Fodder Planning and Silage Making for Pakistani Dairy Farms

Milk falls when green fodder runs out. In much of Pakistan there are two lean periods each year when one season's fodder is finished and the next is not ready — roughly May–June and November–December. Planning crops and storing silage closes these gaps.

Summer (kharif) and winter (rabi) fodder

Summer fodder

• Maize — high energy, the best crop for silage.
• Sorghum (jowar) and millet (bajra) — tolerate heat and drought.
• Sudan grass and multi-cut hybrids for repeated cutting.

Winter fodder

• Berseem — high protein, palatable, several cuttings.
• Oats and lucerne (alfalfa).
• Mixing berseem with oats or ryegrass improves yield and balance.

Why silage?

Silage is green fodder preserved by fermentation in airtight conditions. Good silage keeps for months and provides consistent feed through the lean months, so milk stays steady.

Making maize silage step by step

1. Harvest at the right stage: when grains are at the dough to early dent stage, with the whole plant at roughly 30–35% dry matter. Too wet causes sour, runny silage; too dry will not pack.
2. Chop finely: about 1–2 cm pieces pack tightly and ferment well.
3. Fill quickly: fill the bunker, pit or bags in as short a time as possible.
4. Pack hard: compress every layer (a tractor works in bunkers). Air is the enemy of silage.
5. Seal immediately: cover with thick plastic, weigh it down well (tyres or soil) and seal the edges.
6. Wait: fermentation takes about 3–6 weeks before opening.
7. Feed from a clean face: remove a layer across the whole face daily and keep the rest covered to prevent spoilage.

Good silage smells pleasantly sour and is yellow-green. Throw away mouldy or hot silage — it can make animals sick.

Estimating how much you need

Work it out from the number of animals and the number of days of the lean period. Write down how much silage you fed and for how long this year — next year's plan becomes much more accurate.