5 



Q 



IJU 

 CL 



UJ 

 0£ 



U 

 < 



12 - 



10 - 



8 - 







Wilted Grass Silage' 



= 30.7078 - 16.3310X + 2.5121X' 



Maximum Acres Y 



Field Cured'' 

 Y = 11.9932 3.0985X 

 + 0.2342X' 



Crushed Field Cured ' 

 Y 9.1353 1.6757X 







1 2 3 



YIELD PER ACRE (TONS) 



Figure 9. Number of Acres That Can Be Mowed Per Day 

 as Yield Varies for Selected Systems of Harvesting 



Labor Requirements for Cows 



The labor requirements for cows on a dairy farm vary with the 

 method of milking and the type of forage fed. In this study the cows 

 were assumed to be milked in stanchions. There were 3 types of forage 

 harvested: baled hay, chopped hay, and haycrop silage. Therefore, 

 there are three different functions describing the labor requirements 

 for the cows (Table 2). Much of the labor required for a herd of cows 

 is fixed. Therefore, as the size of the herd increases, the average time 

 per cow decreases. 



Harvesting Equipment Investment and Annual Costs 



The equipment used by the base system included a 7-foot mower; 

 a 2-plow tractor; a 3-plow tractor; a side-delivery rake; a 32-foot ele- 

 vator; a baler with bale thrower; and 3 wagons. In addition to the 

 basic equipment, the "crushed barn-dried without heat" system had a 



* These functions are obtained by dividing the yield into total crew hours per 

 day. In this case the crew hours per day are 16. 



t The 6 acre maximum and this function are the limits. The acres per day 1st 

 crop for this system is limited by the 6 acre maximum and this function, while for 

 2nd crop the limits are the same as for crushed field cured baled. 



21 



