Millet vs Crabgrass (or whatever you prefer)

[rockroadseminole]

I have a 65 acre irrigated field that I have rented out the past three years. It has been in a corn/peanut/corn rotation. We are getting 275 per acre rent, but this is the last year of the lease. In a perfect world, I want to plant it in a summer annual next year and run 4-6 head per acre on it. Stockers or heifers is yet to be determined.

What successes or failures have you experienced with millet or crabgrass for high stocking rates? Keeping in mind this is irrigated land in South GA (plenty of water). I worry a little about insects in millet and know nothing about crabgrass.

It is also HOT during the summer. I would be interested to know any ADG's you've had during summer grazing of stocker cattle.

 

[jdg]

Howdy neighbor... feel free to PM me for a more detailed discussion, but the basics are these facts: you can grow more DM tonnage with pearl millet, and you can maximize ADG with crabgrass. I personally plant mixtures...partially from a soil health perspective, without giving up too much in gains per acre. You might get 2 animal units per (1 AU = 1000lbs animal weight) for 90 days, but you won't on a 12 month basis...even with good management and proper winter grazing. Unless you are direct marketing beef, or selling seedstock, you will have a tough time topping returns above $275/ acre. It's doable, but requires top shelf management, hedging on the market, and above average animal husbandry. I've been raising seedstock and grass finished beef under pivot for the past 6 years. After quite a bit of experimenting, my current summer mix is pearl millet, cowpea, sunn hemp, and crabgrass.

 

[1982vett]

I have a 65 acre irrigated field that I have rented out the past three years. It has been in a corn/peanut/corn rotation. We are getting 275 per acre rent, but this is the last year of the lease. In a perfect world, I want to plant it in a summer annual next year and run 4-6 head per acre on it. Stockers or heifers is yet to be determined.

What successes or failures have you experienced with millet or crabgrass for high stocking rates? Keeping in mind this is irrigated land in South GA (plenty of water). I worry a little about insects in millet and know nothing about crabgrass.

It is also HOT during the summer. I would be interested to know any ADG's you've had during summer grazing of stocker cattle.

I don't know, but I think you better reality check your expectations....$18,000 mailbox money is a heck of a lot of work and risk running 390 stockers or heifers.

 

[jdg]

Tim-

12 lbs. Pearl Millet, 12 lbs. cowpea (iron and clay or red ripper) 6 lbs. Sunn Hemp, and 2 lb. crabgrass

The red ripper is more expensive, but is supposed to regrow more aggressively. Only have one year experience with it and it's harder to source. The millet and the sunn hemp come out of the gate pretty fast, and the crabgrass is good for late season grazing. You have to increase your stocking density for them to eat the sunn hemp...they prefer the other stuff.

And yes...Vette is right....you really have to have your ducks in a row to beat $275/acre....doable, but requires lining up a few planets.

 

[jehosofat]

I'd tell the man to send me my check for $17,875 and plant whatever he wanted on it, but I don't know your exact circumstances. Gonna be tough to beat that even if everything goes right.

 

[Allenw]

Tim-

12 lbs. Pearl Millet, 12 lbs. cowpea (iron and clay or red ripper) 6 lbs. Sunn Hemp, and 2 lb. crabgrass

The red ripper is more expensive, but is supposed to regrow more aggressively. Only have one year experience with it and it's harder to source. The millet and the sunn hemp come out of the gate pretty fast, and the crabgrass is good for late season grazing. You have to increase your stocking density for them to eat the sunn hemp...they prefer the other stuff.

And yes...Vette is right....you really have to have your ducks in a row to beat $275/acre....doable, but requires lining up a few planets.

I always liked Black Autry aka Catjang for cow peas they vine and never stop growing haven't seen any for a few years. We also used to get mixed cow peas that were good, they were just a mix seeds were all different. I don't think they were named varieties, I need to check and see if some one still has a source for them.

 

[wbvs58]

Do you innoculate your cowpea?

Ken

 

[rockroadseminole]

Howdy neighbor... feel free to PM me for a more detailed discussion, but the basics are these facts: you can grow more DM tonnage with pearl millet, and you can maximize ADG with crabgrass. I personally plant mixtures...partially from a soil health perspective, without giving up too much in gains per acre. You might get 2 animal units per (1 AU = 1000lbs animal weight) for 90 days, but you won't on a 12 month basis...even with good management and proper winter grazing. Unless you are direct marketing beef, or selling seedstock, you will have a tough time topping returns above $275/ acre. It's doable, but requires top shelf management, hedging on the market, and above average animal husbandry. I've been raising seedstock and grass finished beef under pivot for the past 6 years. After quite a bit of experimenting, my current summer mix is pearl millet, cowpea, sunn hemp, and crabgrass.

Thanks for the perspective! I would have assumed that the millet and hemp would shade out the crabgrass. Is this not your experience? Also, we planted some Whistler winter peas in a mix this winter and got almost zero regrowth out of them. What has been your experience with the cow pea? How much N are you typically applying on this mix? Lastly, have you had to use any type of pesticides on mix? Heard that millet could get bugs worse than the crabgrass. (Talk about killing your returns!)

 

[rockroadseminole]

As far as the $ goes... very grateful for the words of caution, however I feel like my pencil is pretty sharp. Most definitely could be wrong though. The way I see it, worst case scenario I don't make quite as much money (or better yet lose some). Then just rent it back out the following year. The way farming is going right now, I'm thinking that land rents will have to start going down soon.

 

[jdg]

Millet and Sunn Hemp will roar out of the gate and outgrow the cowpea and crabgrass. I usually put about 40-50 units of N out, sometimes twice (this is the smallest amount i can put out with my spreader evenly)unless i can fertigate, at which I only put about 30 units out at the time, and usually re-fertilize after each graze. I spoon feed to push production, while still trying to wean my soils from the acidic fertilizers that have sponsored the dependent kinds of biological life in my soil. Chicken litter would be a better choice, but I can't always get it when i want, and in a grazing scenario, Phosphorous can build up.
First graze is ideally at about 18-24", and I try and take half of that. If you don't put enough stocking density, they underutilize the sunn hemp. This graze opens up the canopy to allow more light in on the crabgrass and cowpea. Usually the cowpea grows pretty well about now, and the second graze features it more. There will be crabgrass underneath for the second graze, but it usually dominates in the third graze, when the first two are playing out. It extends the season a bit longer without having to replant. If you don't have a longer season, skip the crabgrass. If I didn't care about soil health, I would just plant millet. It's the performer and does the majority of the work, but I strongly believe the biodiversity helps create underground diversity, which promotes soil building.
I very rarely use pesticides. Often spraying for bugs can make the problem worse. The exception was sugar cane aphids a few years back. I don't plant sorghums anymore because of it. Army worms are another exception. They like crabgrass better than millet.
I've planted winter peas before too. they only work if you allow them a full season to grow, usually after your other forages have already matured. It's usually a one and done grazing.
I usually get two grazings off the cowpea, but nothing substantial.