Crop Residues: Popular Crops And Managing Them

Once harvesting in the summer planting areas has been completed, it is a good time to move your animals onto the crop residues remaining in the fields. During the winter months, crop residues are very effective in bridging the autumn/winter gap in the fodder flow programme, as it is a very economical way of feeding animals.

- Koos du Pisanie

Dr Josef van Wyngaard, technical manager at Voermol Feeds, says that nowadays a lot of emphasis is placed on conservation farming and diversity, making crop residues an excellent supplement that can be applied in a crop farming enterprise’s added livestock branch.

“Since livestock utilise only 15 to 40% of these crop residues, more than half remains on the fields for the maintenance and accumulation of organic matter in the soil. This will also combat soil erosion. Around 20% of the material of non-grazed crop residues will be lost to wind and weathering during winter,” he explains.

Popular crop residues

Due to its good nutritional value and the fact that it can be planted on a large scale, the most popular crops for crop residues are maize, soya beans and groundnuts.

Other crops can also be utilised and include various legumes, brassica crop residues such as cabbage and cauliflower, and even whole vegetables such as carrots, potatoes and tubers which can be incorporated into a fodder flow programme. However, maize, soya beans and groundnuts remain those commonly used.

Each crop has advantages but also disadvantages in the sense that it can lead to nutrition-related metabolic disorders if not managed properly. Acidosis is the major culprit if animals on crop residues are not managed correctly.

Maize forage a popular option

Dr Johan van Rensburg of ABE Biotech says maize forage is very popular for finishing or overwintering sheep due to its high energy content, especially if a lot of grain is left on the ground during harvesting.