First time planting hay-grazer

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kentuckyguy":azebkpf5 said:
PEsC3YV.jpg


Laid it down today. Hopefully we can get some hot dry weather the next 4-5 days.

That's going to make some hay! Are you planning on wrapping it? Hopefully it stays dry for you this week. Plenty of heat on the way!
 
Farm Fence Solutions":3tcp4g32 said:
kentuckyguy":3tcp4g32 said:
PEsC3YV.jpg


Laid it down today. Hopefully we can get some hot dry weather the next 4-5 days.

That's going to make some hay! Are you planning on wrapping it? Hopefully it stays dry for you this week. Plenty of heat on the way!

I wish I had a wrapper. That's something I will probably purchase within the next few years.

We are supposed to be dry till Monday and in the 90's. AWIS is showing very high pan evaporation the next three days so I have got my fingers crossed.

This should be 14-16% protein hay.
 
kentuckyguy":3h9c1869 said:
Farm Fence Solutions":3h9c1869 said:
kentuckyguy":3h9c1869 said:
PEsC3YV.jpg


Laid it down today. Hopefully we can get some hot dry weather the next 4-5 days.

That's going to make some hay! Are you planning on wrapping it? Hopefully it stays dry for you this week. Plenty of heat on the way!

I wish I had a wrapper. That's something I will probably purchase within the next few years.

We are supposed to be dry till Monday and in the 90's. AWIS is showing very high pan evaporation the next three days so I have got my fingers crossed.

This should be 14-16% protein hay.


I have a neighbor with a wrapper. I'm hoping his schedule jives with mine. Looking forward to seeing how yours tuns out.
 
sCVULQC.jpg


kpjs6CR.jpg


Baled it today. It was good and dry. I'm a little disappointed on the yield. I was able to get 3 4x4 rolls to the acre. Next time I might let it get up a little over 40" before baling.

It's starting to rain again here now so I'll keep updates on the regrowth.
 
Disappointed in the first cutting, which may be the only cutting I get if it doesn't rain soon, and this heat stays around. It's 106 here today. Some of the stuff was over the cab of my tractor. Unfortunately that was in about a 1/2 acre area. A large portion of it looked promising when it started, then when it reached about 1ft tall, started drying up and turning brown at the top. I'm probably going to end up with about 25 bales on 40 acres. The field it is in has not been worked much in the last 20 yrs. I know it needed more fertilizer, more rain and the weeds were an issue in a few spots. I want to put more fertilizer down, but there is no rain forecast in the next 2 weeks and high heat, so I don't want to put any down if it doesn't rain again for a month or more.
 
If it makes you feel any better I'm badly disappointed in mine too.

Seemed like after it dried down there was nothing left.

Then we went 3 weeks in the mid 90's with no rain after I cut it. The regrowth sucks to say the least. It's very patchy and thin now. The crabgrass is filling in all the bare spots good though.
 
AZAggie":1e5a974c said:
Disappointed in the first cutting, which may be the only cutting I get if it doesn't rain soon, and this heat stays around. It's 106 here today. Some of the stuff was over the cab of my tractor. Unfortunately that was in about a 1/2 acre area. A large portion of it looked promising when it started, then when it reached about 1ft tall, started drying up and turning brown at the top. I'm probably going to end up with about 25 bales on 40 acres. The field it is in has not been worked much in the last 20 yrs. I know it needed more fertilizer, more rain and the weeds were an issue in a few spots. I want to put more fertilizer down, but there is no rain forecast in the next 2 weeks and high heat, so I don't want to put any down if it doesn't rain again for a month or more.

Don't forget to test for nitrates before feeding.
 
Allenw":1zvucx1o said:
AZAggie":1zvucx1o said:
Disappointed in the first cutting, which may be the only cutting I get if it doesn't rain soon, and this heat stays around. It's 106 here today. Some of the stuff was over the cab of my tractor. Unfortunately that was in about a 1/2 acre area. A large portion of it looked promising when it started, then when it reached about 1ft tall, started drying up and turning brown at the top. I'm probably going to end up with about 25 bales on 40 acres. The field it is in has not been worked much in the last 20 yrs. I know it needed more fertilizer, more rain and the weeds were an issue in a few spots. I want to put more fertilizer down, but there is no rain forecast in the next 2 weeks and high heat, so I don't want to put any down if it doesn't rain again for a month or more.

Don't forget to test for nitrates before feeding.
And check the protein level.....might ease your bale count pain... ;-)
 
Dogs and Cows":2tsli4ap said:
callmefence":2tsli4ap said:
This got out of the ground a week or two into April. I've got several later plantings up to last weekend. It is getting late imo . But it really doesn't take alot of rain. Just definitely try to get it in ASAP. I would forget the silly peas. If the haygrazer goes it will choke out anything else anyway. Nothing wrong with 100 pounds of nitrogen as long as you get rain. How many pounds per of seed do plan on?



Is that broadcast and disced in fence?

I planted a few acres in Johnsongrass a week ago. Hoping the rain we are getting gets it up and going. I think it should work very well for my needs. Did you decide to go with any JG this year?

