| Tarps used to cover stacks of hay bales are called | | | | With the rise of forage cost in recent years and |
| hay tarps. These tarps are manufactured with | | | | innovations in synthetic fabric design, it has become |
| plyethelene or poly fabric and are silver/white on the | | | | very cost effective to use hay tarps to protect hay |
| outer side and black on the inside. The silver side is | | | | bales from spoilage. |
| great for reflecting the sun’s rays and the black | | | | Hay stored outside is exposed to Sun’s harmful |
| side acts as a light inhibitor, blocking out light. Hay | | | | UV rays, rain, snow etc. This can encourage mould |
| Tarps need to be 100% waterproof to protect the | | | | and bacteria growth and can significantly reduce the |
| hay from weather elements such as sun, rain, snow, | | | | relative feed value (nutritional content) of the hay. |
| wind and sun’s harmful UV rays. The tarp fabric | | | | With all the hard work and investment that goes into |
| needs to be highly UV resistant so it doesn’t rot | | | | forage production, it makes full economic sense to |
| due to the constant exposure to the sun. | | | | protect the forage during storage. |
| Most Hay tarps have grommets and webbing loops | | | | Hay stored under a tarp has significantly less spoilage |
| on the hems that provide tie down points to secure | | | | and commands a premium price in the market, when |
| the tarp over your hay bales. Make sure your tarp | | | | compared to hay stored outside. Typically hay tarps |
| has ample tie down points (at least one every 3’ | | | | last 3-5 years and in most cases you can recover the |
| - 4’) so that there is not too much pressure on | | | | cost of the tarp in the first year itself. |
| any one point of the tarp. | | | | |