Fodder sprouting systems, anyone?

[mystang89]

pictures please

Also, what do you do in winter when it gets below freezing?

 

[prairie dog]

pictures please

Also, what do you do in winter when it gets below freezing?

Are you asking me? The setup is in the garage, so even when the outside temperature has been 0 it stayed around 40 or so in there.

Here's some pictures. There are two trays on the tank, and since the light level is too low for anything else I'm about to seed both trays entirely in wheat seed since it does great. I had been trying to grow some lettuce in it but it was just a leggy mess so I tossed wheat in there to see what would happen. It isn't producing huge quantities but I only put it on there to help filter the water going back into the fish tank so being able to trim off enough to give everyone a little fresh wheat grass every day is just a bonus. However, I can easily see how I could add more trays to bring production up several times over.

 

[Frenchblackcopper]

I'm new here but plan on getting some American and Silver Fox show-meat rabbits this spring. We also raise peacocks,over 150 here now and while doing feed research for my peacocks(who are very picky eaters) I've come to the conclusion that making feed pellets is the only way I'm going to get my peacocks to eat everything,instead of leaving the finer things like soybean meal-kelp in the bottom of the feed bowl.
I'm a pretty good welder and fabricator,and seeing the ungodly prices some companies are asking for a pellet making machine,we've decided to make our own pellet press.I realize growing fodder and feeding it at around 6-7 days is at it's peak as far as protein levels goes.If the fodder was taken out of their trays at 6 days,then put in an enclosed dark space with a dehumidifier to dry it down,do you think it would be possible to make pelleted fodder feed?
I'm keen on the idea of growing your own feed to save,but there are many days that I know I couldn't soak and get a new crop started-ect,but I know I could spend an afternoon soaking then moving to trays,and then making pellets out of dried fodder.Anyone consider this instead of the daily chores involved in sprouting-growing? It would be very simiar to cutting wet hay,then allowing it to dry down(only under more controlled conditions) then making pellets out of it instead of bales.Also with a pellet maker,you could make grass clipping pellets all summer long when you mow.

 

[currituckbun]

I have been supplementing with fodder since Nov. I have found that the whole oats don't do as well as wheat. Here is the link I followed to get started. http://www.peakprosperity.com/wsidblog/ ... der-system
I am using smaller trays than they had but doing exactly what they do. The rabbits and chickens love it. Soaking in the dilute bleach is a must step to avoid the mold. I figured we get chlorinated a bit by going to a pool so what the hey. Also remember that the grain is soaked and rinsed at least five to ten times before it is fed.
Here is the wheat grass I did last week. All of the plastic stuff I got at the dollar store. It cost about $30 plus the grain price to get started.<br /><br />__________ Wed Jan 08, 2014 12:33 am __________<br /><br />I can't figure out how to post more than one pic.
Here is the not so wonderful oat fodder I did before I found the wheat.

 

[LBMBarbalooski]

I wasn't having very good growth with winter wheat seeds. Plus, there was a sour smell with the sprouts. I don't think it was draining very well. Could be why one of our bunnies refused to eat it.

We switched to barley seeds and gave seen a dramatic difference in growth rate, nice thick root mats, and no sour smell. The bunnies are gobbling up the fodder now. I'm glad I stuck with it.

 

[ek.blair]

Does anyone soak their seeds with vinegar instead of bleach and how much?<br /><br />__________ Thu Jan 09, 2014 2:07 pm __________<br /><br />

Soaking in the dilute bleach is a must step to avoid the mold. I figured we get chlorinated a bit by going to a pool so what the hey. Also remember that the grain is soaked and rinsed at least five to ten times before it is fed.

How much bleach do you use?

 

[mystang89]

I normally just pour in a small amount. I soak the seeds in a 5 gal bucket and pour enough in to wet the bottom of the bucket. Worked so far. I'm sure someone else will have an exact amount for you though.

 

[MaggieJ]

Does anyone soak their seeds with vinegar instead of bleach and how much?

I don't think vinegar would be a good idea. It is an effective weed killer and I would imagine that it might stop the grain from sprouting. If you decide to try it anyway, please be sure to post your results. I'm sure a lot of people would prefer to use vinegar than bleach if it is effective and doesn't inhibit growth.

