Blake Francis, Blake Francis Farm
Round Bale Wrapper
Grant Award: $6,000
Blake has purchased a 3 point hitch round bale wrapper to use on his 320-acre farm. Since the 320 acres of hay on the farm are not contiguous, Blake spends a lot of time moving equipment from field to field. This makes it very time consuming to put up high-quality hay since the maturity of hay is working against him.
Baling high-moisture forage has allowed Blake the flexibility to harvest earlier, resulting in hay with high protein/nutrients/energy, reducing waste and improving yields in later cuttings. Since fertilizer costs will be reduced, higher profit margins are expected.
A fourth-generation farmer, Blake says “Higher income and lower costs allows me to reinvest more money in our farming operation. It is my goal to keep farmland in production and to improve my farm so that my sons can someday farm.”
Blake uses the hay produced on his farm to feed his commercial beef cattle and also sells hay to Biltmore Farms, Cataloochee Ranch and other customers.
Contact the Local Extension Agent