Corn Silage v. Earlage

Northwest Kansas corn leader Brian Baalman of Menlo, Kansas, owns a feedyard and started cutting earlage in 2014. His son, Coby, who manages the feedyard, likes the earlage as a nutritive feedstuff for the cattle. Brian appreciates the amount of crop residue left in the field to lock in soil moisture and decrease the possibility of soil erosion.

The difference between silage and earlage is seen in the feed bunk. Because earlage has less forage in the mixture, the ratio of starch to fiber is different. This is what makes earlage more attractive to feedlots looking to fatten their cattle compared to dairies.

According to North Dakota State University, earlage tends to be higher in energy (starch) than corn silage with a similar protein content, but still has lower energy than dry or high-moisture corn grain. If you want to learn more about earlage, check out this publication from NDSU titled, "Harvesting, Storing and Feeding Corn as Earlage. "