What is everyone planting this fall for winter pasture?

[wbvs58]

Hey Ken, thanks for asking. I apologize for making an assumption here. annual rye is a C4 (cool season) annual grass. Tall fescue is a perennial C4 (cool season) grass. As such, interplanting the rye into the fescue creates a direct competition for resources (growing season, moisture (if its an issue) and space. Interseeding, which is done commonly in the Southeast United States, typically consists of planting a cool season annual, such as annual ryegrass, into a stand of warm season perennial grass, such as Bermuda grass. The converse is done less frequently. Planting a warm season annual into a cool season perennial such as crabgrass into tall fescue is done less frequently but can be highly beneficial and productive. This thread didn't start out so much on interseeding. rather it is more about just planting fall/winter forages which is referencing cool season annuals in general which can be and are often planted as stand alone forages and not mixed into a perennial stand. Cool season annuals are often planted as cover crops on crop fields to protect them from erosion during the non-crop season. Cool season annuals planted for this reason can often serve a dual purpose of providing a forage base for livestock at a time when grazing acres are in short supply.

Thanks Mark.

Ken

 

[Jacob]

We don't have fescue in our area. I was just told what we planted Monday is already coming up. So now I desperately need rain or hope there is enough morning due to keep things alive until a rain.

 

[Jacob]

This field was planted mid October. We got the first frost over the weekend so will be fertilizing today. Will most likely start time grazing the cows on it for about 2 hours.

Also planted another small pasture with left over seed. I wanted to do an experiment to see how much additional forage we get from planting early. Granted we didn't get any rain in October so I think we would have been further ahead but I'm still pleased with the stand.

 

[Silver]

Was that ground sprayed out or did you plant into live sod?

 

[ClinchValley86]

Due to 4 or 5 dry falls in a row, my efforts in fall have been fruitless to the point I'm gunshy.

I do think I'm going to broadcast some vetch in February, maybe something else with it... just to enhance some ground that's fescue dominant.

 

[kenny thomas]

Due to 4 or 5 dry falls in a row, my efforts in fall have been fruitless to the point I'm gunshy.

I do think I'm going to broadcast some vetch in February, maybe something else with it... just to enhance some ground that's fescue dominant.

Use and stockpile what's natural here in our area. I would be curious to know how the vetch does. Pretty sure it doesn't handly grazing heavily but with rotaton it might work great.

 

[Warren Allison]

My pastures are Bermuda and Bahia. Down here, these last pretty much from April til around November. We have had a couple of nights in the high 20's,-low 30's finally this week, so the Bermuda is done. I have perennial rye and clover in these pastures too, and this week I will put out some fertilizer and mix Abuzzi rye in it as well. I don't really worry about having year-round grazing, because we have about 25 acers of Bermuda hay. I bale about 1000 bales each year for my horses and horse customers, then roll the rest. With only 50 head, I feed about 80 or so rolls each year, and sell the rest. I used to deal with the Salacoa Valley Brangus ranch up in north Ga, and I was always kind of envious of them. Up there., they can have fescue, orchardgrass bluegrass etc, plus the Bermuda grows well there, too, so they pretty much had year-round pastures up there.

 

[ClinchValley86]

Use and stockpile what's natural here in our area. I would be curious to know how the vetch does. Pretty sure it doesn't handly grazing heavily but with rotaton it might work great.

I've been averaging 60+ days on the rotation after the initial quick pass across in spring. That'd result in volunteer vetch going forward.

Pretty good chance I'll be baling all pasture for 1st cut... have to see how things work out this winter.

 

[kenny thomas]

I've been averaging 60+ days on the rotation after the initial quick pass across in spring. That'd result in volunteer vetch going forward.

Pretty good chance I'll be baling all pasture for 1st cut... have to see how things work out this winter.

If you have volunteer vetch with current management you should be good with seeded.

 

[ClinchValley86]

If you have volunteer vetch with current management you should be good with seeded.

I've got a very minimal amount of the common type. But it seems to do pretty well and is slowly spreading. To my understanding hair vetch produces much more biomass and fixes much more nitrogen. That Sound correct?

 

[kenny thomas]

I've got a very minimal amount of the common type. But it seems to do pretty well and is slowly spreading. To my understanding hair vetch produces much more biomass and fixes much more nitrogen. That Sound correct?

Never tried it. But vetch isnt native here. But seems to do well untin first frost.

 

[Hogfarmer10]

Yep. Hairy vetch does have more biomass and fixes quite a bit of nitrogen. Don't know if grazing it will cause bloat. We used to plant it with our small grains and chop it for silage for our dairy cows.

 

[coachg]

Black oats and cereal rye