best summer grass seed when mid central Texas

[CharleyCap]

Hi everybody, brand new here. I bought a 40 acre tract with about half open pastures. The grass on it is garbage, I seen people on my road try to raise cattle with that same foliage and the cows look boney and bloated eating off that native option of grasses (more like weeds).. Then, I see some on coastal Bermuda and the cattle look great. I am on my second year and have not been able to get any of the local talent to show up as promised to sprig my pasture. So I am at a loss on finding coastal Bermuda and now thinking I may have to seed when spring gets here but with what?. what summer-seed will grow grass to feed cattle with acceptable nutrition levels? and what summer-seeded grasses will spread out and multiply after it starts growing? keep in mind we are super dry from early July to October, highs are in the upper 90s on a cool year, 3 to 6 days or rain per month in the late summer as well, And we get a few hard freezes

The choices in the winter here are easy, rye and oats love my soil. Most of the soil is a sandy loam (sugar sand). So if I fail again to get the pasture sprigged? then what would be the summer seed can I default to?

this is near Limestone and Robertson County Texas

 

[CharleyCap]

here are some photos taken in the winter, this is the way it looks if I mow once or twice over the fall/winter, Maybe yall can tell me what specie of "grass" or weed that is? will it reasonable feed cattle ?

 

[Mrcopier]

Nice dozer, sugar sand is going to be a challenge IMO

 

[StrojanHerefords]

Green cover seeds has a summer soil builder mix that would work well to get something growing in the summer. Looking at your pictures, it seems that there is a soil chemistry issue that is causing poor animal performance and the reason why the neighbor's Bermuda grass looks good is that they spent the money to make the land productive.

 

[CharleyCap]

Green cover seeds has a summer soil builder mix that would work well to get something growing in the summer. Looking at your pictures, it seems that there is a soil chemistry issue that is causing poor animal performance and the reason why the neighbor's Bermuda grass looks good is that they spent the money to make the land productive.

I am taking that soil to the ag extension office and getting it tested. Now I did try some small test plots of oats last winter (had to work them in to the ground) Wish I tried in in the pasture. I planted them in the new cleared areas, the oats when nits , grew very well with no help

 

[CharleyCap]

and I tried expensive as hell crimson clover in a few areas. it was a dud, some growth not much. the test results on that soil will be interesting. The land has not been farmed or ranched in (I am guessing by the stories and the fencing) 50 years or more

 

[acefire]

maver

Hi everybody, brand new here. I bought a 40 acre tract with about half open pastures. The grass on it is garbage, I seen people on my road try to raise cattle with that same foliage and the cows look boney and bloated eating off that native option of grasses (more like weeds).. Then, I see some on coastal Bermuda and the cattle look great. I am on my second year and have not been able to get any of the local talent to show up as promised to sprig my pasture. So I am at a loss on finding coastal Bermuda and now thinking I may have to seed when spring gets here but with what?. what summer-seed will grow grass to feed cattle with acceptable nutrition levels? and what summer-seeded grasses will spread out and multiply after it starts growing? keep in mind we are super dry from early July to October, highs are in the upper 90s on a cool year, 3 to 6 days or rain per month in the late summer as well, And we get a few hard freezes

The choices in the winter here are easy, rye and oats love my soil. Most of the soil is a sandy loam (sugar sand). So if I fail again to get the pasture sprigged? then what would be the summer seed can I default to?

this is near Limestone and Robertson County Texas

Maverick Bermuda seed will work, just broadcast. Oh, it does need rain. Good Luck

 

[CharleyCap]

Did the maverick spread and spider out like coastal?, is the seed a hybrid sterile?

 

[Mark Reynolds]

I've never heard of a grass species called 'garbage grass' . Joking aside, you need to first figure out what you have to work with. An inventory. That includes identification of the vegetation present (which may very well provide good forage if managed properly) and you need a soil analysis, which it appears you are working towards now as indicated by your note about taking a sample to extension. A note about soil sampling. There is a right way and a wrong way to do it. The wrong way, and this is common, is to dig a single hole in the field a foot deep and take a sample from the bottom of that single hole. Get instructions from extension on how to properly sample soil within a field if you haven't done it before to avoid simple but costly mistakes that render your analysis results meaningless.

 

[CharleyCap]

I've never heard of a grass species called 'garbage grass' . Joking aside, you need to first figure out what you have to work with. An inventory. That includes identification of the vegetation present (which may very well provide good forage if managed properly) and you need a soil analysis, which it appears you are working towards now as indicated by your note about taking a sample to extension. A note about soil sampling. There is a right way and a wrong way to do it. The wrong way, and this is common, is to dig a single hole in the field a foot deep and take a sample from the bottom of that single hole. Get instructions from extension on how to properly sample soil within a field if you haven't done it before to avoid simple but costly mistakes that render your analysis results meaningless.

I'll take all the help I can get. I found the soil sample forms and know where to send them now. Gathering the samples this weekend, and put my glasses on to read the directions on the form

the garbage grass, appears to be Bahia grass, I figure, if it could keep feed a cow or 2 but not a lot of cattle, I am going leave some bahia growing there to see how they eat it. sure it can still feed a little, just don't see that "weed-type-of-looking" bahia grass sustain even 1/4th of the cattle of what a good Bermuda can sustain,

 

[Mark Reynolds]

I'm learning about bahia grass myself. True it doesn't have the quality of Bermuda, and then there is quite a large variation between varieties (I'm guessing you don't have an 'enhanced' variety). If the Bermuda you mentioned is on a neighbor, it's probably safe to assume your soil will support the Bermuda, but you don't know what the neighbor did/added to get that without asking, and check on the Bermuda variety they used as well. Bahia grows in some areas Bermuda struggles in.

