Next year will be better, won't it?

[kickinbull]

Have been thinking about what to do next year to extend grazing and or provide forage. 1st idea is to bale one field and then stockpile the forage for late summer/fall. 2nd idea,same field, plant silage corn with cover crop, harvest the silage and plant to another cover, possibly rotate cows through it then. 3rd idea is to include the same field in rotation throughout the summer and keep more reserve on all fields clipping when necessary. What have you tried, what worked for you? Thanks.

 

[1982vett]

Have been thinking about what to do next year to extend grazing and or provide forage. 1st idea is to bale one field and then stockpile the forage for late summer/fall. 2nd idea,same field, plant silage corn with cover crop, harvest the silage and plant to another cover, possibly rotate cows through it then. 3rd idea is to include the same field in rotation throughout the summer and keep more reserve on all fields clipping when necessary. What have you tried, what worked for you? Thanks.

Not much of anything has worked this year without sufficient rain at the proper times. Being understocked is the only thing that has worked.

 

[Caustic Burno]

Have been thinking about what to do next year to extend grazing and or provide forage. 1st idea is to bale one field and then stockpile the forage for late summer/fall. 2nd idea,same field, plant silage corn with cover crop, harvest the silage and plant to another cover, possibly rotate cows through it then. 3rd idea is to include the same field in rotation throughout the summer and keep more reserve on all fields clipping when necessary. What have you tried, what worked for you? Thanks.

Not much of anything has worked this year without sufficient rain at the proper times. Being understocked is the only thing that has worked.

Seems like I have fought something every year with the exception of one or two. Drought, flood, hurricane, armyworms,grasshoppers, and the list seems endless. The older I get the obstacles look much bigger than they used to.

 

[1982vett]

Does start to wear thin. Going thru the motions and returning less year after year really bites. Beginning to think I should go back to earning a paycheck. It might keep my attention away from the disasters going on around here and keep me occupied dreaming of the easy farm life. :lol: Definitely wouldn't have time to fix anything falling apart or implementing ways to improve operations. That alone would be a major cut in expenses.

Seemed to go so much smoother 20 years ago.

 

[1982vett]

Just got in from checking some things and feeding the cows some hay. Scratched at the oats I planted 2 months ago (that I should be turning cows into around now)....it is sporting half inch sprouts from the showers we have gotten the past few days. Just might have something green for them come March.

 

[kickinbull]

oats we planted never came up, I think the turkey's got em. Did have a little I spread in the garden, wheweee, they look nice.

 

[1982vett]

oats we planted never came up, I think the turkey's got em. Did have a little I spread in the garden, wheweee, they look nice.

No gaurantee I'll get a stand but at least some of the seed is still there and ready to come up. Then their is always wondering if it will still be alive when the next rain gets here.

 

[Caustic Burno]

oats we planted never came up, I think the turkey's got em. Did have a little I spread in the garden, wheweee, they look nice.

No gaurantee I'll get a stand but at least some of the seed is still there and ready to come up. Then their is always wondering if it will still be alive when the next rain gets here.

First year I can remember I didn't plant winter pasture.

 

[1982vett]

Sort of been looking for ways around planting oats myself. Had mediocre results just pasture drilling oats into pasture. Thought I was doing pretty good getting it in under $100 an acre but that looks like it is going to be rather expensive now. I don't ever recall having failures like this in the 35 years we have been planting oats or wheat and now we have the second one in 3 years. Planting everything to native pasture has the same problem lately.....won't rain often enough to get it up and growing.

 

[dun]

oats we planted never came up, I think the turkey's got em. Did have a little I spread in the garden, wheweee, they look nice.

No gaurantee I'll get a stand but at least some of the seed is still there and ready to come up. Then their is always wondering if it will still be alive when the next rain gets here.

First year I can remember I didn't plant winter pasture.

I thought you all in tx had a sever drought in the early 70s or late 60s

 

[Isomade]

Caustic and 1982,

You old farts crack me up. :lol: you know you love it, otherwise you wouldn't be on here posting away about it.

 

[1982vett]

Dun, that was probably the mid or early 60s.....45 years ago or maybe it was the mid 50s. Sort of remember the corn crops not doing well and Dad switching to milo around 65 or so. I'd say anything in the 70s would be above average compared to now but the early 70s are in that period in my time that such things didn't seem important but somewhere in their is when Dad planted wheat for the first time. Could have been because of a dry summer and hay in short supply. Anyway, it was usually hot and dry in late July and early August for a few weeks but that usually led to the afternoon heat showers and tropical storms.

 

[1982vett]

Caustic and 1982,

You old farts crack me up. :lol: you know you love it, otherwise you wouldn't be on here posting away about it.

Hey........I made it! :banana:

 

[Isomade]

Caustic and 1982,

You old farts crack me up. :lol: you know you love it, otherwise you wouldn't be on here posting away about it.

Hey........I made it! :banana:

I only hope one day I can say the same. :tiphat:

 

[dun]

Dun, that was probably the mid or early 60s.....45 years ago or maybe it was the mid 50s. Sort of remember the corn crops not doing well and Dad switching to milo around 65 or so. I'd say anything in the 70s would be above average compared to now but the early 70s are in that period in my time that such things didn't seem important but somewhere in their is when Dad planted wheat for the first time. Could have been because of a dry summer and hay in short supply. Anyway, it was usually hot and dry in late July and early August for a few weeks but that usually led to the afternoon heat showers and tropical storms.

I'm having a hard time figuring the year. I know where I was living along the mex border in ca and I think it was right after I got back from Nam. We had dry times where we were and started burning the needles off the cactus for the cows. Seems like every other publication I got at that time was saying how bad the drought was in tx and it made me feel better that we weren;t as bad off.

 

[novatech]

Dun, that was probably the mid or early 60s.....45 years ago or maybe it was the mid 50s. Sort of remember the corn crops not doing well and Dad switching to milo around 65 or so. I'd say anything in the 70s would be above average compared to now but the early 70s are in that period in my time that such things didn't seem important but somewhere in their is when Dad planted wheat for the first time. Could have been because of a dry summer and hay in short supply. Anyway, it was usually hot and dry in late July and early August for a few weeks but that usually led to the afternoon heat showers and tropical storms.

I'm having a hard time figuring the year. I know where I was living along the mex border in ca and I think it was right after I got back from Nam. We had dry times where we were and started burning the needles off the cactus for the cows. Seems like every other publication I got at that time was saying how bad the drought was in tx and it made me feel better that we weren;t as bad off.

Not to long after burning cactus in central Texas we had hurricane Carla on the coast. Maybe it was before, I forget.

 

[Caustic Burno]

Carla was in 61 didn't have to worry about feeding cattle that winter as most had drown on the gulf coast.
We didn't feed cattle back then either they had to make it on there on. I don't remember feeding hay until the mid to late 70's. Lost a lot of cattle under that management system but wasn't much in them either.
I have heard an old mentor of mine say a many a time, boy that cow ain't goin to make it till spring.

 

[Caustic Burno]

Caustic and 1982,

You old farts crack me up. :lol: you know you love it, otherwise you wouldn't be on here posting away about it.

Well I am in the old fart club that is for sure. Never quite seen a year like this one great rains when you can't use them.
Cows are gambling in the pasture right now over sweetgum ball's and pine cones storing them up like squirrels.
They keep looking at this years hay trying to figure out if they can stay. I have one ten acre hay field that usually cuts out nearly 50 rolls a cutting it cut out 35 rolls this year and I usually get 3 or 4 cuttings.

 

[1982vett]

A couple days ago I saw a load of hay going east instead of west. :shock: