With the recent ideal grass growing weather, it’s worth taking some consideration for baling the heavier than usual crop. The extra density and weight will put increased pressure on both machinery and wrapping materials and ignoring this may impact the long term storage of your bales.
From a machinery perspective, during baling, it can help to stop and take extra time to allow bales to settle when they leave the wrapping table. Dropping heavier bales whilst on the move is more likely to cause splitting from the sudden shift of crop weight within the bale.
Do not overload bales and stop when indicated, as the heavier crop will form a full size bale much faster. It can also help to reconsider pressure settings on your baler, as a lower setting, such as 7 or 8, will suffice for good bale density.
For binding the bale, you should consider applying more layers of binding material, whether this be net or balerfilm. The binding material is responsible for primarily applying the holding force to maintain the bale shape and prevent slumping, not the outer wrap. A high holding strength, such as with Baletite balerfilm, will help to maintain density and keep oxygen out.
Finally, it is worth thinking about the number of layers of outer wrap for application on heavier bales. If the bales are intended for longer storage, a minimum of 6 layers will help fermentation by keeping air out. Denser bales are well-suited for the bottom of a stack, and therefore will benefit from the extra protection from more layers of film and a high quality balewrap.
Taking extra time and using the appropriate binding and wrapping materials will make best use of a bumper crop and be worthwhile at feedout.
