Pearl Millet

[Anonymous]

Has anybody here had any experience trying to raise pearl millet for summer grazing or haying? I seem to recall that a fair number of N. Texas dairies use it for summer grazing.

Based on my reading some years ago I liked the idea of giving pearl millet a try. In appearnce and growth patterns it is similar to Johnsongrass, Sudan and Haygrazer but, unlike those other grasses, it apparently is not susceptible to prussic acid and nitrate poison when grown in drought conditions.

I gave it a try for a couple of years and got very poor stands, yet Haygrazer planted the same day on adjacent fields did very well. But in both years, around plant emergence time, our weather was unseasonably wet and cold, so maybe that was part of the problem.

If any of you have any favorable experience with pearl millet I'd appreciate your comments -- and if you recall please mentions the specific variety you used. Thanks, Arnold.

 

[Anonymous]

I've been doing a lot of research for pearl millet in this area. There are a couple of dairys that use it for silage, one beef guy that grazed it. This year, nobody got it to grow. But we had no precip. for three months after it was planted. BTW it is suseptible to nitrate but not prussic acid. It's not as severe as sudan or sorghum but it can cause problems. Anyway, the beef guy grazed his the dairys chopped it, they all follow it with winter wheat. The beef guy grazed it fall and spring, the dairy guys bale it in the early sumer/late spring. Then they follow it with pearl millet again. Recommended here was 15 lb/acre drilled 40 lb/acre broadcast. @ 48 per cwt for seed. If you find out more let me know. I have a 27 acre field sitting bare right now that I want to do something with. I was thinking oats in Feb. hay it, then go into the PM WW rotation from then on.

dun

> Has anybody here had any
> experience trying to raise pearl
> millet for summer grazing or
> haying? I seem to recall that a
> fair number of N. Texas dairies
> use it for summer grazing.

> Based on my reading some years ago
> I liked the idea of giving pearl
> millet a try. In appearnce and
> growth patterns it is similar to
> Johnsongrass, Sudan and Haygrazer
> but, unlike those other grasses,
> it apparently is not susceptible
> to prussic acid and nitrate poison
> when grown in drought conditions.

> I gave it a try for a couple of
> years and got very poor stands,
> yet Haygrazer planted the same day
> on adjacent fields did very well.
> But in both years, around plant
> emergence time, our weather was
> unseasonably wet and cold, so
> maybe that was part of the
> problem.

> If any of you have any favorable
> experience with pearl millet I'd
> appreciate your comments -- and if
> you recall please mentions the
> specific variety you used. Thanks,
> Arnold.

 

[Anonymous]

> I've been doing a lot of research
> for pearl millet in this area.
> There are a couple of dairys that
> use it for silage, one beef guy
> that grazed it. This year, nobody
> got it to grow. But we had no
> precip. for three months after it
> was planted. BTW it is suseptible
> to nitrate but not prussic acid.
> It's not as severe as sudan or
> sorghum but it can cause problems.
> Anyway, the beef guy grazed his
> the dairys chopped it, they all
> follow it with winter wheat. The
> beef guy grazed it fall and
> spring, the dairy guys bale it in
> the early sumer/late spring. Then
> they follow it with pearl millet
> again. Recommended here was 15
> lb/acre drilled 40 lb/acre
> broadcast. @ 48 per cwt for seed.
> If you find out more let me know.
> I have a 27 acre field sitting
> bare right now that I want to do
> something with. I was thinking
> oats in Feb. hay it, then go into
> the PM WW rotation from then on.

> dun

Thanks -- I stand corrected on the nitrates, your were right. You may have come across the following article via a google search, but if not, it may be of some interest to you (it is only one of many articles/papers that are around) and refers to a U. of Missouri study in the 1990's. I guess I thought pearl millet was more obscure than it is. I'll continue to look into it some more, and will pass along anything I think would be of interest. As an additional note, I have also tried foxtail millet but it got totally burned up in a drought. I now feel pretty certain that my earlier problems with pearl were due to weather being way too cold & wet when planted or emerging.

<A HREF="http://www.jeffersoninstitute.org/pubs/millet.shtml" TARGET="_blank">www.jeffersoninstitute.org/pubs/millet.shtml</A>

 

[Anonymous]

Sorry, that link is for an article on grain-type pearl millet, not forage type. But I did read a number of other forage related articles that can be accessed through google.

<A HREF="http://www.jeffersoninstitute.org/pubs/millet.shtml" TARGET="_blank">www.jeffersoninstitute.org/pubs/millet.shtml</A>

 

[Anonymous]

The best i8nformation I found was using "pearl millet forage", the local NRCS office came up with some also.

dun

> Thanks -- I stand corrected on the
> nitrates, your were right. You may
> have come across the following
> article via a google search, but
> if not, it may be of some interest
> to you (it is only one of many
> articles/papers that are around)
> and refers to a U. of Missouri
> study in the 1990's. I guess I
> thought pearl millet was more
> obscure than it is. I'll continue
> to look into it some more, and
> will pass along anything I think
> would be of interest. As an
> additional note, I have also tried
> foxtail millet but it got totally
> burned up in a drought. I now feel
> pretty certain that my earlier
> problems with pearl were due to
> weather being way too cold &
> wet when planted or emerging.

>
> <A HREF="http://www.jeffersoninstitute.org/pubs/millet.shtml" TARGET="_blank">www.jeffersoninstitute.org/pubs/millet.shtml</A>

 

[Anonymous]

I have planted Tiffleaf II Pearl Millet for hay each of the last few years in central MS. It has been excellant. We usually plant in late May and cut every 4 weeks. It needs lots of fertilize and needs to be cut about 4" to 5" from the ground or it will not put back out after cutting. The first cutting will be best but we have cut 3 times.

> Has anybody here had any
> experience trying to raise pearl
> millet for summer grazing or
> haying? I seem to recall that a
> fair number of N. Texas dairies
> use it for summer grazing.

> Based on my reading some years ago
> I liked the idea of giving pearl
> millet a try. In appearnce and
> growth patterns it is similar to
> Johnsongrass, Sudan and Haygrazer
> but, unlike those other grasses,
> it apparently is not susceptible
> to prussic acid and nitrate poison
> when grown in drought conditions.

> I gave it a try for a couple of
> years and got very poor stands,
> yet Haygrazer planted the same day
> on adjacent fields did very well.
> But in both years, around plant
> emergence time, our weather was
> unseasonably wet and cold, so
> maybe that was part of the
> problem.

> If any of you have any favorable
> experience with pearl millet I'd
> appreciate your comments -- and if
> you recall please mentions the
> specific variety you used. Thanks,
> Arnold.

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