Planning for a Farm Storage Building

Author: Susan Wood Gay, Assistant Professor and Extension Engineer, Biological Systems Engineering Department; and Robert "Bobby" Grisso, Professor and Extension Engineer, Biological Systems Engineering Department; Virginia Tech.

Publication Number 442-760, May 2002

Table 2. Dry matter and digestibility losses in large round hay bales during various storage methods over a seven-month period.

Dry Matter Loss (%)
Study Ground Stored Elevated on Pallets Elevated on Pallets and Covered with a Tarp Covered with a Tarp Only Barn Stored
Ely (1984) 65 38 14 -- 4
Collins et al. (1987) 50 32 14 -- 4
Hoveland et al. (1997) 30 -- -- 10 0

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