Using of Optical Sensors to Measure in-Field Quality of Tall Fescue Hay in Tennessee.

Tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea) is the dominant cool season grass grown in Tennessee and is an important spring pasture and hay fodder crop for the beef industry in the state. For cattle producers the quality of the hay produced from fescue is critical. The application of nitrogen fertilizer in the spring has been shown to increase fescue yields as well as quality parameters, such as protein levels. The measurement of forage quality is usually done after the harvest of the hay, and involves the collection of representative samples and proximate analysis using wet chemistry or using near infrared reflectance spectroscopy (NIRS) methods. The objective of this study was to assess the potential for a using s commercially available optical sensor to determine differences in the fescue quality immediately prior to harvest following fertilization with different rates of a fermentation by-product as well as a commercially available fertilizer.