Kell-inKY
Well-known member
After reading some posts on here I have some concerns.
After a lot of thought, we decided to go big or go home and convert an existing (apprx) 20 acres from rowcrops (soybean last year) to pasture. It came off so late I could not plant anything in the fall. My plan was to plant annual ryegrass and let our cattle (5 heifers calving this spring hopefully, 1 bull) graze that in the summer then replant permanent in the fall, but after reading some posts this may not hold up well and be a waste of money? I cannot plant fescue as it does not do well in the spring here after it dries out in the summer, or so I have heard from countless locals, plus when I tried planting it in the yard in the past.
I don't want to waste my time, that is a lot to disc up (7' disc, nothing big!) and the annual ryegrass seed alone for that many acres would not be cheap, then turn around and disc it again to plant in the fall. Last spring I experimented on a half acre of rye and the cattle ate it down to the ground, but it seemed to come back up a little after some rest.
If I delay my planting I can go ahead and have them do corn (lease) this year but will have to wait to expand my herd. Plus the corn would be more difficult to plant into. I can sustain the cattle I have on what I have currently, or if I sell and go the feeder direction, I just will not be able to do anything big this year, but we would get a check from the corn.
Any thoughts of the ryegrass in my area for spring? Maybe this is done to death, but I thought I had it figured out. Thanks in advance, Kelly
After a lot of thought, we decided to go big or go home and convert an existing (apprx) 20 acres from rowcrops (soybean last year) to pasture. It came off so late I could not plant anything in the fall. My plan was to plant annual ryegrass and let our cattle (5 heifers calving this spring hopefully, 1 bull) graze that in the summer then replant permanent in the fall, but after reading some posts this may not hold up well and be a waste of money? I cannot plant fescue as it does not do well in the spring here after it dries out in the summer, or so I have heard from countless locals, plus when I tried planting it in the yard in the past.
I don't want to waste my time, that is a lot to disc up (7' disc, nothing big!) and the annual ryegrass seed alone for that many acres would not be cheap, then turn around and disc it again to plant in the fall. Last spring I experimented on a half acre of rye and the cattle ate it down to the ground, but it seemed to come back up a little after some rest.
If I delay my planting I can go ahead and have them do corn (lease) this year but will have to wait to expand my herd. Plus the corn would be more difficult to plant into. I can sustain the cattle I have on what I have currently, or if I sell and go the feeder direction, I just will not be able to do anything big this year, but we would get a check from the corn.
Any thoughts of the ryegrass in my area for spring? Maybe this is done to death, but I thought I had it figured out. Thanks in advance, Kelly