Grazing Droughted out ? Fields

[Stocker Steve]

Was thinking about starting to work on the baler. Checked my hay fields first... OG is heading out at 11" to 15" high. Other varieties are less. Does not look like a crop except in some lower meadows.

What is the best way to gaze something like this? I am concerned that I will just bake the soil if I allow the cows to clip it off.

 

[BFE]

Take half leave half is probably safe enough.

 

[bigbluegrass]

Cheaper to use the cows to harvest standing grass. I would rotational graze it. Leave 3-4" of residue so the sun doesn't bake the ground.

Do you have enough hay stored from last year or a source for hay to make up the difference this year? Time to cull a few?

 

[Lee VanRoss]

Without rain the grass will go backward without cows. Is there any pasture for rent in the area of which you are aware?
Better to have grass waving in the wind than a cow looking for what ain't there. Cull before the decision is forced on you.
If it is dry for you your neighbors are most likely in the same situation. When the rain comes ,and it will, you will be in a better
position to acquire a few head if needed. Give the soil first priority. Hope you get the needed rain......

 

[Peace]

If I were to graze them I'd do it on a short term rotation...don't let the cattle graze it down too low and move them on a regular basis. The lack of rain up there is concerning, to say the least.

 

[SmokinM]

Reckon there will be a lake to come to this year or will we be vacationing on a Buffalo wallow?

Not much better here. My cows are on there last rotation with no real regrowth where they started 4 weeks ago. Got a ton of hay but thinking I may end up using a lot of it. They were in hock deep mud in February then it shut off like a spicket in March. Common sense says leave all you can but you have forgot more about grazing cattle than I know so curios to hear your approach.

 

[Stocker Steve]

Sold 11 cows in February and then bought 3 semis of extra hay. Should have bought more.
Sold 13 more head this week. Drought is just another word for herd improvement. Cattle are in great condition due to the "hard" grass.
Old stands look like crap. Should have seeded more alfalfa last year.
Plan to sell late cows in mid June. PG cows are bringing $50 over kill, so it is better to sell them as pairs.
Ordered German millet seed yesterday. I hope I can get the drill into the ground.

Forecasting 90s here for the next week. Too hot for Scandinavians to go to the lake. May be time to shut down the wood boiler?

 

[Jeanne - Simme Valley]

I feel for you. We chased pasture all last summer and didn't get 1/3 of my normal hay supply. A lawn mower couldn't have cut 2nd cutting. Fortunately, we got a few showers and we had some growth late in the year. Not enough to bale, but we rotationally grazed it - got 10 weeks in Sept/Oct/Nov. Luckily, when 1st cutting was so bad, I contracted with 4 different farmers to buy hay for winter. Ended up with 75 bales of my own left over - sold everything that gave me any excuse.

 

[SmokinM]

99 today at the Cabin. Glad we aren't vacationing this week. Hope you get some relief soon. Heat and humidity with no rain is miserable I know this first hand.

 

[Stocker Steve]

sold everything that gave me any excuse.

Good plan. I had 94% of cows calve in 45 days, and the remainder are going for a ride. Have 3 herd bulls currently, and two will be on the bubble this fall.

Local sales barn owner announced on his weekly radio spot that he was setting up special bred and pair sales because "cows have to move". Continuous grazing grass abusers are in trouble.

I am rotating herds every two days currently. Cattle look really good due to high dry matter, and have all they can eat, but regrowth is poor. Plan to roll the dice and plant 40 acres of annuals - - complex mixes based on millet or SS.

 

[wbvs58]

Hope things turn around soon for you.

Ken

 

[Stocker Steve]

99 today at the Cabin. Glad we aren't vacationing this week. Hope you get some relief soon. Heat and humidity with no rain is miserable I know this first hand.

Almost zero bugs, but we have a shortage of tonic water. BYOB.

 

[Little Joe]

I feel for ya'll facing drought this early, that's usually a July/August problem if we have to deal with it. We're getting more rain here than we know what to do with. I haven't seen anyone cutting hay yet because you can't find more than 2 dry days in the forecast, row crop farmers are struggling to get everything planted.