Small Square Corn Stalk Bale Prices

[AdamOH]

This year we are planning on baling some small square bales of corn stalks off one of our neighbors to bed our feeder calves down with winter. I want to be fair when I ask for a price to pay per bail or acre. What does everyone think a reasonable price be based upon replacing the nutrient loss of bailing up the corn stalks? We will be doing all the cutting and bailing of the corn stalks ourselves. Id really appreciate any ideas or if anyone has bought corn stalks this way what you have given. Thank you
 

[randallinMo]

Depending upon location, the nutrient removal of corn stalks generally runs in the $11-$15 per acre range using current fertilizer prices. This gives you some place to "start" in establishing a price. I buy big round bales of corn stalks for bedding and pay $20-$25 per bale for bales weighing approx. 1000 pounds.
 

[RGMartin]

[hayray]

Ohio State University has a corn stalk calculator program you can look up. Good for you that you can find some one to let you bale corn stalks, around no one well let me do it.
 

[randallinMo]

RGMartin, you may be correct. My calculations were based upon an article I read written by Mike Rankin, Crops and Soils Agent, University of Wisconsin.....in which he alloted 4.5 pounds of P205 and 25 pounds of K20 removal (per ton of dry matter) of corn stover. My current prices for these two ingredients is .51 per pound for P2o5, and .48 per pound for K2O...effectively totally $14.30 per ton of dry matter removed. Obviously the total yield will have an effect upon the actual per acre cost of removal. The title of the article was "Putting a Value on Corn Stover". Within this article he admits that there are many variables such as moisture content, yield, and leached nutrients due to rain.
You are very correct with your concern for erosion and well as the loss of organic matter.
 

[TomA]

Great discussion guys.
 

[AdamOH]

Thanks for all your help guys, that really helps to put a value on the corn stalks. We started bailing today it when really slow at first and we broke some shear bolts, after we got the tension set right it went pretty smooth from then on. I was actually surprised how well that bales were turning out, the old new holland was making better more uniform corn stalk bales then it does hay bales in the summer. Every few bales we ended up having 120 pound bales that where half full of dirt. We rotary chopped and raked the stalks and when baling we had the pickup higher but still ended up with a lot of dirt. Does everyone have this problem, or suggestions to keep stalks clean of the dirt. Thanks everybody