-
It seems like every summer I get calls from hay producers and cattlemen worried that a lack of timely rain or over-fertilization will cause their forage to be high in nitrates. Every winter I get calls from producers with dead cattle or late term abortions, that are worried that the hay they are feeding is…
-
Fertilization can be a significant portion of the cost of producing forages. According to UGA production budgets, fertilization can range from 30 to 60% of the total variable cost of producing various forages. So, taking a little time to strategically plan your fertilization program can hopefully save you money in the end. Steps that you…
Posted in: Fertilization -
In the Piedmont and northern Georgia, UGA Extension recommends planting tall fescue between September 1 and October 15. So, why discuss planting in March? In areas where tall fescue is adapted, conversion of toxic Kentucky-31 pastures and hayfields to a non-toxic, novel endophyte variety represents one of the most financially beneficial decisions available to livestock…
-
A survey reported online recently by ‘Progressive Cattle’ asked cattlemen what aspect of their management they would most like to improve. By a wide margin, “Grazing” was identified as the item that benefit from an upgrade. Many producers recognize intuitively how influential grazing management can be on the success of a livestock operation. Perhaps unfortunately, no…
-
If you are feeding hay in the winter, eventually you are going to have to deal with mud. Mud increases animal stress and can lead to increased production costs. It is important for producers to know how mud limits livestock production and ways to manage this issue. How does mud reduce the profitability of my…
-
With over 80,000 head of horses in the state of Georgia, horse owners are looking for efficient and nutritional forage options. Horses are naturally meant to consume a forage-based diet and on average, should consume at least one percent of its body weight in forages. In most instances, pasture and hay should make up the…
-
While there are over 600 species of weeds that can be labeled as poisonous plants, we are going to focus on my top ten that can be found in our pastures in Georgia. Most grazing animals will not eat poisonous plants unless they are forced to do so by some unusual or artificial condition. Conditions…
-
To be so tiny, ants can cause lots of turmoil in our hayfields and pastures including equipment damage, employee harm (i.e. loading square bales), and just plain aggravation. Many times we as livestock or hay producers have what we consider more pressing things to attend to: fertilizing, armyworm control, or everyday life. When we put…
-
The late Alan Nation, longtime editor of ‘The Stockman Grass Farmer’ was fond of encouraging readers to identify any “unfair advantage” they had and to use that advantage to the fullest. Those advantages may be very specific to a particular operation or they may be more regional. In the Southeast, livestock producers can take advantage…
-
Hay is the most widely grown, mechanically-harvested agronomic crop in the United States. According to USDA, in 2019, the United States produced more than 57.7 million acres of forage crops harvested for hay. Annual production from this acreage is over 140 million tons of hay valued at more than 18 billion dollars. Stored feed, including…