A better understanding of the relationship between kernel milk line and whole‐plant moisture, yield, and forage quality of corn ( Zea mays L.) silage would improve producers' ability to time harvests. This study was conducted to validate the use of the milk line for predicting whole‐plant moisture of corn under conditions in the northeastern USA and to evaluate the effect of harvest timing on yield and forage quality. Experiments were conducted in 1986 and 1987 using four cultivars that were harvested at full dent (FD), half milk (HM), and black layer (BL). Whole‐plant moisture, kernel moisture, whole‐plant yield, and forage quality were evaluated at each stage. Forage quality parameters, acid detergent fiber (ADF), neutral detergent fiber (NDF), and crude protein (CP), were measured using near infrared reflectance spectroscopy (NIRS). Whole plant moisture concentrations averaged over cultivars and years were 67.8, 60.7, and 53.7% at FD, HM, and BL, respectively. Wholeplant dry matter yields increased 10% from FD (6.1 tons/acre) to HM (6.8 tons/acre) and then remained constant through BL (6.6 tons/acre). The ADF and NDF concentrations decreased between FD and HM in both years but decreased between HM and BL only in 1987. Averaged over years, CP concentration decreased from HM to BL for all cultivars and between FD and HM for one cultivar. For a whole‐plant moisture range of 63 to 68%, corn silage harvest should occur between FD and HM in the northeastern USA, depending on the cultivar.
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Ganoe et al. (1992) studied this question.