 

[CharleyCap]

i

I'm learning about bahia grass myself. True it doesn't have the quality of Bermuda, and then there is quite a large variation between varieties (I'm guessing you don't have an 'enhanced' variety). If the Bermuda you mentioned is on a neighbor, it's probably safe to assume your soil will support the Bermuda, but you don't know what the neighbor did/added to get that without asking, and check on the Bermuda variety they used as well. Bahia grows in some areas Bermuda struggles in.

grew up about 20 miles or less a way. Same sand, same grit, same plants everywhere. This was in the late 70s, we took sample of soil to Texas A&M then used that mix of fertilizer. After that we kept everything mowed short. after a bout a year, the coastal Bermuda got to be so thick and lush, I walked barefoot and never got a sticker, never even saw a weed. But now we all got new interesting prices on fertilizers

 

[bird dog]

I would make another effort to get it sprigged and use the seeding effort as a backup plan. Sprigging the coastal is generally much cheaper and you will have better results. Seeding the tiny Bermuda seed is not easy. Try to get the sprigging done in February. Ask the FSA office for a list of contractors if you have not done so already. The feed store might also help. When I ranched in Limestone county the NRCS man was very helpful but that was 10 years ago.

 

[greybeard]

I dunno. That doesn't look like the Bahia I'm used to growing fat cattle on. Yours is pretty bunchy looking to be Bahia, especially Pensacola Bahia, which is very common in Texas. Bahia is a prolific seed producer & The first thing bahia does after about 7 days of growth (maybe sooner in wet weather) is to send up seed stems, with first green, then black seed heads on the end. If you aren't seeing this, then it probably ain't Bahia.






Bahia, some folks hate it but cows love it. Does great in a variety of soils, mow or graze it down, it comes right back, drought resistant as all get out. Big downside is it is warm weather only, slows down in late Sept thru oct and is gone first frost. Can't stockpile it.

 

[acefire]

Did the maverick spread and spider out like coastal?, is the seed a hybrid sterile?

It will spread. I went about 18 months of semi drought and was very disappointed with the success I was getting, then this past winter / spring good rain for 5 months
was very pleased with the coverage that I had. This seed was put out May 2021.
I thought success was about 10%. Now I see over 50%.

 

[CharleyCap]

Hi everybody, thank you all for chiming in trying to help. I did plant the rye, it did grow well and 9 head of cattle can not even make a dent in the 10 acres (may be less acres than that) one of the heifers is a show heifer and has actually got better looking on that rye then being on fed in the barn for the big Houston show. hell she might even win now

Its been very successful But...its fixin to all come to an end, I tried planting (just broadcasting) wrangler Bermuda and Bahia (tifton type) I think is all washed away but it had plenty of chance to sprout before the big tornados and rain hit us over and over, we got no less than a total of 15 inches over the last few weeks. all the seed is gone.

Hopefully, we are done with the unusual big gully washers we had

so I got all this really thick tall rye grass dropping seeds right now. Should I broadcast more some summer grass seed? and then mow to cover it with the damp cut rye to help sprout the seed? or should I try to rent a no till driller

Our afternoons are consistently 95 degrees and will get hotter as the summer gets longer

sprigging is not available to me and its got no chance in this heat now. What should I seed with? and how should I do it. I do not own a no till driller. I tried to hire some locals with the planters but when they would see I only need about 15 acres, then they just ghost me (only a few told me why). Just not real classy people offering ranch services in my area just 40 miles SE east of Waco. I never told people what I would pay, they just assumed it was not profitable enough

Can broadcasting actually work if I mow the rye and let it mulch on top of the seed to get it sprout faster than t he next big rain ?

I already fertilized the soil per the soil report from Texas A&M Ag extension , all it really needs is more calcium.

 

[Brute 23]

Not many grasses seeded or sprigged can make it through all the rain yall have been getting. I was in Waco 2 weeks ago and stopped by some from friends Milam and saw lots of water.

The sprigged bermudas like Coastal, or even better Tifton, usually do great in sand.

You can try just common bermuda also. It's a seed that can be spread.

Just remember those pretty improved pastures with fat cows will require fert and herb to keep it that way.

 

[CharleyCap]

my pasture ought be very rich with fertilizer scientifically balanced by Texas A&Ms report. I hit the pasture once november with 19-19-19 and again with 19-19-19 with wrangler Bermuda seed 5 weeks ago

kinda glad I just broadcasted it instead of paying for a no till drill, because no matter what with that kind of rain we had, with the seed only a 1/4" in the ground, it was going to wash out all the same in this sugar sand

 

[bird dog]

Too late for this year to do more than what you have done. Enjoy what you have. Don't over graze it.
Spray for weeds.

Seed will always wash around with a big rain. It will settle in low spots and will silt to cover it up. You will have some nice growth somewhere

 

[Mark Reynolds]

Don't even try to broadcast seed over any relatively dense vegetation that has any height to it above I'd say 3 inches. A height if an inch or less is much more preferable. If you do this, the vast majority of the seed will never make contact with the soil surface. Of course, if the seed isn't on or in the soil, it won't grow. I've seen many a overseeding with legumes fail when there has been no seed to soil contact. The funniest (to me) attempt at this was when a producer did this with 5 inch tall fescue in a field that they had just put a water line in with a trencher. The trench was 4" wide. There wasn't a single clover plant anywhere there was fescue. Where the trench was, the clover sprouts were SOLID. The producer said in front of the group gathered for the field day they were having there that they thought there wasn't enough rain. The producer was a District Conservationist with the NRCS.