Too much rain, too often in May and June was detrimental to pastures and hay conditions. “It was good in that you’ve got moisture levels for forage production, but it really played havoc in hay-making,” said Craig Sheaffer, forage specialist, University of Minnesota Extension. Farmers and ranchers who could not get their hay up in a small window of time ended up losing quality. Sheaffer says this may be the time to look into resources to put hay up at a higher moisture. Sheaffer specifically suggests haylage, baleage or preservatives that allow harvesting at higher moisture levels.
