I have 30 acres disced up and pretty much ready to plant. Before I disced it up the only thing growing on this field was some smut grass and st. augustine carpet grass. It was pretty much a worthless piece of ground. Anyway, I got it ready to plant and then saw the price of Bermuda grass seed. Everywhere on the internet says plant 25-50 lbs. per acre on new pasture. I have made my mind up to go with 10 lbs. to the acre. I really think they say those high numbers because they are the ones selling the seed. Has anyone planted bermuda grass seed and at what rate. It is between bermuda grass and bahaia. Bahaia takes so long to sprout theat I'm afraid weeds and other junk will take over the field before it comes up. I know bermuda grass will sprout and grow very fast. I have a roller and all I have to do is mix it in with fertilizer in a hopper and go with it. Probably going to do it at the end of March to get the April rains. I am located in S.E. Texas. Any advice ???
planting common bermuda grass
- Thread starter CCRanch
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highgrit
Well-known member
Are you going to put cows on it? If you are I would look into some Tift 9 Bahia grass seed.
I have common Burmuda in some of my small pastures. It came in on its own after a BAD drought and just took over.
It suits my needs (I feed a TMR) and the pasture is just for loafing. It keeps real good grass cover with high traffic(where it gets cut up in the winter it comes right back in the summer) and in the summer its great to keep the weeds down. It chokes out EVERYTHING.
But,I don't see why anyone would purposely plant it if they want grazing. The cattle don't like it, it only has good nutrition values for a short time and its totally unproductive the rest of the year. And I doubt you could have anything else coexist with it to improve grazing.
Not to mention I don't think its very easy to get rid of- kinda like roaches and common burmuda will be the last things on earth to go extinct.
It suits my needs (I feed a TMR) and the pasture is just for loafing. It keeps real good grass cover with high traffic(where it gets cut up in the winter it comes right back in the summer) and in the summer its great to keep the weeds down. It chokes out EVERYTHING.
But,I don't see why anyone would purposely plant it if they want grazing. The cattle don't like it, it only has good nutrition values for a short time and its totally unproductive the rest of the year. And I doubt you could have anything else coexist with it to improve grazing.
Not to mention I don't think its very easy to get rid of- kinda like roaches and common burmuda will be the last things on earth to go extinct.
Here's how I plant all of my bermuda, so other than labor and equipment, it doesn't cost me anything. But then again, I've got bermuda already seeded so my "nursery" is right there.
And in short order you end up with this.
Personally, I love bermuda and am planting my entire place with the stuff. It responds well to water, fertilizer and broadleaf herbicides, the animals love it, and I sell a ton of bales to the horse guys.
Good luck!!
And in short order you end up with this.
Personally, I love bermuda and am planting my entire place with the stuff. It responds well to water, fertilizer and broadleaf herbicides, the animals love it, and I sell a ton of bales to the horse guys.
Good luck!!
My cows love it. They literally run through a stand of bahaia to get to a little spot of it that came up where I used to hay. I planted 3 acres of it last year for my bulls and my cattle stand at the fence wanting to get in. All my other pastures are bahaia so I think I will change it up a bit. I have the 30 acres fenced off so I'll keep the cows out of it until it gets rooted good. Thanks for the replies.
CC, when the rainy season hits down here, we move into high gear harvesting our bermuda. I find that every time we cut it, it comes back even cleaner than the time before. We use mostly urea after each cutting and just before a good rainfall. You can almost see that stuff growing once the water hits it. It's amazing because one day the ground will be virtually bare and the grass looks brown or yellow and within a couple of days it's completely green again.
It's an amazing pasture for us. Like I said, I love it.
It's an amazing pasture for us. Like I said, I love it.
Kingfisher
Well-known member
whitewing":32e3olks said:CC, when the rainy season hits down here, we move into high gear harvesting our bermuda. I find that every time we cut it, it comes back even cleaner than the time before. We use mostly urea after each cutting and just before a good rainfall. You can almost see that stuff growing once the water hits it. It's amazing because one day the ground will be virtually bare and the grass looks brown or yellow and within a couple of days it's completely green again.
It's an amazing pasture for us. Like I said, I love it.
There is a reason it is in yards all over the country..........
B&M Farms
Well-known member
If you buy hulled seeds you can plant at 5 to 10lbs. to the acre. 10 to 15lbs. with non-hulled seeds. But im wondering why you woundnt sprig coastal bermuda or another hybrid? The dry matter yields per acre are at least twice that of common bermuda per acre.CCRanch":21cu6iym said:
Kingfisher
Well-known member
B&M Farms":1s2v50rl said:
Cuz the " spriggers" around here want too much...........and how do you know really what they are planting? Thanks for your post.
