LOSSES AND QUALITY CHANGES DURING ALFALFA HAY HARVEST AND STORAGE.

Field curing loss consisted primarily of constituents other than fiber and protein and averaged 3. 2% for hay dried without rain damage and 11. 2% for hay with rain damage. Protein became less soluble during field curing and a small loss of protein occurred with rain damage. Raking a wide swath into a window caused the greatest machine loss. Machine losses were similar across all quality constituents so the quality of harvested hay was not affected much by the loss. Storage loss of dry matter averaged 4. 2% for dry hay (11 to 20% moisture), 7. 9% for 20 to 25% moisture hay and 10. 9% for hay of 25 to 34% moisture. This loss was predominantly constituents other than fiber. Carbohydrate loss was proportional to the moisture content of the hay entering storage while protein loss appeared independent to hay moisture.