Your pasture management

[herofan]

So, I've gotten opinions on hay field management, what about fields that you only use for pasture, but don't use for hay? Do they get more, less, or the same attention as hay fields. Do you reseed, fertilize, spray for weeds, and bush hog at times? Thanks.

 

[Limomike]

My pastures get mostly the same treatment as my hay fields except for cutting the brush. I mostly spot spray them, fertilize by spreading the manure, but hardly ever seed my grazing pastures.

 

[skyhightree1]

They get same treatment because I will use hay fields as pasture if I need too and can.

 

[cowgirl8]

We keep ours mowed when the weather allows and we rotate. I like to have at least 3 pastures for each herd that they can stay in for at least a week at a time. When our weather is just right, i always move after a rain whether it be they've been there a few days or there is rains a little more than a week. But, on average we get rain weekly so it works out most of the time. And this method works well for our area and it may not for others. Its been a long time since we've fertilized..too expensive now..

 

[bigbull338]

we shredd the pastures as needed and put rye grass on some of them for early winter/spring grazing.

 

[herofan]

I have one pasture that no cows have been on for about a month. We have had plenty of rain. There are areas where the grass is green, but it just hugs the ground; it doesn't seem to be growing. If this were my lawn, I'd only be spot mowing. From a distance, it just looks like where the cows have grazed it down close, but they haven't been there for a month.

Why isn't this grass knee high?

 

[M5farm]

I have one pasture that no cows have been on for about a month. We have had plenty of rain. There are areas where the grass is green, but it just hugs the ground; it doesn't seem to be growing. If this were my lawn, I'd only be spot mowing. From a distance, it just looks like where the cows have grazed it down close, but they haven't been there for a month.

Why isn't this grass knee high?

I would suspect its a different variety of grass.

 

[greybeard]

Herofan, have you had a soil analysis done on that pasture?

No hay fields here--too many stumps still around from clearing it in 2008-2009.
I haven't hooked up a mower in 2 years--not since I started a chemical program--I spray now. Even with the high cost of herbicide, it's much cheaper for "me" to pull a sprayer than it is to pull a mower. However, your results may be different. Not everyone lives where I do, or has the invasives and weed species I do.
Fertilize--yes, but probably not as much as I should. I need to lime all of the pastures to improve pH, but still haven't yet. On my "to do" list.

Reseed? Not really, bahia does a good job of that on it's own but I have seeded some native pastures with better grasses, (Tifton9) and broadcasting winter ryegrass is a must, in order to reduce my dependence on hay.

(I have no forages that will stockpile really well, but wish I did--Bahia simply will not--first frost, it's gone)

 

[J&D Cattle]

I mow annually, spot spray, and drag manure in the heavy spots. I'm getting ready to apply lime per my soil tests too. I should break up my paddocks even more and cut a bit for hay as the grass always gets away from me in the Spring. Have never seeded.

 

[dun]

They're managed just like the hay fields. If a soil test indicated the need for lime or fertilizer we would do it. Did that when we bought the farm and got the pastures into shape. Haven;t had to fertilize or lime since. We do broadcast red clover every few years as it thins.

 

[Bigfoot]

I had abondoned shredding for three years I think. In favor of chemical control. I had one of my busiest springs with work, and didn't get my spraying done. I've had to bushhog. Were getting kinda drought stressed, and where I've bushhoged looks even worse. I would agree with greybeard. Covering a 45 foot strip in one pass with weed killer is as economical shredding. It burns a lot of fuel.

 

[shaz]

I have one pasture that no cows have been on for about a month. We have had plenty of rain. There are areas where the grass is green, but it just hugs the ground; it doesn't seem to be growing. If this were my lawn, I'd only be spot mowing. From a distance, it just looks like where the cows have grazed it down close, but they haven't been there for a month.

Why isn't this grass knee high?

Soil test is a good idea but do you have a drainage problem?

 

[herofan]

I have one pasture that no cows have been on for about a month. We have had plenty of rain. There are areas where the grass is green, but it just hugs the ground; it doesn't seem to be growing. If this were my lawn, I'd only be spot mowing. From a distance, it just looks like where the cows have grazed it down close, but they haven't been there for a month.

Why isn't this grass knee high?

Soil test is a good idea but do you have a drainage problem?

No drainage problems.

 

[JSCATTLE]

I mow 2 times a year . Over seed with rye grass and fertilize the rye grass . This year I limed 40 acres and will do the same every year until I get it all limed . I tried spraying but it hasn't been effective for me .

 

[Fire Sweep Ranch]

With manage intensive grazing, we almost never need the brush hog. When grass gets ahead of us in the spring, we bale that field. We graze and bale just about every pasture. Every pasture is treated the same, depending on need. We lost a bunch of grass in the drought 2 years ago. So this year we are reseeding 18 acres in the fall. Call me crazy, but we are going to try to inter-seed Bar Optima (a good fescue) in with the exhisting field of just plain k31. I am hoping to dilute the toxic fescue, along with putting in clover to help. There will be no way of visually telling if the good fescue survives, but I am willing to try something different to see the effects. We have done many trials over here comparing different grasses.... I like that kind of stuff!

 

[greybeard]

With manage intensive grazing, we almost never need the brush hog. When grass gets ahead of us in the spring, we bale that field. We graze and bale just about every pasture. Every pasture is treated the same, depending on need. We lost a bunch of grass in the drought 2 years ago. So this year we are reseeding 18 acres in the fall. Call me crazy, but we are going to try to inter-seed Bar Optima (a good fescue) in with the exhisting field of just plain k31. I am hoping to dilute the toxic fescue, along with putting in clover to help. There will be no way of visually telling if the good fescue survives, but I am willing to try something different to see the effects. We have done many trials over here comparing different grasses.... I like that kind of stuff!

It's always interesting and even a little fun trying different grasses in test plots just to see them grow and how they do.
My father kinda took it to the extremes tho, back in the early to mid 70s. Every time he heard of a new grass, he had to try it, and in mostly the same pastures--10 acres and up. In successive years, (from my foggy memory, he planted (not necessarily in this order) :
coastal bermuda.
African Star
Alicia
2 different kinds of clover.
Pensacola Bahia.
Argentine Bahia.
common bermuda.
And anything else that came down the pike as "the latest and greatest".

 

[Jogeephus]

So, I've gotten opinions on hay field management, what about fields that you only use for pasture, but don't use for hay? Do they get more, less, or the same attention as hay fields. Do you reseed, fertilize, spray for weeds, and bush hog at times? Thanks.

I have hay fields, combination fields and straight pasture. I manage each different depending on the nutrient use. Most of the pastures require very little input. Just keep the pH in balance and the phosphorous and potassium in balance and let nature apply the nitrogen through rainfall and clover. In areas where the soil type is poor I fence these off and use as a sacrifice area where I feed hay in the winter with the intent of adding organic matter to the sandy soil to build it up. After a few years I will move the sacrifice area to another weak area then replant the old sacrifice area in permanent pasture all the while trying to build the soil and make the farm more productive. Old man once told me, the foundation of enterprise is your soil. Take care of that and it will take care of you.

 

[hayrack]

I have always wanted to try that with the fescue to see if it would work. I think it should.

 

[Stocker Steve]

We do broadcast red clover every few years as it thins.

Spring or fall seeding?
Graze hard before seeding?
Pounds RC per acre?

 

[dun]

We do broadcast red clover every few years as it thins.

Spring or fall seeding?
Graze hard before seeding?
Pounds RC per acre?

Winter we frost seed, get the grass short but not grazed to the dirt, 5 lbs per acre.