry hay bales. It must be stated that although this process is great for preservation, you cannot place poor quality forage into baleage and get high quality. You must have quality to make quality.

 Some of the challenges a producer may face if they decide to make baleage are expenses: a baleage wrapper is somewhat costly, but with its increase in popularity a custom operator is more than likely close by to put hay in baleage for a fee. This service saves money on the upfront cost of the machine and gives the producer a relatively cheap “trial run” with baleage. Also, equipment is needed that can handle baling higher moisture bales.  Companies have realized the importance of baleage in the southeast and have made available specialized silage balers that handle these high moisture bales.

If a producer is weighing his/her options for feeding stored forages, the benefits seem to outweigh the challenges in many situations. Some things to keep in mind if you do decide to make baleage:

For more information about producing baleage, visit our website at www.georgiaforages.com. If you have additional forage management questions, visit or contact your local University of Georgia Cooperative Extension office by dialing 1-800-ASK-UGA1.