Miscanthus Bedding Success at IBERS, Aberystwyth

Over the past few months, as part of a small-scale study, a commercially planted Miscanthus crop at IBERS Aberystwyth, was cut, baled, stored, and used for livestock bedding.

During early March, when the Miscanthus had naturally senesced (died back), local contractors used a standard grassland mower to cut the crop. It lay on the stubble for several weeks due to poor weather, then during a dry spell was raked and baled both with a round baler (with chopper knives in place) and a Heston baler.

In storage, bale temperature remained stable at around 25°C and moisture content ranged from 11-15%.

The study involved finishing cattle housed at IBERS Plas Gogerddan.  Miscanthus was used in 3 pens, with conventional straw bedding in another 3 pens. Prior to the study, all of the pens were cleaned out so that both materials could be evaluated. During the first week, the round bales were put down without using the straw chopper. The material held together and provided a good bed for the cattle. This showed that if Miscanthus was chopped at baling, no other machinery would be needed.

During the next two weeks a conventional straw chopper (Teagle 8100, kindly loaned by the machinery dealer Gwili Jones of Lampeter) was used to chop and spread the Heston bales of Miscanthus/wheat straw. The farm staff were careful to use similar weights of straw for both Miscanthus and wheat.

Despite its fibrous appearance, farm staff reported that the Miscanthus was handled and chopped well by the Teagle 8100. Cattle appeared to be as comfortable and clean as those on the traditional straw bedding. Local farmer Dorian Jones, who had tried the Miscanthus bedding material on his farm, echoed these findings.

Commenting on the study, Mark Needham of Biomass Connect said:

“although this was a small-scale pilot study, we’ve demonstrated that conventional grassland and bale handling equipment can be used to harvest and process the material, even during the challenging weather conditions we experienced this spring.”

With a recent report by the AHDB suggesting that winter wheat and barley plantings are down by 9% and 12%, respectively, could growing your own bedding could be a viable option on your farm?

Want to learn more about this project and other biomass opportunities? Visit the IBERS and Biomass Connect stand at the Royal Welsh Show next week.