Just a few questions

[BDekle]

Hello all! I've been lurking on this site for a few months now so I decided to register and join the community. I have a few questions about Tifton 85. I know someone who has a nursery and I would like to establish a 100 acre pasture with the stuff. I don't have any cattle yet, but I plan on raising F1 Brafords as they bring a pretty penny down here on the Texas Gulf Coast. I want to start a calf operation and I'm wondering how many acres to the pair once the Tifton establishes itself can I support safely.

This is a great website and I've learned so much! Any ideas for the first time rancher would be greatly appreciated. I hope I can finally fulfill my dream of raising cattle.

 

[Nesikep]

I don't know squat about Tifton 85..

My ideas, well, I don't like testing the waters with both feet.. I wouldn't 'bet the farm' on prices staying up at this level forever, and don't think it's time to buy large quantities of cattle.

Do you already have land?

 

[Kingfisher]

http://www.tifton.uga.edu/fat/tifton44.htm
What's the difference between t44&t85?

 

[Nesikep]

seems like its tough to get started... planting from sprigs, and takes at least a year to get going... If you're going to do it, i'd recommend planting it before you get the cattle... hay it if it gets too tall, who knows what the hay price will be, but I doubt cattle prices will be what they are now in the fall time... maybe you can sell some hay, keep some, and buy a few head with the money.

It's better to make your rookie mistakes on a small scale

 

[B&M Farms]

Too many variables to answer that question. How much money are you willing to spend on fertilizer? How many sections could you split it into so you can rotational graze? How much of the land is good enough for tifton 85 and how much is brush or trees? How much hay would be harvested? Even with all these questions answered you will always have the weather dictating your stocking rate.

 

[wacocowboy]

From what I read and talking to people I know when I was looking for a grass to plant 85 is pretty expensive to plant and maintain. Sounded like it was to expensive for cow/calf operation so I moved on. F1 Braford heifers bring a pretty penny but not so well with the bull calves. Right now is not a good time to buy into the cattle business. You will have to cough up some serious cash to get a good bull and cows to produce heifers that someone will want to buy as replacements. I wouldn't run more than 35-40 mammas since you will also have to keep the heifer until they are 12-16 months old to sell as replacements.

 

[BDekle]

I'm not trying to get rich overnight as I already have other sources of income. Why do y'all say it's not the time to get in the business, because prices are so high? I don't have the property just yet, however I would be purchasing it whether or not I put cattle on it. Tifton does appear to be a pain so I'll prolly just plant coastal and let it be. Lastly, why would I wait 12-18 months to sell the breed I had selected. 350-500 lb calves have been bringing over $2 a lb for sometime now and all the old timers I know said they don't anticipate prices to go down because of the cost of diesel alone.

Thanks again!

 

[bird dog]

Without knowing more than we do probably one pair for 5 acres would be pushing it. I would start with about 10 cows and a young bull and see how it goes. I see nothing wrong with getting into the business at this time but like the others are trying to say, it may not be a good time to buy top of the line cows. Short bred older cows are available at reasonable prices and if you can catch a herd dispersal even better. Unless this property is crop land, it most likely has enough grass to keep a few going to get started.

You might consider cross fencing it into smaller paddocks and trying to establish your grass of choice in one at a time. This will greatly reduce the risk if mother nature doesn't play nice. I would start with just plain old Coastal on one to start with. Good luck

 

[Jogeephus]

I'm a fan of T85 but its not something you can establish if you cut corners. Key is to pack it good then pack it again and don't let the texas millet choke it out. A friend of mine helped develop this grass and I had him help me with the first planting and I did exactly like he said and I was able to cut hay on it the first year. Granted I had rain.

The important thing to understand is T85 will produce a pile of forage in a short time. About 17,000 lbs in about 4 months. After this you are screwed cause it won't do nothing. Then consider Tift 9 bahai. It produces about 16,000 lbs of forage over about 7-8 months then you have nothing for 4-5 months.

What sold me on T85 is when I looked at an operation that had 200 pair on as many acres and they were able to get three cuttings of hay off the pasture with the cows on it the whole time. I was impressed.

Another thing people don't talk about with Tift 85 is how the mother plants - when dormant - leave large spaces between each other. These spaces make ideal spaces for over seeding winter annuals.

Whether its the right grass for you really depends on what you are going to do with the land. Myself, I wouldn't want a large portion of my land planted in this grass unless I ran summer stockers because it just produces so much forage in such a short time and you have to deal with it before the quality goes down. I would be reluctant also if I was in the hay business because there is nothing worse than having to hay a pile of acres of t85 during a wet summer. Nothing better than the convenience of Tift 44 for this. Cut in the morning and bale that afternoon. Balers dream this grass but you lose out on quality and quantity.

Guess what I'm saying is there is no clear cut answer. Moderation and diversity is how I'd go and just look at the pro's and cons of each grass and plan out your grazing strategy to get the most days grazing as possible while taking advantage of the high production grasses where feasible. JMO

 

[wacocowboy]

I'm not trying to get rich overnight as I already have other sources of income. Why do y'all say it's not the time to get in the business, because prices are so high? I don't have the property just yet, however I would be purchasing it whether or not I put cattle on it. Tifton does appear to be a pain so I'll prolly just plant coastal and let it be. Lastly, why would I wait 12-18 months to sell the breed I had selected. 350-500 lb calves have been bringing over $2 a lb for sometime now and all the old timers I know said they don't anticipate prices to go down because of the cost of diesel alone.

Thanks again!

The reason I said you would hold them for 12+ months is because you said you F1 Brafords bring a pretty penny so I thought you were talking about replacement heifers which do bring a good amount of money. If you just want to sell 350-500 lb calves just shop around get some good cross bred mommas and a good bull like Brangus, Hereford, Char, or Beefmaster would be a lot cheaper than Brafords.

 

[M5farm]

http://dothan.craigslist.org/grd/4394453135.html

 

[BDekle]

I'm not trying to get rich overnight as I already have other sources of income. Why do y'all say it's not the time to get in the business, because prices are so high? I don't have the property just yet, however I would be purchasing it whether or not I put cattle on it. Tifton does appear to be a pain so I'll prolly just plant coastal and let it be. Lastly, why would I wait 12-18 months to sell the breed I had selected. 350-500 lb calves have been bringing over $2 a lb for sometime now and all the old timers I know said they don't anticipate prices to go down because of the cost of diesel alone.

Thanks again!

The reason I said you would hold them for 12+ months is because you said you F1 Brafords bring a pretty penny so I thought you were talking about replacement heifers which do bring a good amount of money. If you just want to sell 350-500 lb calves just shop around get some good cross bred mommas and a good bull like Brangus, Hereford, Char, or Beefmaster would be a lot cheaper than Brafords.

Where I live I was told that cattle need to have a minimum 1/4 brahma influence to be succesful. I want to purchase bred F1 Brafords and put a Brahma back on them and their calves when ready. All I know is that Braford is the breed I want. You guys are awesome!!

 

[Newberry Creek]

I have Tift 85 and love it. No way in the world for the cows to keep up with it in the summer. It has come in good enough already this year that my cows are on pasture only. I rent out three of my five pastures in the summer so I don't have to mow them, then trade rent for hay. My hay man likes the Tift 85 so well he has cut and rolled some of mine green and sprigged it on his land. He sells it for horse hay.

You do need good mosture to get it going but with good moisture you will have adequate pasture in four or five months. Like Jogeephus said, you will have plenty of space to seed winter grazing over that first years planting. I no-till drill in oats and rye grass over several of my pastures every year after they stop growing for winter. Usually in November. I live eight miles from the Florida line.