Project Overview
Commodities
- Agronomic: hay
- Additional Plants: trees
- Animals: bovine
- Animal Products: dairy
Practices
- Animal Production: feed/forage, feed management
- Education and Training: demonstration, farmer to farmer, on-farm/ranch research
Proposal summary:
Wolfe's Neck Center seeks to launch a project focused on evaluating tree and shrub leaf fodder as a supplemental feed source for dairy cattle during increasingly severe "summer slump" periods, when heat and drought limit pasture regrowth across the Northeast. By harvesting woody browse from the landbase's field-edge and fencelines as supplemental fodder, this project explores whether this resource can serve as a strategy to support dairy herds during seasonal forage shortages.
The project's objectives are to determine whether leafy fodder can contribute meaningful dry matter during pasture slumps, help maintain milk production and quality, and be harvested and distributed efficiently enough to be practical at a commercial dairy scale. Assessing both nutritional value and operational feasibility will help identify whether woody browse can be a reliable short-term supplement for Northeastern livestock producers.
The plan of work includes three key components. Tree Fodder Harvest will document available woody species, harvested amounts, and the labor, costs and equipment required. Fodder Distribution will evaluate processing approaches, cattle intake versus refusal, and estimated dry matter contributions. Milk Production Effects will track daily cow-level yields, bulk tank components, vitamin profiles, and any changes in cow health or behavior.
A robust outreach strategy will ensure broad dissemination of results. Wolfe's Neck will share updates through the New England Grazing Network, social media platforms, and digital producer resources. A half-day workshop for up to 30 participants will offer a project overview and hands-on training in woody species identification, coppicing, and harvest rotation planning.
Project objectives from proposal:
Objective 1: Identify safe and nutritionally valuable woody species available on our farm for use as supplemental dairy feed.
We will review literature on toxicities of Northeast tree and shrub species-especially cherry, most maples (including box elder), and oak-to determine which species can be safely fed. We will walk field edges and secondary-successional "fodder garden" areas to document what safe species we have, photograph and measure harvest sites, record species tallies, and send leaf samples for nutrient analysis. This will establish which on-farm woody species are suitable for feeding during the summer slump.
Objective 2: Develop and compare practical tractor-scale methods for harvesting and transporting leafy woody fodder.
Using a tractor-mounted pruning platform and bucket, we will harvest full-length brush during normal fence and field-edge maintenance and load it into a trailer for transport to the feedpad. We will track labor time, equipment needs, and fuel use for each harvest session. These data will be compared to (1) the stationary chain-flail leaf-separator approach tested in SARE FNE22-013 and (2) our baseline labor and cost of feeding round-baled hay. This will help determine whether tractor-scale woody fodder harvest is efficient and realistic for dairy farmers.
Objective 3: Test feeding methods, animal intake, and milk response when adding fresh leafy woody browse to dairy cow diets.
We will run two 11-day feeding periods with about 35 milking cows in late summer and fall, aiming to meet 10-15% of their daily dry matter intake with fresh leafy browse. Three control periods (before, between, and after) will allow comparison. We will try several feed-out options-offering intact brush of different species and sizes at headlocks, as well as chipping or mechanically separating leaves when needed. For each method, we will evaluate ease of use, cow access, and how much material cows actually eat by weighing forage offered and refused. We will track daily milk yield and bulk-tank components (fat, protein, lactose, solids, MUN, SCC) to see how the supplement affects production and milk quality. We will also record cow health, rumination behavior, and any human or calf health considerations related to the supplemented milk.
Objective 4: Evaluate the economic feasibility and long-term usefulness of woody browse supplementation for Northeast dairy farms.
We will calculate total costs of harvesting and feeding woody browse and compare them to savings from reduced purchased feed and avoided early winter-forage use. We will relate these costs to changes in milk yield and milk quality to determine whether the practice is financially worthwhile. We will assess whether this system is practical to maintain over time, especially as pasture dormancy increases in late-summer and fall. Observations on herd behavior, farmer workload, and overall practicality will be included. All results will be summarized into farmer-friendly recommendations and shared with grazing groups and other organizations so other Northeast dairy farmers can judge whether woody browse supplementation could fit into their forage systems.