this is the second summer of being in a drought. add a very dry winter and this is a recipe for disaster. we are on the verge of selling some heifers and commercial cows. We are out of grass and grazing out hay ground. we have had less than 2 inches of rain in the last 10 weeks. we are now in over 100 degree days and windy. our pastures are brown and crunchy. I haven't ever been a part of anything like this at all. This has to be playing heck all over the south. IS everyone in as bad shape as we are.
This da%@ drought is killing me
- Thread starter plbcattle
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mnmtranching
Well-known member
We had a couple of thundershowers rumble through here this week. Will help the corn but to late and to little to help the hay and pasture. We are very dry and hot. The northen 2/3 of MN and all of ND and SD very dry, ranchers are feeding hay and selling cows.
mnmt
mnmt
backhoeboogie
Well-known member
This year is not as bad as last; the prickly pear and bull nettles are still alive.
Yesterday I saw an old friend in Lowes. He told me round bales of coastal were running $120 and his wife told me that they would be at $150 before it is over.
Pastures that are generally full of cattle were sold out last year.
Yesterday I saw an old friend in Lowes. He told me round bales of coastal were running $120 and his wife told me that they would be at $150 before it is over.
Pastures that are generally full of cattle were sold out last year.
showkid1200
Well-known member
I live in Florida and for awhile we didn't have rain so bad that the hay people down here had to start breaking round bales up and re-baling them, all are pastures right know are brown and crunch when you walk on them. We are starting to get some showers though, hope some find you too.
G&L Cattle
Well-known member
prayin&believin!
denoginnizer
Well-known member
It is bad here as well. Huge cracks in the ground , crunchy dead grass, 98-100 degree heat.
vbd
Well-known member
What Alice failed to mention...what hasn't died from lack of water has been devasted by the grasshoppers... 
It looks like a biblical plague!!!
Two of the three tanks are all but dry and the third ain't lookin good...
Brother-in-law shipped all 70 jerseys out last week as there was nothing left but rocks.
Our calves are only getting what we give them...thank god for a daytime job...
Van
It looks like a biblical plague!!!
Two of the three tanks are all but dry and the third ain't lookin good...
Brother-in-law shipped all 70 jerseys out last week as there was nothing left but rocks.
Our calves are only getting what we give them...thank god for a daytime job...
Van
aplusmnt
Well-known member
plbcattle":1myxfv5x said:
We have been getting a little rain here in KS, but friends in Oklahoma having it rough! Talked to them other day and they are feeding hay already and selling 40 head of cows they really do not want to sell, they are cows they hand picked as babies to keep years ago.
And I am sure it is still worse in TX than any of us have it.
Travis B.
Active member
We have had about 4 or 5 inches of rain since September of last year. We have grazed all of our pastures except for one small one where they are going next week. We also have some CRP which we are going to have to graze. We would have had some haygrazer ready but our control panel blew up on the pump, so the seed is still sitting in the ground. With 100+ degree days and winds in excess of 40m.p.h. some days, it may blow away before it rains. We are going to have to wean calves real early and sell some cows too unless it rains. However ONE OF THESE DAYS, IT'S GONNA RAIN AND IT'S NEVER GONNA STOP. I just don't know when that will be.
Travis Bryan
It may sound like I'm complaining but it is really getting rough around here.
Travis Bryan
It may sound like I'm complaining but it is really getting rough around here.
Beeglebatty
Member
It's pretty bad here in Mo. too. I don't know alot about pastures but I sewed some clover with my fescue. It is mostly all gone..My question is will it come back in the fall. Sorry, I probably started a new post for this question.
Randy
Randy
Beeglebatty":2huwq5z1 said:
Won;t be any telling until it either comes back or doesn;t. Our clover was burned up but with the 9 inches of rain last week, there are a few plants here and there coming back but it doesn;t look like much of it will. None of the stuff we frost seeded last winter came up so maybe it will germinate this fall.
dun
backhoeboogie
Well-known member
vbd":1o04yvm7 said:What Alice failed to mention...what hasn't died from lack of water has been devasted by the grasshoppers...
It looks like a biblical plague!!!
Van
I've got a bad habit of rolling through the pasture with the window down. Grasshoppers are getting all in the cab. I finally remembered to roll them all up.
In south central Oklahoma it is the worst we've seen in a long long time, OKC 90 miles north received 3-4 inches last week. Southwest OK received 2-3 on a couple of storms in the past few days, we have had 0000000. We are 12" short for the year according to Gary England. Our weather guru. If we don't get rain - we'll be selling some and finding hay isn't looking that great either.
Praying, praying praying
Praying, praying praying
backhoeboogie
Well-known member
Bevie":1wb7onoc said:
We are in that heat advisory area too.
But, If you can imagine how bad it is now, figure on about 2 inches of rain in September, then no more rain until a little comes in January, we will still be better off this year, than last.
This cycle has got to break!!
I'm sure CB recalls the TX drought of the seventies, may have been the eighties. Seems like that one lasted for years and years. It's hard to be optimistic during a drought, but the folks then survived it and so will the rest of us.
dun
dun
We were blessed with two good rains last week where I live. Of course we were trying to get the hay to the barn when the first one came along. I didn't fuss about it. Glad to get it. Folks 10 miles down the road didn't get a drop. Just spotty I guess. Weatherman says none here for at least a week. I hope you get it if you need it.
TheBullLady
Well-known member
We have been very, very lucky this year. We got two rains that I don't think many folks in Texas got.. one the first week in July ( a little over an inch) and the second the week of the 4th. (2 1/2 inches.. folks 1/2 a mile away didn't get anything). We've still got grass.. but we've also been culling the herd DEEP the past two years. We're down 50%, and I promise you I think God every day we made the decision when we did. We lived through the '95 - 96' drought here overstocked, and swore as soon as prices went up, we were selling a bunch! We haven't held any replacement heifers, except for 2, in two years.
It's bad all over it seems.. I was in Oklahoma last week, and y'all are right, it looks like a wasteland up there. A lot of fire problems it looks like too. And I'll tell you all, I am flat tired of seeing a bunch of 3 and 4 frame score cattle in these decimated pastures! If you can't feed them, SELL THEM!
I'll get off my soap box now.. sorry..
It's bad all over it seems.. I was in Oklahoma last week, and y'all are right, it looks like a wasteland up there. A lot of fire problems it looks like too. And I'll tell you all, I am flat tired of seeing a bunch of 3 and 4 frame score cattle in these decimated pastures! If you can't feed them, SELL THEM!
I'll get off my soap box now.. sorry..