B&M Farms
Well-known member
I bought my spriggs from a neighboring dairy and did the sprigging myself. I know that isnt an option for everyone.Kingfisher":2tnw821r said:
I will be using hulled seed. The only thing about sprigging is no rain. That scares me on a 30 acre field. At least the seed will sit until it rains. Next yeat I will be doing a 12 acre piece behind my house that I am going to sprig with coastal. I just want this 30 acres to have something worth grazing and I hope the bermuda takes it over. I can hold my cattle off of it all summer if I have to.
My burmuda must be less than common
It doesn't look anything like yours- it might get up to eight inches high. Another reason why I like it for loafing areas.
And it doesn't get that lush looking.But........since it has volunteered we haven't had much moisture during its growing season.
It doesn't look anything like yours- it might get up to eight inches high. Another reason why I like it for loafing areas.
And it doesn't get that lush looking.But........since it has volunteered we haven't had much moisture during its growing season.
novatech
Well-known member
Is that common or a hi-bred? I looks as though you are sprigging a hi bred.whitewing":34r9znef said:CC, when the rainy season hits down here, we move into high gear harvesting our bermuda. I find that every time we cut it, it comes back even cleaner than the time before. We use mostly urea after each cutting and just before a good rainfall. You can almost see that stuff growing once the water hits it. It's amazing because one day the ground will be virtually bare and the grass looks brown or yellow and within a couple of days it's completely green again.
It's an amazing pasture for us. Like I said, I love it.
If it were me I would spend the money on sprigging the hi-bred rather than common. It takes about the same amount of effort to raise both. I prefer Tifton 85. Others plant jiggs , Coastal or what ever does the best for their area. The hibreds will take drought very well as they are deeper rooted. They respond better with fertilizer and are more palatable.
novatech":16b4jnai said:Is that common or a hi-bred? I looks as though you are sprigging a hi bred.whitewing":16b4jnai said:CC, when the rainy season hits down here, we move into high gear harvesting our bermuda. I find that every time we cut it, it comes back even cleaner than the time before. We use mostly urea after each cutting and just before a good rainfall. You can almost see that stuff growing once the water hits it. It's amazing because one day the ground will be virtually bare and the grass looks brown or yellow and within a couple of days it's completely green again.
It's an amazing pasture for us. Like I said, I love it.
If it were me I would spend the money on sprigging the hi-bred rather than common. It takes about the same amount of effort to raise both. I prefer Tifton 85. Others plant jiggs , Coastal or what ever does the best for their area. The hibreds will take drought very well as they are deeper rooted. They respond better with fertilizer and are more palatable.
I was told it's a hybrid, but couldn't confirm that for sure Nova. It definitely does respond well to fertilizer and water and I can vouch for its drought resistance as I first planted in September of 2008. 2009 was an absolute killer of a drought year. In April of 2010 we had a two hour rain and overnight the ground went from bare to green. Amazing stuff, and the cattle love it.
novatech
Well-known member
I forgot to mention, I sure like that sprig thrower somebody build. Seems like a good idea, and looks like it works good.
novatech":3k1511na said:
I gotta tell ya Nova, that gizmo has been a life-saver. I used to have to hire 5 or 6 guys extra to walk behind the wagon and distribute the sprigs by hand. We'd work for hours just to cover a couple of hectares properly. With this thing I can do the same work in a fraction of the time, literally in minutes as compared to hours, and with my regular crew. And it spreads the sprigs very nicely. Here's a shot of the very same area we were sprigging in that other photo....taken just a couple of months later.
I actually use the same machine to spread dried manure on the fields and that too works very rapidly with the boys just shoveling the stuff out.
TexasBred
Well-known member
Howdyjabo":386nejal said:
Jabo I agree with you on the bermuda but I wish you could see some of the Bahia grass some of the folks over in the south as well as East Texas deal with. That mess will grow on concrete and has a root system about like concrete wire. Everytime a bale of hay goes down the road somebody gets a new application of seeds. :lol2: If it gets in your yard you start out with a spot abouta foot wide. Triples every year and you don't cut it...a lawnmower just twists the stuff off....by tomorrow it's grown 2 more inches. :help:
Cowdirt
Well-known member
CCRanch":2o72ebnc said:
CC, you may want to check on when common bermuda is to be planted in your area. In my area, it is to be planted in July-August. Quite different to cool season grasses.
ga.prime
Well-known member
C'mon man! Common bermuda is for golf courses and people's lawns. Hybrid bermuda will make 10 times the volume.
