Great Lakesnew England Beef Cattle Forage Blend

Summer provender bout showcases a multifariousness of warm-season grazing options

by Karl H. Kazaks
RAPHINE, VA — Richard Clemmer and his wife Becky recently hosted more than 60 people on their farm in far-northern Rockbridge County for a dinner and evening farm tour. On display were a variety of summertime forage options they have planted for their 200-moo-cow beef cattle operation.
Attendees came from across the Shenandoah Valley, central Virginia, southwestern Virginia and West Virginia.
"I want to learn some new ideas," said Kent Shipe of Mathias, WV, explaining his decision to attend the event. "I'k particularly interested in crabgrass."
Clemmer planted the warm season forages as role of a multi-year pasture renovation projection. His ultimate goal is to accept a high-quality stand of perennial grass. Forth the manner, he is planting a variety of annuals which will non only provide high-quality forage, simply as well meliorate soil health.
The first phase began last year and involved growing pearl millet and soybeans for summer grazing. Terminal August, Clemmer planted a winter almanac mix which included a diverseness of species, including spring oats and turnips for fall grazing, and small grains such as Italian ryegrass and crimson clover for leap grazing.
A group of cows grazed the cool season mix once in the fall, taking it down to well-nigh threescore percent cover and getting about threescore grazing days off of 25 acres. During that time, Clemmer'south other pastures rested and continued to grow, which immune Clemmer to put off feeding hay until January, the latest he's e'er started feeding hay. The cool flavour mix was grazed over again in the spring.
On May 25th, about half of those 25 acres were planted to a variety of summertime forages. Ane item tested was the Summer Feast mix from Rex's Agriseed'southward, a blend of pearl millet and provender brassica. The millet is included, said King'due south Agriseed's Tracy Neff, to provide effective cobweb.
The planting date for the mix, said Neff, should exist May 15 or later. The mix is planted only a half-inch deep, so you, "need to become information technology in when you have soil wet." In the mid-Atlantic, that ways past early June, not waiting until the summer when long dry spell regularly occurs.
The mix, said Neff, is used past dairymen and cattlemen, as well every bit sheep and goat producers. Modest ruminants, he said, "similar the forbiness of the mix."
Another fodder mix tested included buckwheat, sorghum sudangrass, soybeans, cowpeas, pearl millet and brassica. At the time of the subcontract bout, the stand up was about waist-high and noticeable for flowering buckwheat. Over the course of the summer the sorghum sudangrass will probable become the most prominent species.
Somewhen, Clemmer hopes to have his calves graze that stand, to take advantage of the high protein and "really help them grow."
A tertiary strip had crabgrass drilled into fescue sod. Crabgrass does have the possibility of beingness perennial, if it's allowed to re-seed.
A fourth test plot has MasterGraze BMR corn, a high-tillering corn which provides optimum forage when grazed at tasseling. It is best planted with a corn planter, non a drill. Clemmer planted 40,000 seeds per acre.
Grazing corn does not, once grazed, regrow similar sorghum sudangrass, but because it is corn, information technology can be planted earlier than sorghum sudangrass, in tardily April. One strategy Neff suggested is to graze the forage corn once and so follow behind information technology with sorghum-sudangrass for the residuum of the summertime.
Fodder corn does provide good weight gain for finishing animals, then if you're interested in information technology every bit a summer forage you might want to consider planting it in stages, to have a number of stands to work through. It is best managed as a monoculture or with 1 other species, something like cowpea or a brassica, rather than equally part of a several-species mix.
The fifth and final test strip has almanac lespedeza, which Clemmer expects to go along to grow as the summer progresses.
One of the accept-home points of the field solar day, said Extension Agent Matt Booher, is "When y'all're renovating perennial pasture, you lot can do and so without pulling acreage out of production."
Terry Sage of Mt. Crawford attended the event because he said he is, "seriously considering going to something like this. Information technology's interesting that you tin double crop over the winter, go a harvest in the spring and still put in a row crop.
"I'm ever looking for ways to optimize my product."

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Source: https://countryfolks.com/summer-forage-tour-showcases-a-variety-of-warm-season-grazing-options/

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