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How to hay sample: See how easy it is to get forage and hay test results that can help you feed your livestock more efficiently.

Tom Bechman 1, Editor, Indiana Prairie Farm

April 15, 2015

4 Min Read

Getting a hay test may seem like one of those things that experts talk about but no one really does. But that would be an inaccurate statement – people do it. And people like Chris Parker, former Purdue University Extension ag educator and current Forage Notes columnist, says more people should get take hay samples and get hay tests. It should be to those growing and feeding hay and forage like soil testing is to crop farmers.

Related: Test hay to guide livestock feeding decisions

Once you realize how easy forage sampling is, hopefully you will take the time and invest the small amount of funds needed to get valuable hay test results.

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You may also think that it's silly to do a hay test this late in the winter – you may be down to the forages you kept for last because they weren't as good. But it's important to know what you're feeding.

Ron Lemenager, Purdue University Extension beef specialist, says that due to lots of rain last year that delayed cuttings and sometimes interfered with curing, nutrient content of some forages isn't what you may think. Levels could be lower this year.

The only way to find out is to complete a forage test. Below is a step-by-step process for testing hay. The author took the samples on various forages of his own to show the process.

Thanks to Allison Bechman for capturing the hay sampling steps by camera.

See the hay sampling how-to by using the page navigation below.

Step one

How to take hay and forage samples in 8 steps

Secure the equipment: Most county Extension offices have a hay probe in their inventory, Parker says. They will loan it out to whoever wants to use it. This hay test probe is from the Johnson County Extension office. It consists of a long metal tube, a plunger, a cutting tip and some sort of attachment for a drill. Here is the type of forage sampling kit you need to take cores from bales.

Step two

How to take hay and forage samples in 8 steps

If you have a corded drill or a battery-powered drill, you can get hay test cores faster and with less exertion. The only problem I encountered was that the hay sampling process drew lots of power, and the battery on my cordless drill didn't hold charge very long.

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Step three

How to take hay and forage samples in 8 steps

Probe the end of the bale. To get a more accurate sample, drill into the end of each bale. If you go into the side, you will likely only get into one flake of hay.

Step four

How to take hay and forage samples in 8 steps

Empty contents of the core into a plastic bag or clean container. While this may seem intuitive, actually the first reaction is to stuff the plunger down the end where the drill attaches. Instead, you must plunge from the cutting tip end, since it is the smallest end, to force ground hay out. (If you are curious about our unique barn lighting, see this story.)

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Step five

How to take hay and forage samples in 8 steps

Use the old-fashioned brace and bit for the hay test sample if the power drill stops or you don't have one. Most kits come with a brace and bit. It may require using a different attachment. In this case the attachment was worn from heavy use, but still allowed the brace and bit to function.

Step six

How to take hay and forage samples in 8 steps

Take several hay cores per lot of bales. Sample more than one bale. You will need 4 to 6 hay test cores from the lot of hay to have a pint – which should be plenty to send to the lab for testing. Choose representative bales of the lot.

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Step seven

How to take hay and forage samples in 8 steps

Sample each lot separately. Here are three very different bales of hay. They vary in type and weight, and as it turned out, nutrient value. You can guess that they differ, but you don't know for sure unless you test each lot.

Step eight

How to take hay and forage samples in 8 steps

Resist the temptation to grab-sample. You could grab a sample of hay from loose flakes like these, next to a full bale of the same lot, instead of coring. However, results received back on this hay indicated that the grab sample isn't as accurate. You don't get as many areas of the lot represented. Besides, the lab charges $2 more to process a grab sample!

About the Author(s)

Tom Bechman 1

Editor, Indiana Prairie Farm

Tom Bechman is an important cog in the Farm Progress machinery. In addition to serving as editor of Indiana Prairie Farmer, Tom is nationally known for his coverage of Midwest agronomy, conservation, no-till farming, farm management, farm safety, high-tech farming and personal property tax relief. His byline appears monthly in many of the 18 state and regional farm magazines published by Farm Progress.

"I consider it my responsibility and opportunity as a farm magazine editor to supply useful information that will help today's farm families survive and thrive," the veteran editor says.

Tom graduated from Whiteland (Ind.) High School, earned his B.S. in animal science and agricultural education from Purdue University in 1975 and an M.S. in dairy nutrition two years later. He first joined the magazine as a field editor in 1981 after four years as a vocational agriculture teacher.

Tom enjoys interacting with farm families, university specialists and industry leaders, gathering and sifting through loads of information available in agriculture today. "Whenever I find a new idea or a new thought that could either improve someone's life or their income, I consider it a personal challenge to discover how to present it in the most useful form, " he says.

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