Corn Silage: How to Make It Perfect
In today’s article, we’ll explore the tips and techniques for producing high-quality silage. From timing your harvest to mastering compaction with a wheeled tractor, here’s everything you need to know to get it right.
Despite the challenges facing the corn sector, including volatile prices and unpredictable weather, the cultivation of corn for silage has remained steady—especially in Europe. This is largely due to strong demand for both livestock feed and bioenergy, particularly in regions with efficient logistics. Corn silage stands out because it offers lower production costs (no drying needed) and reduced health risks compared to other crops. These factors are driving their growing popularity among farmers.
Corn for silage is all about maximizing the value of the entire plant. That means focusing not just on higher yields but also on selecting hybrids and farming practices that make the most of the crop. The best silage hybrids today are those that combine high productivity with a wide harvest window. These plants are tall, leafy, and vigorous, with excellent stay-green characteristics. They produce plenty of biomass, ideal for high-quality silage with superior digestibility and fermentation potential.
Still, the key to great silage lies in harvesting at the right time and using proper techniques. Let’s dive in.
Achieving a high-quality product is simple once you follow a few key guidelines. The first step is determining the right time to harvest the corn for silage. The consensus is that this should happen when the kernels reach the waxy maturity stage, which is when the dry matter content is between 32% and 35%. At this point, the kernels have a waxy, floury texture, a shiny appearance, and distinct dents. The plant will typically have yellowing husks beneath the ears, with the leaves underneath being partly dry and partly still green.