Bahia bailout?

[cypressfarms]

I normally don't like bahia, preferring the pastures to be bermudagrass instead. This year, however, we've been 3 weeks without rain and coupled with the high heat - all of the bermuda is dead. The bahia is doing well and I just had hay baled on it about a week ago. This summer the bahia is bailing me out, and now I find myself lucky that we have it (My dad's land is completely bermuda and we are having to bring cattle over to my place because of the lack of forage. Does anyone out there intentially grow bahia? If so, what is your reasoning behind it? I'm not certain of "native" bahia's protein content, but live bahia is defintely better than no bermuda.

 

[Beefy]

heck yeah. i'm all about some bahia. it greens up and starts growing earlier in the springtime, lasts later in the fall, handles drought stress better and shoots up faster with a little shower, reseeds itself, does well in sun or shade, is hayable. its jsut better suited for my enviroment. you can fight it forever, buts its good low maintenance feed.

 

[Red Bull Breeder]

Maybe you should have planted you some of that millet cypress.

 

[Jim62]

Three weeks without rain? Your bermuda really gives up easy. We're going on 2 1/2 months without, and 100+ degrees for almost all of June. It is beginning to look a little bleak around here. I'd be tickled to have some bahia if it can handle this kind of weather. The cows are already starting to like the weeds I didn't get sprayed in the spring.........

 

[cypressfarms]

Three weeks without rain? Your bermuda really gives up easy. We're going on 2 1/2 months without, and 100+ degrees for almost all of June. It is beginning to look a little bleak around here. I'd be tickled to have some bahia if it can handle this kind of weather. The cows are already starting to like the weeds I didn't get sprayed in the spring.........

It's just native bermuda, it's working on it's fourth week now. A friend of mine has some jiggs and alicia and they are doing o.k. - our heat indexes have been 105-115 almost every day of that time with solid sunshine. That's not a welcome environment for anything.


Red Bull, I actually have a couple of acres of brown top millet that comes back every year. It doesn't start growing well until things start to cool off, maybe September.

 

[Jogeephus]

A friend of mine has some jiggs and alicia and they are doing o.k. - our heat indexes have been 105-115 almost every day of that time with solid sunshine. That's not a welcome environment for anything.

These extremely hot days and nights have really hurt grass growth here.

Bahia, may not be the best grass in the world but at least you can count on it and you don't have to baby it. I have 40% bahia, 40% bermuda and 20% millet and/or rye rape mix. Bahia is the main grazing until millet comes in then I alternate. Bermuda is reserved for winter grazing or emergency summer grazing but primarily hay production. It won't take but one good drought to make you appreciate bahia.

 

[LaneFarms]

Bahia grass pastures are the norm for this area. There are very few people that graze bermuda grass due to the high fertilizer requirements, and almost as few millet fields. We graze our cows on Bahia and turn them in the hay fields after we cut them to clean up around the edges and under the trees.

 

[Red Bull Breeder]

Just a poking a little fun cypress. What ever works when you need it is the best grass going.

 

[Caustic Burno]

I normally don't like bahia, preferring the pastures to be bermudagrass instead. This year, however, we've been 3 weeks without rain and coupled with the high heat - all of the bermuda is dead. The bahia is doing well and I just had hay baled on it about a week ago. This summer the bahia is bailing me out, and now I find myself lucky that we have it (My dad's land is completely bermuda and we are having to bring cattle over to my place because of the lack of forage. Does anyone out there intentially grow bahia? If so, what is your reasoning behind it? I'm not certain of "native" bahia's protein content, but live bahia is defintely better than no bermuda.

Bahia is king here the only problem with bahia is hay yields, my best bahia hay field only yeils 4 to 5 rolls per acre. I am about low maintence and bahia is it. We haven't had rain since May 27th and still cutting hay and the bahia looks good and green,

 

[Jogeephus]

I normally don't like bahia, preferring the pastures to be bermudagrass instead. This year, however, we've been 3 weeks without rain and coupled with the high heat - all of the bermuda is dead. The bahia is doing well and I just had hay baled on it about a week ago. This summer the bahia is bailing me out, and now I find myself lucky that we have it (My dad's land is completely bermuda and we are having to bring cattle over to my place because of the lack of forage. Does anyone out there intentially grow bahia? If so, what is your reasoning behind it? I'm not certain of "native" bahia's protein content, but live bahia is defintely better than no bermuda.

