Pasture

Lessons from Drought Tolerant Weeds

– Christine Gelley, Agriculture and Natural Resources Educator, Noble County, OSU Extension

Because it’s deep rooted, wild carrot thrives in dry weather.

The Ohio State University’s State Climatologist, Aaron Wilson, has told me before- “The best way to end a drought is to talk about drought.”

I am hoping he is right. Maybe by the time you read this article we will have had some substantial rainfall. But as I write this in late August, my area of Ohio continues to suffer from the impacts of the summer drought. It is difficult to find inspiration for hope when the factors that cause this struggle feel beyond our control. However, the optimist in me is always looking for the bright side of any situation.

Beef Cattle Field Specialist, Garth Ruff, recently offered some inspirational points of view in an article looking back on a road trip through Texas that can remind us how blessed we are in Ohio to have ample rainfall in our normal growing seasons. Many cattle operations there create their annual management plans relying on half the rainfall we receive in a normal Ohio year. While they may be more conditioned to droughty conditions, how to stock cattle on dry ground, and how to offer supplemental feed to make up the difference, it is not out of reach for Ohioans to borrow tips from cattle producers in more arid climates to help cope with our abnormal year.

You can read more about tips for managing the herd during drought on Continue reading Lessons from Drought Tolerant Weeds →

Emergency Haying and Grazing of Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) Acreage Available for 70 Ohio Counties

– David Marrison, OSU Extension Field Specialist, Farm Management

CRP is now available for haying and grazing in 70 Ohio counties.

Drought conditions continued to degrade across Ohio. According to the U.S. Drought Monitor report on September 17, 59.56% of Ohio is experiencing severe or greater drought conditions with 9.5% classified as D4 or exceptional drought conditions (Figure 1). It is important to remember that D4 conditions only occur once every 50 to 100 years. Approximately 98% of the state is experiencing at least abnormally dry conditions. One silver lining is the current seven-day forecast shows the potential for rain in many areas of Ohio next week which should help slow the progress of drought should it occur.

The drought conditions have impacted both pastures and hayfields across Ohio. The Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) administered under the USDA Farm Service Agency permits emergency haying and grazing on certain CRP practices in a county designated as D2 or higher on the U.S. Drought Monitor, or . . .

Continue reading Emergency Haying and Grazing of Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) Acreage Available for 70 Ohio Counties

Grazing Management Strategies and Mud Management

Register today!

ODA’s on-line Grazing Management Lunch and Learn Series returns on September 26 at 12:15 p.m.

With every operation it is important to have a plan! Determine what you want to achieve and have a strategy in place to get you there. In this lunch and learn we’ll look at the grazing management strategies that Kevin Swope of Heritage Lane Farm implements on his Columbiana County Bison farm. From spring grazing to winter management, we’ll take a walk through his operation as he shows us the decisions that were made on his farm and how they can work for you.

Find registration information linked here.

Managing Weeds

– Jordan Penrose, Ohio State University Extension Agriculture and Natural Resources Educator, Morgan County

Knapweed is becoming obvious in many pastures.

With fall approaching, though it doesn’t seem like it, but it seems like weeds are more noticeable here. In southeastern Ohio, we are extremely dry with very little to no grass left in the pastures, and the weeds more noticeable. In Morgan County, the weeds that I have been getting the most questions about are spotted knapweed, hemp dogbane, cocklebur, and johnsongrass. Some other noticeable weeds that I am seeing as well are ironweed, Canada thistle, horsenettle, bedstraw, and others. On the family farm, we are seeing a newer weed, small carpetgrass, that I haven’t seen before until last fall. We just started to see it come up around mid-August in the field where we feed most of our hay during the winter.

Why are we seeing more and more weeds show up? I remember when ironweed used to be the biggest problem weed on the farm, now it seems like a weed that we are willing to live with as compared to some of the other newer weeds, like cocklebur or spotted knapweed. Some of the reasons as to why we are these weeds pop up and notice more and more of them can be caused by Continue reading Managing Weeds →

Drought and Dust: Preparing for Winter Feed Shortages

– Ted Wiseman, OSU Extension, Perry County

Have you inventoried your forage supply? Photo: Al Gahler

Depending on where you are in the state, you might be dealing with dry conditions or even severe drought. Here in southeastern Ohio, pastures are parched, and hay production has been disappointing, with very little to show for second or third cuttings.

This year, forage quantity is becoming a significant concern for many producers. Reports indicate that first cuttings yielded only 40-50% of what they should have, particularly in grass forage fields. Second and third cuttings have fared even worse, with some fields producing only 25% of a typical harvest, if anything at all. Many producers have already started feeding hay, raising concerns about whether there will be enough to last through the winter. Given the variable pasture conditions across the state due to ongoing dry spells, it’s crucial to start planning now to be better prepared for the fall and winter.

Know Your Inventory and Its Value

The first step in planning is to Continue reading Drought and Dust: Preparing for Winter Feed Shortages →

Alternative forage option when the rain finally comes

– Jason Hartschuh, Extension Field Specialist, Dairy Management and Precision Livestock, Ohio State University Extension

Oats remain an option for late planted feed.

