Taking Corn Silage Hybrid Selection to the Next Level

Mike Rankin
Crops and Soils Agent
University of Wisconsin - Extension

        Neutral detergent fiber digestibility (NDFD) is an important forage quality parameter that can have a dramatic influence on livestock performance and often explains why two seemingly similar forages have very different results in terms of milk production.  Joe Lauer, UW Extension Corn Specialist, recently looked at several management factors to determine their impact on NDFD. The management factors studied included hybrid selection, planting date, plant density, row spacing, and harvest date.  Of these, planting date, row spacing, and plant density effectively had no impact on NDFD.  Like most forages, harvest date had a significant effect on NDFD, with the highest NDFD forage harvested near flowering and then declining with advancing maturity.  However, not many silage producers are going to fire-up the choppers in early July to maximize NDFD and trade-off both significant yield loss along with zero grain (starch). 

        The one management factor that did show promise for improving NDFD was hybrid selection.  In fact, there was a wide variation in NDFD among the silage hybrids tested in the UW performance trials in 2002.  The range in NDFD was about 56 to over 68 percent, with the highest falling into the brown mid rib category.  However, this is far from the whole story.  In addition to NDFD, producers must also examine starch content (range = 23-37%) and yield.  Table 1 includes actual hybrid data from the 2002 trial and emphasizes the range in quality parameters and the importance of looking at multiple traits rather than just one.

        Hybrids A and G are “leafy” hybrids that can be characterized as having excellent yields, relatively high NDFD, but extremely low starch content.  Hybrid B has the highest starch content but is pretty average by all other measures.  Hybrid C has the lowest NDFD along with Milk/ton and doesn’t really excel in any of the other parameters  Hybrid D is a (you guessed it!) brown mid rib hybrid.  It has excellent NDFD and Milk/Ton but the yield reduction is significant.  Finally, that brings us to two conventional hybrids that are not the highest for any one parameter but are among the highest in all of them.   

            As methods improve to test various quality measures and plant breeders continue to exploit and enhance corn silage quality, there is no doubt that many more hybrids will be available that “carry the complete package.”  For now and into the future, don’t miss the train!  Hybrid selection can make a huge difference in the bottom line.