It's Raining!!!!! How much pasture/hay?

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heaflaw

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Apr 18, 2007
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lincolnton, nc
Piedmont NC: We are getting the best rain since March. I had 50 units per acre of ammonium nitrate put out last week on 35 acres of fescue pasture that had been eaten down close to the ground. This late in the year, how much eating will 25 brood cows get out of it this winter? (In another field, I sowed 10 acres of Gulf ryegrass and I have another 15 acres that I could sow in more ryegrass or have sod drilled with rye and/or wheat.) How much hay would you guys advise me to buy?
 
You will still need 3-5 tons per cow for this winter. It all depends how cold a winter we have. You can get by on 1/2 that amount of hay if you will feed corn gluten and a mineral mix or a 14% protein beef cattle feed.
 
We can't grow fescue but a rule of thumb here is that you will get one day of grazing for every unit of nitrogen. Of course, all this depends on weather. Another rule of thumb is to have at least 4 rolls per cow. In average years, these rules work OK but they didn't come close last spring. I would suggest planning for the worst and hope for the best. If you have hay available now and could afford to double up on your order, you can always feed the extra next year.
 

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