This year, livestock producers could ammoniate low-quality tall fescue hay to stretch short feed supplies. Ammoniated hay is hay placed under a tarp and treated with a maximum of 60 pounds of anhydrous ammonia per ton of hay. After three weeks, the ammonia treatment is complete, and the hay is fairly good quality. It is also affordable. Tall fescue hay should cost about $20 per round bale, and it can be treated for an additional $12 per bale.
Low-quality tall fescue hay is ideal for ammoniation. If the hay is high quality, it can become toxic after ammonia treatment and cause crazy cow syndrome when fed. Ammonia treatment has been shown to improve the digestibility of other low-quality hays, even straw. And there may be other crop residues that were baled and could be ammoniated. Recent work conducted at MU showed that even aftermath from tall fescue seed fields could be treated with ammonia to provide a good maintenance feed for overwintering beef cows.
Producers should not worry if their tall fescue is endophyte infected before ammonia treatment. Work at MU showed that ammoniated tall fescue is about five times less toxic than the pasture, even if hay is infected. It is also about four times less toxic than ensiled tall fescue, the "haylage and baleage" products.
Evidently, the toxins break down during the curing and ammoniation process. The opposite occurs with ensiling, as toxins are preserved in the baleage.
The ammoniation process is simple
Large round bales are most often used, being stacked three at a time -- two bales side-by-side with one on top. About 38 bales fit under a standard 100-foot sheet of plastic. Plastic should be heavy mil, and edges should be secured by covering them in a trench or sealing the edges with waste lime. The ammonia should be added slowly by cracking the valve on the anhydrous ammonia tank and allowing the ammonia to trickle in slowly overnight. Hay should be aired out for one or two days before feeding; this allows the ammonia to clear out for easy handling. The plastic sheet can be held down with ropes tied to old tires. This prevents it from blowing away in high winds. Also, holes punched in the plastic can be patched with duct tape.
Updated 6/14/06
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