If I know ahead of time that I won't be able to mow my Fescue/Orchard Grass hay until June in KY, would it be ok to let the cattle continue to graze it until later in the spring, or should i get them off as soon as it warms up and let it grow until June?
When to take cows off hayfield.
- Thread starter herofan
- Start date
Help Support CattleToday:
herofan":2xjthc3i said:
Yes, get them off now.
hillbilly beef man
Well-known member
I hold mine till the middle of April. Fescue is ready to mow at the end May, but we never get any hay weather till the middle of June. Keeping them on it a little longer keeps my hay from being over ripe. If you ever get any weather in May I would pull them off now.
OP
OP
herofan
Well-known member
hillbilly beef man":1768ocf9 said:
That's what i was thinking. If I know I'm not going to mow until June, I assumed holding off on growth would keep it from being over ripe; however, not being an expert myself, I thought there might be some other drawback. I wondered if weeds might take hold easier or perhaps lingering could even cause the hay to not be as good in some way.
OP
OP
herofan
Well-known member
Bigfoot":3gvufe9t said:
I guess we aren't necessarily thinking of hay field benefits altogether with winter grazing, but we benefit from the extra pasture during the fall, winter, and spring. We let it grow out to a degree and turned them on it in November. Right now, they have already slacked off on eating as much hay due to continuing to graze the hay fields.
kickinbull
Well-known member
Interesting topic. Will the delayed removal in spring lessen the amount of hay you get?
I've wondered the same thing. With our weird weather patterns lately it's hard to tell. On one field if we spring graze it or not the yield varies from just over 2 bales per acre to almost 5 per acre. I've never been able to detect a pattern other than the years it stays fairly cool in the spring into late May we get a good yield and those years when the temps jump into the 80s in April the yields are lower.kickinbull":c4phaphp said:
This year it will really be a crap shoot since the temps flip from 80s to 50s and back every couple of days.
I split a 30 acre hayfield 2 yrs ago to find out, cows stayed through March, it was picked down pretty short. The other half was bushhogged to about 6 inches. All of it fertilized the same after pulling cows. It all seeded at the same time, but the side grazed didnt have near the undergrowth as the side with no cattle.
Its a small sample but my conclusion for me is, no cows in my hayfield unless its a bad year. I think it has to do with compaction, and just being shorter from the start. I couldn't tell you a roll per acre difference, but all year you could see where the fence was.
Its a small sample but my conclusion for me is, no cows in my hayfield unless its a bad year. I think it has to do with compaction, and just being shorter from the start. I couldn't tell you a roll per acre difference, but all year you could see where the fence was.
I've cut pasture for hay, but never pastures what I knew I was going to cut. Just seems like any cattle on hay ground, before during, or after the green up would be a negative. Let the hay start from blades, not the root. Can't see me trying it any other way.
If you get extremely lucky, and can cut fescue, before it seeds, and then cut it a second time. You will be shocked and amazed at the amount of hay you make. That scenario is unlikely here though.
If you get extremely lucky, and can cut fescue, before it seeds, and then cut it a second time. You will be shocked and amazed at the amount of hay you make. That scenario is unlikely here though.
I simply don't like the notion of rolling up manure with my hay.
OP
OP
herofan
Well-known member
TennesseeTuxedo":1jduiz3o said:
That's a good point, and one I've wondered about myself. I had some hay a few years ago that the cows didn't seem too wild about. I wondered if it was because cattle had grazed at some point and there was manure in the hay. There were several that assured me they didn't have any trouble, but who knows.
I've noticed that no matter what the problem or topic is, whether it's cattle or candy bars, there is always going to be a difference in opinion on solutions and how-to's of things, even among the people who should know.
My brother doesn't do computers that much, and when we are wondering about something on the farm, I will tell him, "I asked about it on the cattle site, and one said it's good and one said it's bad, one said never do it and one said always do it." He just gives me a raised eyebrow and says, "so we really don't know any more than we did before you asked, right." I can't wait to tell him my new plans for hay-field-grazing management. :lol2:
denvermartinfarms
Well-known member
I would take them off sometime in the next couple weeks.
chevytaHOE5674
Well-known member
I graze some of my hay fields in the fall (no spring grazing hay UP here) and then in the spring I will run over them with a tire drag I have to breakup the manure and distribute it around so I don't get any clumps in the hay.
OP
OP
herofan
Well-known member
I'm not sure if there is a mathematical way I could combine all these items and arrive at a conclusion. I guess if I meet in the middle, I could graze a hay field, but get them off as early as possible in the spring, maybe even February.
- hold until end of April, keeps hay from getting over ripe
-get the cows off now
-take off in next couple of weeks
-pull cattle off in fall; never considered benefit of leaving them on
-did experiment; field grazed had less undergrowth; no cows for me unless bad year
-cattle on hay ground before, during, or after is a negative
-manure in hay is an issue
- graze in fall, run over with tire drag in spring to break up manure clumps
-manure clumps from winter grazing are broken up with harvesting process
- hold until end of April, keeps hay from getting over ripe
-get the cows off now
-take off in next couple of weeks
-pull cattle off in fall; never considered benefit of leaving them on
-did experiment; field grazed had less undergrowth; no cows for me unless bad year
-cattle on hay ground before, during, or after is a negative
-manure in hay is an issue
- graze in fall, run over with tire drag in spring to break up manure clumps
-manure clumps from winter grazing are broken up with harvesting process
The bottom line is "There is no silver bullet" i.e. "One size does not fit all". On just 240 acres we have to manage different pastures in different ways. Fertility is about the same, grass is the same type, but the soils and how the grasses/fertilizers act in them are all different.herofan":2dd5skib said:
