Educate me

[Farm Fence Solutions]

I've got about 15 acres that we've been trying to get a stand of grass on for the past couple of years, but unfortunately have missed the late summer/early fall rains we needed to get it up. Rather than let it sit idle again all summer, I'm thinking about an annual that we can sow when it warms up for grazing and hay production. We are in SW Indiana and would appreciate your thoughts and opinions on sorghum sudangrass/hay grazer and the like.

 

[artesianspringsfarm]

Bumping this up because I'd love some insight too. Anyone this far north doing warm season annuals like he is asking about? Thanks.

 

[callmefence]

It'll grow anywhere corn will grow. I plant it at 50 pounds per acre for grazing and 100 pounds for hay. It'd great feed and growth can be unbelievable. You can get very high protein and sugar content If done right. If you don't cut it to short you can be cutting again in a month. It's blown millet away in my experience. It does need nitrogen to perform well. I generally put around 100 pounds at planting. Another 50 with each cutting. Only the initial 100 for grazing. I plant a inch deep. With your rainfall 1/2 inch is probably good. No need to plant until 60 to 65 degree soil temps.
If grazing educate yourself on prussic acid. It's no big deal. You just need to understand it.

Sidenote..
I know nothing of the grass you are trying to establish in this field. But hybrid Sudan will easily hit 6' tall. Ive seen strips left bare ( skip a swath with the drill. ) And seed your delicate grass seeds. The Sudan will keep the wind off the soil causing it to stay moist a little more. Can get you ahead on getting your permanent pasture established.

 

[Banjo]

It'll grow anywhere corn will grow. I plant it at 50 pounds per acre for grazing and 100 pounds for hay. It'd great feed and growth can be unbelievable. You can get very high protein and sugar content If done right. If you don't cut it to short you can be cutting again in a month. It's blown millet away in my experience. It does need nitrogen to perform well. I generally put around 100 pounds at planting. Another 50 with each cutting. Only the initial 100 for grazing. I plant a inch deep. With your rainfall 1/2 inch is probably good. No need to plant until 60 to 65 degree soil temps.
If grazing educate yourself on prussic acid. It's no big deal. You just need to understand it.

Sidenote..
I know nothing of the grass you are trying to establish in this field. But hybrid Sudan will easily hit 6' tall. Ive seen strips left bare ( skip a swath with the drill. ) And seed your delicate grass seeds. The Sudan will keep the wind off the soil causing it to stay moist a little more. Can get you ahead on getting your permanent pasture established.

Is that a 100 lbs of actual N or 100 lbs over all ?

 

[callmefence]

100 pounds of actual nitrogen.
I've been putting 200 pounds of 30-10-0
Before the disc. And 100 pounds of straight urea 46-0-0 once it's up good and all frost danger is completely gone.
So I guess not necessarily all the 100at planting. In previous years I've out 300 of 30-10-0
I like to get it in early. Get bit sometimes.

 

[Farm Fence Solutions]

You ever graze it and make hay the same year?

 

[callmefence]

You ever graze it and make hay the same year?

Absolutely.. make hay then graze it.

Let it bounce back a few weeks and turn em in. Try to use it up before Frost.

 

[True Grit Farms]

You ever graze it and make hay the same year?

Absolutely.. make hay then graze it.

Let it bounce back a few weeks and turn em in. Try to use it up before Frost.

I'm interested in making hay. I don't have a conditioner - roller is there any problems with getting it to dry? And at what height do you cut for hay?

 

[callmefence]

You ever graze it and make hay the same year?

Absolutely.. make hay then graze it.

Let it bounce back a few weeks and turn em in. Try to use it up before Frost.

I'm interested in making hay. I don't have a conditioner - roller is there any problems with getting it to dry? And at what height do you cut for hay?

Imo right when it starts to boot is your best hay. Should stand alone.. take care of cows with no supplement.

Lots cut on a blond seed head for more yield.
Red seed head is to dam late.
I had some of mine cut with a disc mower, no conditioner last year. The guy raked it and let it lay four instead of the usual three. It was just fine. The heavier seed rates also give a finer stalk that helps with drying. Bigfoot and Texasmark use drum mowers . Imo having to have a mowco is BS.

 

[True Grit Farms]

Absolutely.. make hay then graze it.

Let it bounce back a few weeks and turn em in. Try to use it up before Frost.

I'm interested in making hay. I don't have a conditioner - roller is there any problems with getting it to dry? And at what height do you cut for hay?

Imo right when it starts to boot is your best hay. Should stand alone.. take care of cows with no supplement.

Lots cut on a blond seed head for more yield.
Red seed head is to dam late.
I had some of mine cut with a disc mower, no conditioner last year. The guy raked it and let it lay four instead of the usual three. It was just fine. The heavier seed rates also give a finer stalk that helps with drying. Bigfoot and Texasmark use drum mowers . Imo having to have a mowco is BS.

Thank you, I'm going to give it a try.

 

[pdfangus]

Google Green Cover Seed in Bladen Nebraska....

I have been dealing with them for six or seven years....

just got my summer mix last week....waiting for warm weather to start planting.

call Keith and he will make you a mix of your choice and guide you throught varieties and species....

they also have a website where you can make your own mix and price it out....

great folks and they only do cover crops.

 

[Bigfoot]

I would like to rent a place, just to plant sudex. Land is $200 an acre here, and then add the cost of seed, fertilizer, and trips over the field. It would fix my hay problem, it's just that land is too high.

 

[Farm Fence Solutions]

What kind of yield do you typically get?

 

[rollinhills]

I've been using pearl millet the last couple years I really like the hay but it doesn't seem to like traffic to well. I'm going to sow about 50 ac of straight Sudan grass this year, it's supposed to be better for making hay.

 

[5S Cattle]

Fence, when do you usually plant?

 

[Stocker Steve]

SS is a marginal one cut crop in central Minnesota. You can grow corn up into Canada... Corn can yield twice as much tonnage as SS here, but it requires more fertility and more moisture. There are many kinds of sorghum and sorghum crosses if you dig into it.

SS shines in a complex full season cover crop mix, where its root mass allows it to compete better than corn. The way you make money on complex cover crops here is to use some bin run in the seed mix, double crop it after some cool season stuff, and harvest the forage with cattle after cool season stuff stops growing - - while doing some soil building for next year. Annual forages can net more dollars per acre than perennials if you have the management, the drainage and the fertility. Sell the baler if you need more cattle.

Green cover crop seeds is a great lead.