Does Mowing Winter Pastures Markedly Improve Spring Green-up?

[Brute 23]

Didn't really take pics, but pulled these from my videos. Before and after. Thankfully, not worried about stockpile. Have more than enough to make it to March, so trying to get a jumpstart on spring.

I left more than 4 acres of the stuff standing, so I'll get to do a comparison come spring as well.

I'm sorry but I would definitely not want it cut that low for any reason. Your first pic is perfect. It would have had some protection going in to this nasty weather, also. It also helps to push out other grasses and weeds.

Fence is right about the fert. You will lose it to KR if you do not get proactive.

 

[rocfarm]

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I'm sorry but I would definitely not want it cut that low for any reason. Your first pic is perfect. It would have had some protection going in to this nasty weather, also. It also helps to push out other grasses and weeds.

Fence is right about the fert. You will lose it to KR if you do not get proactive.

Well, live and learn. Had other sources telling me to mow. I'm really interested to see how it turns out now!

Cant pay to be proactive, so if the future is KR, I guess I'll have to accept that unless my circumstances markedly change in the near future.

 

[rocfarm]

Maybe you can use that paid for equipment and do a little pasture mowing for hire and earn you some fertilizer money..

My day job makes that impossible, unfortunately, and I've spent every possible hour of my vacation time getting the place up to speed. Finally close, though, so next year who knows? I don't mind tractor work. Did 60 hours on the place last year.
But my brush hog is only 5' wide. Not sure I could compete with the John Deere 5075e guys and their bat wings on price.

 

[Brute 23]

KR is trash. You can barely raise a cow/calf on it. You can put weight on animals with Klein. You can't even fert KR in to being good.

 

[rocfarm]

KR is trash. You can barely raise a cow/calf on it. You can put weight on animals with Klein. You can't even fert KR in to being good.

I'd rather have the Klein for sure. But I've seen my cows add condition on KR. In Central Texas we don't have a choice, it seems. KR is everywhere, and the frequent droughts seem to be helping it spread.

 

[wbvs58]

No money for fertilizer-or at least not financially viable. The mowing cost largely prepaid, as no debt on equipment. But couldn't figure out how to make fertilizer pay for itself on my place. Did do a soil test, though. My p and k are actually ok. N, of course is low.

What type of soil do you have? Maybe you have already mentioned it?

Ken

 

[Travlr]

We


Well, live and learn. Had other sources telling me to mow. I'm really interested to see how it turns out now!

Cant pay to be proactive, so if the future is KR, I guess I'll have to accept that unless my circumstances markedly change in the near future.

It would be interesting to take some of the mowed part and burn it off, and compare the mowed, unmowed, and burnt off as grass comes on in the spring.

I'd bet the fired grass would be slower but more lush by mid summer.

 

[rocfarm]

What type of soil do you have? Maybe you have already mentioned it?

Ken

Clay loam. It's some of the better soil for my county. Holds nutrients well. It will grow about 600,000 lbs of dry matter each year with a decent year of rain. Place hasn't been fertilized in 6 years, though. I don't think the Klein has ever received any. I rested the place for a time a few years back, though. And have kept a good mat of dry matter on it since. Was even exited to see lots of worm castings for the first time in some places this last month. If we have a good spring I'll get my first chance to see if the management style makes a difference in drought recovery, as the last big drought saw it grazed to bare dirt and resulted in the whole place being covered in broom snakeweed and sunflowers.

 

[rocfarm]

It would be interesting to take some of the mowed part and burn it off, and compare the mowed, unmowed, and burnt off as grass comes on in the spring.

I'd bet the fired grass would be slower but more lush by mid summer.

Would love to burn but afraid my 40 total acres of scattered cedar trees would go up, too. Never seen someone do a burn in our county. Not sure I'd want to try that.

 

[ClinchValley86]

Yup, read that thread and a lot of other info on Klein. Really trying to keep my stand thick. From my observations, I think I could stock a cow per acre to my Klein for about 3 to 4 months out of the year if spring rains are good. The plan this year is to put the cows on it starting in Midmay and leave them as long as possible. But weather often changes my rotation plans.

I currently don't have any weed pressure in that field so not worried about using mowing to control them. My goal would be to thicken the Klein and increase it's yield.

My Klein seems to stockpile ok, but they don't really eat it first. They go for the native grasses or the KR Bluestem. Always had enough of these other grasses for winter stockpile so far so don't really know if cattle would eat the Klein later.

I don't plan on buying hay. Have a few bales left over from previous experiment that have already staged for February use, but I put them in different paddocks so I can just open the gate when the time comes. I put one in a somewhat bare spot at the rope of a mild slope and another at the crest of a little rise where it's thin grass. Hoping the cattle's waste and nutrients will flow down to the grass below the eating area. I might buy a few bales for next winter if prices come down and my cattle are not in the condition I want come July, but so far I've had really good luck with understocking and utilizing tubs during poor grazing conditions.

Been so understocked that I haven't been able to force the cows to eat the Klein for the past few years, but I am looking forward to the poly wire making a difference come spring and summer. Of course if I could keep that stuff grazed to 5" I'd not mow. But they didn't touch it from August to November. They just grazed native grasses And the KR Bluestem in the same paddock and let the Klein get tall, and we've already moved to them to our native grass stockpile/winter grass/burr clover pastures.

I charge myself $30/hour to mow, and I mowed for about 3 hours the other day. If it doesn't look like it pays off in the spring, I won't do it again.

$30 per hour is my number too when I'm charging myself. I feel we are working too cheap! Needs to be $50 to $75

I was not understanding you initially. Thought you were trying to get rid of it. Sounds like a good approach you've got going.

 

[rocfarm]

$30 per hour is my number too when I'm charging myself. I feel we are working too cheap! Needs to be $50 to $75

I was not understanding you initially. Thought you were trying to get rid of it. Sounds like a good approach you've got going.

We do work too cheap. I'd be in real trouble on the cattle side if I didn't owing the land.

Looking forward to a better year. So far central Texas has been storing some good moisture in the ground.

Looking forward to spring geeenup.

 

[Mark Reynolds]

The answer really depends upon what your objectives are. (I know, I'm in Ohio so what do I know. MS in rangeland management from Oregon. I know rangeland and I know wildlife and animal science. 2 BS degrees from Purdue). First, you comment about the klein grass providing habitat for wildlife, both food and shelter. That alone changes what you want standing over winter if wildlife is an objective. It isn't for everyone, but in your case it is, so if you mow it, what have you done to that objective? Are you only mowing part? How much? Second, you say that you are under stocked. This tells me right there that you have more grass than what you can use. That makes me ask the question, is the livestock getting all the forage they need and want with the existing prior 2-3 years growth being 'in the way'. In other words, will the cows gain anything by you clearing the old growth away in terms if increased feed intake? I've heard of klein grass as a forage but am not versed in its value. Being a warm season grass, you do not want to over graze it especially during the warm months, but doesn't sound like a problem. Pretty much the only way you could end up delaying the growth of the klien grass the following year is to overgraze/over utilize it at the end of the growing season the prior year which would deprive the grass from storing needed carbohydrate reserves for initiating growth the following spring. Mowing, or even burning the klein grass while it is dormant (winter) will not slow spring/early summer greenup. Those management techniques may have the opposite effect by letting the soil warm up sooner in the spring and growth will initiate sooner.

In short, possible/probable sooner greenup. Palatability of the new growth will be roughly the same in a stand of old material or if the old material is removed. The cows will have equal access to thew new growth either way, but they might have to work a bit harder to get the new growth that is mixed with the old growth.