MIG Grazing Crabgrass

[Bigfoot]

This field today:


Was mowed a week ago tomorrow:


Stuck my foot in this pic, and forgot and put it on the right side. I bet it cuts it off. Tried to show the thickness, and height:


In another week, it'll be pretty tall. Then it'll slow down growing.

 

[Kell-inKY]

Well now what? (be prepared for some ramblings) both of my front fields by the road are flat covered up with crabgrass, johnsongrass, bermuda and some other stuff. This is about 15 acres that were all soybean stubble and bare ground this spring. My plan was to plant all of this ex-rowcrop land in fescue/orchardgrass. I was not expecting an explosion of free summer grazing.

I think I will plant about 10 acres and see how that goes, but now I have thick grass to contend with, I guess just mow it down and disc it up as best I can? That's the plan anyway, get some help by way of another disc to put behind my other tractor. I am guessing the crabgrass is going to make a comeback next spring even with fescue?

On the remaining 5 acres I am going to experiment with winter forage like turnips and ryegrass, I don't think that will effect my crabgrass and the disc-ing will probably do it good. I think it went to seed pretty well considering how much I mowed it and put the cattle on it. They don't eat the tall seedy stems anyway.

Bigfoot, how does this stuff look in the winter, does it just shrivel up and disappear or what? Don't know what to expect, this is the first thing you see as you turn down our drive, so yeah, I want it to look good as I have ulterior motives.

The cattle absolutely love this stuff, can't imagine not doing this again, and it looks great mowed out by the road. Here is a grainy picture just before dusk as I was drilling holes for the permanent fence (yeah, my phone is just that bad).

 

[Douglas]

^ Ryegrass will significantly delay the startup of crabgrass next spring as it can last into May. Most who need to maximize winter grazing use cereal rye/crabgrass together. The rye produces more early grazing than ryegrass.

Frost will kill crabgrass, but i use a roundup burndown about the first of sept. a week or two before planting my winter annuals.
I have been double cropping rye/oats/crimson clover with crabgrass for about 15 years.

 

[Bigfoot]

My true crabgrass pastures get rye in the fall. I mob it with cattle, in the spring when I think it's ready. I guess I get it ate down enough it doesn't slow the crabgrass idk.

You got very lucky this year. Our weather this summer was the perfect environment for volunteer grass. If it was mine, I wouldn't turn it under, and plant anything. Especially if I already had established fescue other places on the farm. If it wants that field, I'd let crabgrass have it.

Many will disagree, but that Johnson grass is your friend to.

 

[machslammer]

I agree bigfoot..
I planted some red river cg this year and have let it go to seed. My question is. .do i bush it to throw the seeds around or let them fall off when they do?

 

[Douglas]

^ i wouldn't. if you scratch in the volunteer seed with a disc or at least an aggressive chain drag later this fall or next spring, you will be better off next summer. Slight cultivation from time to time is critical to maintain volunteer crabgrass. You don't have to do it every year but the first year i think it would be important to keep it going. By doing it now you can add a little rye or clover or something to graze this winter.