Haylage vs regular hay

What's everybody's thoughts and what is the best thing to make into haylage?

I don't have much experience making or feeding haylage but I'd rather stick to dry hay. I know exactly what I have, don't need to worry about spoilage, and dry hay probably holds up better once it is fed. Also, I would guess you wouldn't have as much physical labor in feeding dry hay because it would last longer per lb. Welcome to Steer Planet DEF...

We feed both we chop about half our hay to speed things along. Can be in and out of field before the hay would ever be cured to bale. Its more expensive to put it up that way with the equipment and labor needed to get job done. It makes excellent feed and tends to be higher protein than its dry counterpart. Does take a few more pounds of fees to get same dry matter intake though. Alfalfa makes the best haulage in our experience but is so lush it usual require a one day wilt before chopping to keep moisture down for proper storage and fermentation. The key to any good silage is a good packer man and bunker or silo to keep it protected from the elements. Haylage in a covered bunker will keep from year to year better than dry hay.

My feed guy says haylage adds about 1% to orchard grass clover mix. I would suggest that someone considering doing it have it custom done the first year to see if you like it. It adds more time to feeding and like stated before it takes more labor and extra equipment.  I have never done baleage, but I have bagged it and bunkered it.  I feel there is less spoilage with the bagger.  Although if you do not have the bag on concrete you fight mud in our area all winter long. I stoned it and had to keep adding stone all winter long to get into it.  If I were to do it again. I would bag it, but I do not feel the extra cost is worth the better feed value.  I suggest adding corn silage to the diet. We feed about 20lbs of silage per cow (not DM) a day and feed about 30 lbs of hay, although hay is free choice.  It takes about .1 acres of silage feed a cow thru winter. It keeps the body condition up, doesn't add calving issues and you do not have to feed many protein tubs.

What about wrapping wet bales.  As in baling the hay the day after you mow it and then come back with a wrapper and getting them wrapped in a tube with in 12 hours after they are made. I have heard of people doing this with their first cutting to avoid the rain.

In wet regions, wrapped baleage has saved the day. We often can't get the last day for drying hay. Many fields would have been baled manure without plan B, a custom wrapper. I think summer students do the weather prediction in my area while veterans go to the cottage.  It costs me about $10/bale to custom wrap with lots of plastic.  For beef cows, don't worry about the high moisture trial stats.  Almost dry, very dense baled grass/legume will work.  You can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear, so don't expect to save almost dry, overly mature grass hay with very limited legume from the rain by wrapping. Baleage is very palatable, they eat everything except coarse goldenrod stem.  Most weeds have protein with poor palatability. 
If you live with unpredictable summer weather, wet fall/ winter outside storage, its a good option. Tarps are a waste of money. Make sure the rows are well sealed for zero waste. The secret is proper ends on the row and located in traffic areas to deter birds & wildlife (claws).  During cold weather, feed each bale within about 7 days after removal.  Much faster in spring like conditions . Avoid saving any to the next season, although an end can be resealed with tape by removing the last bale without disturbing most of its plastic.
Those with large herds won't consider baleage as a good option, but there are many small operators on here too.

Word of caution; have seen several outbreaks of botulism in cattle being fed haylage.  Most recently...wheat haylage.

I don't have any experience with haylage, but bale 10,000 big squares/year individually wrapped for baleage. The big difference is the individual wrap, more plastic and more equipment but you don't have to worry about spoiling a row in warm weather. It can make ok feed great feed. Having a cutter is a huge plus as well, then the livestock can only grab what they can eat, not drag out a 12 inch plant and waste half of it. Sometimes baleage gets a bad rap just as some pick out faults with haylage. No doubt it's better feed, but you have to be a better manager along with it.

In our area(Ontario, Canada) lots of people bale the first cut as dry hay, but because of un predictable weather as summer gets later, quite a few will bale all second/third cuts as baleage. With our cold winters it does wonders to keep great condition on the cows thru till spring calving. Last winter we fed corn silage and averaged -20 degree weather for about 6 weeks longer then normal and experienced heavier calves 15-20Lbs, not sure if it is just cause of the extra cold weather and increased feed consumption or the corn silage.

A local vet told us a few years back that his family switched from solely dry hay to baleage they required 60% of the hay that they used in the past and the whole herd kept their condition better as winter wore on. It is better feed but it is more expensive to make but if you figure the added nutition and 40% less hay it is certainly more affordable IMO.