Tim

I put some down this spring. Ordered the seed from the local ag store. When I went to pick it up the store manager took me to the back door and said, "don't let anybody see you with that stuff". Ha!

JG is your best friend or worst enemy. Just depends. What I recently found out from the "noble.org/news/publications/ag-news-and-views/2008/dont-overlook-johnsongrass-in-your-pasture" is a test they ran on 16 popular grasses.

Top two were JG and Bermuda...didn't say what kind. JG was unfertilized and uncultivated. Bermuda was a managed stand with 50-100# of actual N per acre. CP for the two was 11.6/11.4. TDN was58/59.8. All the other grasses were wayyyyyy behind these two.

Cows will run to JG when fed. JG doesn't need much attention. JG was here 40 years ago when I got here, before SS and is still popular. Wink!
 
Allenw":265bdalv said:
AZAggie":265bdalv said:
Disappointed in the first cutting, which may be the only cutting I get if it doesn't rain soon, and this heat stays around. It's 106 here today. Some of the stuff was over the cab of my tractor. Unfortunately that was in about a 1/2 acre area. A large portion of it looked promising when it started, then when it reached about 1ft tall, started drying up and turning brown at the top. I'm probably going to end up with about 25 bales on 40 acres. The field it is in has not been worked much in the last 20 yrs. I know it needed more fertilizer, more rain and the weeds were an issue in a few spots. I want to put more fertilizer down, but there is no rain forecast in the next 2 weeks and high heat, so I don't want to put any down if it doesn't rain again for a month or more.

Don't forget to test for nitrates before feeding.

Nitrates usually aren't a problem in baled hay as they and prussic acid dissipate over time. Been feeding it 30+ years and never had a problem. Grazing, be careful.
 
kentuckyguy":28yppteo said:
sCVULQC.jpg


kpjs6CR.jpg


Baled it today. It was good and dry. I'm a little disappointed on the yield. I was able to get 3 4x4 rolls to the acre. Next time I might let it get up a little over 40" before baling.

It's starting to rain again here now so I'll keep updates on the regrowth.

40" is a good height. Still nice and leafy and not too hard to manage in the baling operation.....nice bale you have there!

I have a Branson 6530c for my baling tractor and in 2014 it was a wet spring and I couldn't get to it (Gotcha Plus SS). When I cut it, and I have pictures which are on other networks...can't figure out pics on here, it was over the top of my cab....like 8' tall. Management of the baling process was a nightmare. But the plant was ok as GP was a small stem (50#/ac), brown rib, late maturing SS and just enjoyed getting to show it's colors.
 
Texasmark":362f53dr said:
Allenw":362f53dr said:
AZAggie":362f53dr said:
Disappointed in the first cutting, which may be the only cutting I get if it doesn't rain soon, and this heat stays around. It's 106 here today. Some of the stuff was over the cab of my tractor. Unfortunately that was in about a 1/2 acre area. A large portion of it looked promising when it started, then when it reached about 1ft tall, started drying up and turning brown at the top. I'm probably going to end up with about 25 bales on 40 acres. The field it is in has not been worked much in the last 20 yrs. I know it needed more fertilizer, more rain and the weeds were an issue in a few spots. I want to put more fertilizer down, but there is no rain forecast in the next 2 weeks and high heat, so I don't want to put any down if it doesn't rain again for a month or more.

Don't forget to test for nitrates before feeding.

Nitrates usually aren't a problem in baled hay as they and prussic acid dissipate over time. Been feeding it 30+ years and never had a problem. Grazing, be careful.

Nitrates don't dissipate, I agree they usually aren't a problem. A lot depends on how a person feeds the hay. A person feeding a few cubes everyday or the cows having access to other forage can cut the total nitrate intake. The poor sucker that dumps a high nitrate bale to a bunch of snow bound cattle is the one that gets hurt. Being in a drought year I would check it just to be sure.
 
Texasmark":2g3l469i said:
Allenw":2g3l469i said:
AZAggie":2g3l469i said:
Disappointed in the first cutting, which may be the only cutting I get if it doesn't rain soon, and this heat stays around. It's 106 here today. Some of the stuff was over the cab of my tractor. Unfortunately that was in about a 1/2 acre area. A large portion of it looked promising when it started, then when it reached about 1ft tall, started drying up and turning brown at the top. I'm probably going to end up with about 25 bales on 40 acres. The field it is in has not been worked much in the last 20 yrs. I know it needed more fertilizer, more rain and the weeds were an issue in a few spots. I want to put more fertilizer down, but there is no rain forecast in the next 2 weeks and high heat, so I don't want to put any down if it doesn't rain again for a month or more.

Don't forget to test for nitrates before feeding.

Nitrates usually aren't a problem in baled hay as they and prussic acid dissipate over time. Been feeding it 30+ years and never had a problem. Grazing, be careful.

Your correct that nitrates are not the monster they get credit for.

But with all due respect your wrong about nitrates disappearing in hay.
Purasic acid yes within a few days.
Nitrates however can remain in hay until next year.
 
callmefence":k7diuiw7 said:
Texasmark":k7diuiw7 said:
Allenw":k7diuiw7 said:
Don't forget to test for nitrates before feeding.

Nitrates usually aren't a problem in baled hay as they and prussic acid dissipate over time. Been feeding it 30+ years and never had a problem. Grazing, be careful.

Your correct that nitrates are not the monster they get credit for.

But with all due respect your wrong about nitrates disappearing in hay.
Purasic acid yes within a few days.
Nitrates however can remain in hay until next year.

Guess it's time to whop out the Ag. Extension office papers and refresh my memory. Thanks for the update.
 
Allenw":2ptnu56y said:
Texasmark":2ptnu56y said:
Allenw":2ptnu56y said:
Don't forget to test for nitrates before feeding.

Nitrates usually aren't a problem in baled hay as they and prussic acid dissipate over time. Been feeding it 30+ years and never had a problem. Grazing, be careful.

Nitrates don't dissipate, I agree they usually aren't a problem. A lot depends on how a person feeds the hay. A person feeding a few cubes everyday or the cows having access to other forage can cut the total nitrate intake. The poor sucker that dumps a high nitrate bale to a bunch of snow bound cattle is the one that gets hurt. Being in a drought year I would check it just to be sure.

That's what makes for news articles. Checking your references, there are all types of folks and conditions when doing anything including haying, fertilization methods/quantities, harvesting techniques, and mother nature.

Most of my blabbing is via personal experiences which are moderate to mild considering the extremes of the above available to the general public.

I had a well to do friend with a field of Fescue (I think it was) he had way over fertilized. Nothing in the field but that grass (at a good stand by then), but salt and water. Turned in a bunch of hungry, six month old (thereabouts) calves in it and lost quite a few before he got the rest out. I don't remember the story exactly as it's been 20ish years ago but the point is, excess fertilization and no diversification as to the available nutrition can cause problems.

Thanks for the tip.
 
Texasmark":gsdiils3 said:
Allenw":gsdiils3 said:
Texasmark":gsdiils3 said:
Nitrates usually aren't a problem in baled hay as they and prussic acid dissipate over time. Been feeding it 30+ years and never had a problem. Grazing, be careful.

Nitrates don't dissipate, I agree they usually aren't a problem. A lot depends on how a person feeds the hay. A person feeding a few cubes everyday or the cows having access to other forage can cut the total nitrate intake. The poor sucker that dumps a high nitrate bale to a bunch of snow bound cattle is the one that gets hurt. Being in a drought year I would check it just to be sure.

That's what makes for news articles. Checking your references, there are all types of folks and conditions when doing anything including haying, fertilization methods/quantities, harvesting techniques, and mother nature.

Most of my blabbing is via personal experiences which are moderate to mild considering the extremes of the above available to the general public.

I had a well to do friend with a field of Fescue (I think it was) he had way over fertilized. Nothing in the field but that grass (at a good stand by then), but salt and water. Turned in a bunch of hungry, six month old (thereabouts) calves in it and lost quite a few before he got the rest out. I don't remember the story exactly as it's been 20ish years ago but the point is, excess fertilization and no diversification as to the available nutrition can cause problems.

Thanks for the tip.

Here's an example of why problems occur and why I don't have such (opinion):

From "https://efotg.sc.egov.usda.gov/references/public/LA/AGRONOMY_TECHNICAL_NOTE_NO99-Common_Fertilizers_and_Ammonium_Nitrate_Alternatives.pdf":

"Hay producers using 300 lbs/ac of actual nitrogen from the urea/ammonium sulfate blend will be neutralizing 861 lbs of lime per acre per year. After 3 years..............." This is apparently for a person with PH problems but still, if he's growing/baling crops and ruminants are eating them............

If I get 60# at 21-0-0-24 (Ammonium Sulphate.....for acid soils) I'm pushing it in good years. More like 20#. Or may mix with 16-16-16-? Sulphate and Urea+P+K+S being sulphate with the Urea, at 200#/ac in a good year.

Other thing herein "http://agrilifecdn.tamu.edu/coastalbend/files/2016/06/PUB_forage_Nitrates-and-Prussic-Acid-in-Forages.pdf" is Sulphate vs Nitrate types of ammonia.

I mean folks if the millions and millons of pounds of beef produced annually had a problem with nitrates, not just some isolated examples making the news, I wouldn't be typing this and you wouldn't be reading it........you can throw GMO nutrition in that pot and stir it too.
 
My hay-grazer didn't turn out as well as I had expected. I am positive that field needs some TLC. Prior to my parents moving back to OK, it had basically sat unused for 10-15 years. I have taken a soil sample and am waiting on it to come back. My Dad had planted rye there last year and it didn't do diddly, I thought mainly because it didn't rain for 6 months here last fall-spring. However, while doing my soil sampling, I discovered that once you get about 3-5 inches down, the ground is hard is concrete. The roots can't penetrate that hard ground. I ran a disc over it before I put the hay-grazer in, but I really didn't realize the ground was that compacted. I never thought that soil that sandy could get that hard.
 

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