They always say if you don’t like the weather in Ohio just wait a few hours and it will change. Unfortunately, we may have to wait more than a few hours for the weather to change and bring rain, but it will. Unfortunately, when this rain does come it maybe to late to grow more pasture forage for your livestock without causing even more long-term damage to your pastures. If you have crop land especially corn silage, early soybeans, or even pasture that could use renovations now is the time to find seed and be optimistic for rain sometime this fall. Your decisions on the possible forage crop to plant will depend on when the rains finally come, and the timing of your forages needs. These forages can be planted as single species or as a mix. However, a mix may reduce yield especially since moisture will be lacking for a while even when it does finally rain.

Oats
The first option for fall forage is spring oats or winter oats. These are both oats, but they are not the same. Spring oats is our most common type of oats that we have successfully used as a forage crop planted in the late summer, but we have planted oats through mid-September in Fremont Ohio with yields of almost Continue reading Alternative forage option when the rain finally comes →

Effective pasture management: Crucial for sustaining long-term productivity and environmental health!

– Victor Shelton, Retired NRCS Agronomist/Grazing Specialist

With each sunrise, new grazing opportunities arise!

This is the 200th issue of Grazing Bites—time flies, but the need for good pasture management remains as crucial as ever.

In the book “Observations on the Means of Improving the Cultivation of the Soil and the Management of Livestock,” Scottish gentleman farmer, botanist, essayist and scholar, James Anderson, provided a detailed approach to managing livestock on pasture.  He strongly advocated for rotational grazing, a method that involves moving livestock between different pastures.  This technique helps prevent overgrazing and allows pastures to recover, thus maintaining soil fertility and forage quality.

Anderson also emphasized the importance of avoiding overgrazing to prevent soil degradation and ensure adequate forage availability. He urged farmers to closely Continue reading Effective pasture management: Crucial for sustaining long-term productivity and environmental health! →

Managing Forage to Finish 2024

– Christine Gelley, Agriculture and Natural Resources Educator, Noble County OSU Extension

Time remains to accomplish seedings.

With the drought conditions we have experienced this summer, many livestock producers and haymakers are concerned about the winter to come and how to stretch resources to next spring when the supply of stored forages will be low. Other than doing the rain dance and hoping for yield salvation on third cutting hay, what else can we do to boost forage availability now and through to the spring?

We can practice good management tactics. Those ones that we should be doing every year, but become more critical during times of stress, like now. We can restrict animals from overgrazing areas that we will need later this fall. We can consider reducing the size of the herd while prices are decent at the sale barn and have fewer mouths to feed through the winter. We can start shopping for supplemental winter feed now, because as supply dwindles and the months turn cold, demand will increase and so will costs.

There is limited time left to Continue reading Managing Forage to Finish 2024 →

Be Mindful of Fall Armyworm, Which Could Get Interesting

– Kelley Tilmon, Amy Raudenbush, Andy Michel, James Morris, and Curtis Young, CCA, OSU Extension

Be aware of feeding damage this fall, especially forage crop fields. Photo by James Morris, OSU Extension

Since the extremely unusual fall armyworm outbreak of 2021 which affected forage including alfalfa and sorghum sudangrass, and turf, we have instituted a monitoring program in 14 Ohio counties. Though it’s too early to declare an outbreak, we’re seeing higher numbers in the traps than typical for the last couple of years (see Lep Monitoring report in this newsletter for more details). These moths will lay eggs which will hatch into the first instar, the smallest caterpillars which will grow as they feed. Control is easiest in younger instars. Fall armyworm migrates into Ohio during the latter part of summer and could cause problems into late summer. Unlike the true armyworm that only feeds on grasses (i.e., corn, wheat, forage grasses), the fall armyworm has well over 100 different types of plants upon which it feeds including many grasses but also alfalfa, soybeans, beets, cabbage, peanuts, onion, cotton, pasture grasses, millet, tomato, and . . .

Continue reading Be Mindful of Fall Armyworm, Which Could Get Interesting

Managing Cool-Season Pastures for Enhanced Fall Growth

– Dr. Chris D. Teutsch, University of Kentucky Research and Education Center at Princeton

Warm-season annual grasses can provide high quality summer grazing. Photo by Mike Estadt

It seems early to be thinking about stockpiling cool-season grasses for winter grazing, but how we manage pastures now can have a profound impact on fall growth. How closely and frequently we graze pastures this summer can either enhance or reduce our ability to stockpile grass this fall. The objective of this article is to provide some tips that will help to keep cool-season pastures healthy this summer.

Fertilize and lime according to soil test. If you have not already done it, take a soil sample and apply any needed phosphorous, potassium, and lime. Avoid summer applications of nitrogen to cool-season pastures. They are generally not economical since cool-season grasses are not actively growing during the summer months. In addition, they can inadvertently weaken cool-season grass stands by promoting the growth of summer weeds.

Do NOT graze cool-season pastures too closely. Grazing pastures closely during the summer months can weaken cool-season grass stands and promote the growth of Continue reading Managing Cool-Season Pastures for Enhanced Fall Growth →

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