 

[Frecs]

Don't try it. I tried it and the grains did not sprout.

 

[ek.blair]

Good to know, I won't worry about tryin it then

 

[ZRab]

Miss M, thank you for the detailed lesson on rabbit digestion. I didn't know any of that information and that clarifies at which stage of fodder growth it should be fed to rabbits........day 8 in my system.

Mystang89, thank you for the link.

These are the nutritional values for 8 day growth that Crop King gave me based on testing done at Clemson University
Crude Protein........18.5%
Fiber
-ADF..... 22.9%
-NDF..... 37%
Fat......... 5.3%
Phosphorus .83%
Potassium... 1.62%
Calcium..... .07%
Magnesium... .22%
Sulfur...... .31%
Zinc........ 50 ppm
Copper...... 10 ppm
Manganese... 26 ppm
Iron........ 70 ppm

Now, with this information given, how does it stack up as a complete nutritional source for rabbits? Lacking anything? Low in anything? Too high in anything?

__________ Wed May 15, 2013 10:57 am __________

I see many variations on seed soaking time. I've had the best germination rate soaking my barley for 2 hours, letting it rest for an hour, then soaking an additional 2 hours. If the temp in your fodder area is warmer than 65 degrees, you will see little tails coming from your seed in 20 hours or less after soaking.

Judging by this analysis, I was curious why there would be slower growth rates? Pretty high in fat, but with 18.5% protein, I don't see how it would be any different than a commercial 16-17% pellet.

 

[BethC]

The grass that grows on the fodder would be fiber. You could dry it like hay or you could feed it like grass. Those seeds are growing fiber are they not. I mean cant you feed your animals oat hay or grass or barley or clover and call it fiber? :shock:

I am not trying to be argumentative or anything like that, :roll: just in case anyone is wondering , just trying to figure things out. :? I am really considering switching my rabbits to this as a total feed if it will work.

Really cool thread am trying to read through all of it, but I wanted to point out that at the age you harvest fodder, usuually 5-8d, there is not enough coarse fiber in the grasses. Of course I have not drank my coffee yet but the point is that the hay we all buy in the bale (or bale, for some of us) is much coarser, not just what you can see but on a cellular level. This is biology not feed nutrition.

My point is as hind gut fermentors rabbits would indeed have this mature fiber in their system for their little happy bacteria to munch away 24/7.

So just FYI rabbits should still be offered hay - though it can be rather low quality as long as it's clean.

Dont know if this will help but fodder does indeed contain fiber, not sure exact % but there are dairies that are moving to purely fodder and it meets all of a cows needs, including fiber.

 

[BethC]

Has anyone noticed calcium issues with feeding fodder? I see the calcium is low....

 

[kukupecpec]

I've been reading this thread for a couple days now, go to about page 12 then jumped to the end here lol
I was interested in fodder for my geese but now that I've gotten into rabbits this would be awesome! I can just spread it all around!

I'm in the desert, so I was wondering if anyone else here has tried this in super hot dry temps? We just use a few box fans here in the summer so the house temp can stay upwards of 90 F. There was a lot of talk about it needing to be under 70 and that just will never happen in summer at my house haha. I bought trays and a pump and found a little itty bit of seeds to try but am having a terrible time finding anything in the realm of $15/50lb as some people on here have stated. Anyone have any seed leads in AZ? I'm in Tucson if that helps any =)

 

[Permajen]

Hi Kukupecpec,
I'm no expert and am very new to the forum, but I've done sprouting for years now for chickens. This is a very hot climate in summer, and it's common to get mould and fermenting problems if the following are happening:

1. old grain, e.g. a bit dusty (seed coat probably damaged, allows more mould spores to cling to the grain, and can also result in bacteria getting out of hand)
2. not soaking in a large enough quantity of water (best to go a quarter bucket grain to three quarters water -- believe me, it makes a difference)
3. something getting to the soaking or sprouting grain, especially rodents -- a bit of rodent feces in the water will rot the whole bucket faster than it can sprout
4. reusing buckets or sprouting bags without a really good rinse in fresh water (preferably running) between sproutings
5. air circulation needs to be as high as possible during the sprouting process. I sometimes use a shadecloth bag hung from a rafter rather than buckets, to help provide air.

