Douglas
Well-known member
Anyone ever tried a planned crabgrass forage? I plant rye/ryegrass in the fall and simply disk and cultipack in one pass to stimulate the crabgrass in May or June. I seeded red river (very expensive) two years ago.This past summer we had good rain and 5.5 acres carried twenty cows almost exclusively from July-Oct without fertilizer. This came in very handy as I was renovating my fescue pastures. Below is from the University of Alabama:
However, planting crabgrass can also be a highly appropriate forage production strategy. Perhaps the best example is in fields in which winter annuals are planted on a prepared seedbed each autumn. The reason this works well is because the growing seasons of winter annuals and crabgrass are quite complementary, and it is relatively easy and inexpensive to establish a crabgrass stand as the following explanation indicates.
Once a good stand of crabgrass has been obtained and managed for reseeding in a given year, alternating with winter annuals planted on a prepared seedbed thereafter is a simple matter. Shallow tillage prior to planting winter annuals will incorporate crabgrass seed and usually result in an "automatic" crabgrass stand the next spring, even if no spring tillage is done.
Years of work with crabgrass by R.L. Dalrymple and others at the Noble Foundation in Ardmore, Oklahoma, culminated with release of a variety named 'Red River' in 1988. Because this variety is known to be productive with regard to forage yield, it makes sense for any producer who wants to plant crabgrass to purchase seed of this variety rather than take a chance on common crabgrass seed.
However, planting crabgrass can also be a highly appropriate forage production strategy. Perhaps the best example is in fields in which winter annuals are planted on a prepared seedbed each autumn. The reason this works well is because the growing seasons of winter annuals and crabgrass are quite complementary, and it is relatively easy and inexpensive to establish a crabgrass stand as the following explanation indicates.
Once a good stand of crabgrass has been obtained and managed for reseeding in a given year, alternating with winter annuals planted on a prepared seedbed thereafter is a simple matter. Shallow tillage prior to planting winter annuals will incorporate crabgrass seed and usually result in an "automatic" crabgrass stand the next spring, even if no spring tillage is done.
Years of work with crabgrass by R.L. Dalrymple and others at the Noble Foundation in Ardmore, Oklahoma, culminated with release of a variety named 'Red River' in 1988. Because this variety is known to be productive with regard to forage yield, it makes sense for any producer who wants to plant crabgrass to purchase seed of this variety rather than take a chance on common crabgrass seed.