Bahia is king here the only problem with bahia is hay yields, my best bahia hay field only yeils 4 to 5 rolls per acre. I am about low maintence and bahia is it. We haven't had rain since May 27th and still cutting hay and the bahia looks good and green,

In my area, that is the whole point of having cattle. To take low value forages and convert it to money. I forgot to mention that I also have an equal amount of woods the cattle graze on as well. When you see the cows getting slick on wiregrass and muscadine vines its pretty obvious you are not going in the hole.

 

[cypressfarms]

In my area, that is the whole point of having cattle. To take low value forages and convert it to money. I forgot to mention that I also have an equal amount of woods the cattle graze on as well. When you see the cows getting slick on wiregrass and muscadine vines its pretty obvious you are not going in the hole.

Jo, I have a friend that's a seedstock producer (Hereford and Angus) and he lets his cows forage in the woods as well. He tells me that they eat bamboo shoots like they are going out of style.

 

[Jogeephus]

In my area, that is the whole point of having cattle. To take low value forages and convert it to money. I forgot to mention that I also have an equal amount of woods the cattle graze on as well. When you see the cows getting slick on wiregrass and muscadine vines its pretty obvious you are not going in the hole.

Jo, I have a friend that's a seedstock producer (Hereford and Angus) and he lets his cows forage in the woods as well. He tells me that they eat bamboo shoots like they are going out of style.

Years ago thats all the grazing they got around here and the woods stayed clean. Used to, they would turn the cows out in the woods and work them once a year whether they needed it or not. Cropland was fenced to keep the cows out. To me, I love to watch them eat the undergrowth and clean up the woods. If you think ryegrass will fatten a cow then you should see what wiregrass will do for them and its free. Unfortunately the death tax has led to the wholesale clearcutting of our forests so wiregrass isn't as plentiful as it once was but the government as a program to restore what they took from us. (sorry for the rant at the end. just couldn't help it)

 

[Caustic Burno]

In my area, that is the whole point of having cattle. To take low value forages and convert it to money. I forgot to mention that I also have an equal amount of woods the cattle graze on as well. When you see the cows getting slick on wiregrass and muscadine vines its pretty obvious you are not going in the hole.

Jo, I have a friend that's a seedstock producer (Hereford and Angus) and he lets his cows forage in the woods as well. He tells me that they eat bamboo shoots like they are going out of style.

Back in my youth we didn't feed hay the cows roamed the woods, I have seen a many an old cow in the winter and think she aint going to make it. A lot didn't we have come along way in cattle management, you can also spend yourself to the poor house spending on them as well. I run my cows in the woods as well you cant starve profit out of one.
I hear a lot of people put the bad mouth on poor man's coastal, I love it just finished baling this winters hay supply, from here on out is gravy. Already have people calling and asking about hay.

 

[triplejbarnes]

I live in central Sount Carolina. The past several years has been very dry and has killed much of my fescue. After much studying, I decided to plant Tifton 9 Bahia. There is not much bahia around here. Most of the pastures are fescue and bahia is almost considered a cussword. I no till it in my pasture last spring (2008). The weather then turned extremely dry and about 20% of the bahia actually rooted. I figured it was money waisted, but I was impressed the some of the seed did root due to the lack of moisture. Then early this year we had very good rainfall. I put nitrogen on the pasture and was very supprised to see the thick bahia stand that grew. My pasture is in the best condition it has been in many years. Tifton 9 cost around $165.00 per 40 lb. bag, but I feel it has been forth every dime.

 

[Jogeephus]

I live in central Sount Carolina. The past several years has been very dry and has killed much of my fescue. After much studying, I decided to plant Tifton 9 Bahia. There is not much bahia around here. Most of the pastures are fescue and bahia is almost considered a cussword. I no till it in my pasture last spring (2008). The weather then turned extremely dry and about 20% of the bahia actually rooted. I figured it was money waisted, but I was impressed the some of the seed did root due to the lack of moisture. Then early this year we had very good rainfall. I put nitrogen on the pasture and was very supprised to see the thick bahia stand that grew. My pasture is in the best condition it has been in many years. Tifton 9 cost around $165.00 per 40 lb. bag, but I feel it has been forth every dime.

You are illustrating the importance of the hard and soft coated seed. Bahia has both. In time I think you will see more and more companies push what will be termed a quick germination bahia that will not have the hard coated seed. I don't know if this will be a good thing or not. In situations like yours I kinda think not but only time will tell.