One other tip, if mould growth becomes a problem (apart from suspecting the grain to be old), you might try rinsing each bucket or container of sprouts with pure clean water rather than letting each container drip from one to the next (e.g. early in the sprouting process a lot of people stack their sprout crates one above the other). Water conservation isn't always the best option when sprouting in a warmer climate.

I hope this is of some help, and good luck sourcing grains -- sorry I can't help with finding sellers (but I'm on the opposite side of the planet).

Edited to delete doubled post... Computer glitch.

 

[JulieCunicole]

I am new to this, and am a bit concerned about mold. Since I use city water, there's already bleach in there (sometime we can smell it - that's why we filter our drinking water) - does anyone have experience with whether that will effectively kill mold, or is it too low, or is the answer "try it and see!"

I think I know my answer...

 

[TDUBshop]

We're getting a couple of French Angoras next month, and my husband and I have been reading the forums/blogs and watching some youtube vids about feeding fodder. We'd like to eventually supplement with grown fodder as well. We are also having a hard time finding barley seeds right now as we're in the south and no one really uses them until later in the fall.

One feed store had pearled barley and when I told them that since it had been pearled, it won't grow (thanks to the discussion here I knew that). The store owner came up and told me that it would sprout and grow, that he wasn't allowed to officially say that but it would grow just fine *wink wink*. I was pretty confused how a pearled seed would grow, but I bought a small bag to test it out.

It seems like they're sprouting. Huh??? I honestly did not expect anything to happen and now I'm really confused. Is this actually barley? Is it just not pearled? Is it just not going to fully grow past this point?

I'm going to attempt to post pictures. I apologize for the poor quality, my nice camera seems to be hiding from me right now. I hope you can see the few little roots starting to form.

 

[grumpy]

Take a gander and see if this helps.

a-begining-t21277.html

grumpy.

 

[TDUBshop]

Thanks Grumpy!

From the pictures you posted, my seeds are looking a lot like yours. Maybe these aren't really pearled.

I need to do another batch and soak them longer. I'll be doing your 24 hour bleach soak this time and see if they sprout faster. They seem to be slow to sprout but I only soaked them 12 hours with no bleach.

 

[kukupecpec]

Hi Kukupecpec,
I'm no expert and am very new to the forum, but I've done sprouting for years now for chickens. This is a very hot climate in summer, and it's common to get mould and fermenting problems if the following are happening:

1. old grain, e.g. a bit dusty (seed coat probably damaged, allows more mould spores to cling to the grain, and can also result in bacteria getting out of hand)
2. not soaking in a large enough quantity of water (best to go a quarter bucket grain to three quarters water -- believe me, it makes a difference)
3. something getting to the soaking or sprouting grain, especially rodents -- a bit of rodent feces in the water will rot the whole bucket faster than it can sprout
4. reusing buckets or sprouting bags without a really good rinse in fresh water (preferably running) between sproutings
5. air circulation needs to be as high as possible during the sprouting process. I sometimes use a shadecloth bag hung from a rafter rather than buckets, to help provide air.

One other tip, if mould growth becomes a problem (apart from suspecting the grain to be old), you might try rinsing each bucket or container of sprouts with pure clean water rather than letting each container drip from one to the next (e.g. early in the sprouting process a lot of people stack their sprout crates one above the other). Water conservation isn't always the best option when sprouting in a warmer climate.

I hope this is of some help, and good luck sourcing grains -- sorry I can't help with finding sellers (but I'm on the opposite side of the planet).

Edited to delete doubled post... Computer glitch.

I gave it a try and my first tray sprouted really well! But all the following trays molded and didnt grow much after the first initial sprouting. Would a fan in the trays direction help with air circulation? It's monsoon season here now so everything is hot wet and stinky so I think ill wait to try again until its dried out a little. I ended up finding a feed store that sells wheat and barley so I have a small bag of each to try. Do you know how long I can keep them before sprouting? Id hate to buy a big bag and not use it quick enough