What forages do you grow?

[DeepDan]

Just curious what some of you folks plant for pasture or hay (or have growing native.) Around here it's mostly coastal bermudagrass, folks who have some heavier land, like river bottoms, can grow fescue. Alot of folks overseed rye and/or ryegrass in fall and some grow some summer annual grasses like millet, sorghum and a little bit of teff. No alfalfa in my county but some just north and west of us.
Dan

 

[Aaron]

Timothy, Trefoil, Meadow Brome, June Grass, Red and White Clover, Reed Canary.

Trefoil is our mainstay, with Red Clover providing the filler.

Alfalfa only lasts about 2 years (if your lucky) before a complete winterkill, so we don't bother with it.

Timothy requires to much commercial N fertilizer, so we don't even bother to grow it. Although it grows quite well in our bale grazing areas.

 

[PureCountry]

Aaron, why do you suppose the Alfalfas are dying out? Ours last for years and years if not overgrazed.

For us what works best, or so it seems thus far, is meadow brome, crested wheat, and alfalfa on tame pastures. Native grasses are rough fescue, parry's oatgrass, western needle/wheatgrass.

However, with improved soil health always comes a diversity of species that were never even seeded.

 

[RSL]

swath grazing depends on the year but involves a mix of...
barley, oats, rye, millet, peas, wheat, etc.

Tame pasture
crested wheat, alfalfa, meadow brome, quackgrass

Native
fescue (idaho not like the southern US fescue), wheatgrass, needlegrass, junegrass, blue grama, various shrubs and trees, etc.

We figure close to 80 AUGD per acre on tame grazing, 40 on native and around 100 or so on swath grazing. This will vary by + or - 75% depending on the year.

PC - I agree about the alfalfa thing. We have stuff that is 25 years old and going strong.

 

[DOC HARRIS]

In the Mid-west, consider Legend Lespedeza, Endophyte-free Fescue, Smooth Bromegrass, and Orchard grass. the Lespedeza will provide the Nitrogen needed for the grasses. You might mix about 20% Red or White Clover every two or three years as an "over" broadcast. Be certain that you have enough Lime on mid-west soils. That is CRITICAL! Balance "cool" spring grasses with mid-summer later maturing forages, and then the early srping grass will pick up in the fall. Don't graze ANY pasture closer than ankle height (about 4") before rotating your pastures. Move your Mineral and water sources around so as to 'force' your cattle to range the entire paddocks and not frequent one area to the point of killing it out! If the Legend Lepedeza gets too rank, take a hay crop off of it. It will grow sometimes to 41/2' - 5'! YES - Lespedeza! Great forage because it won't cause bloat! Go on Dogpile and SEARCH "Legend Lespedeza". Graze these pastures (paddocks) HARD for a week or so, then rotate the cattle off of them for four or five weeks! After the cattle are off of the pastures for two or three days, drag a harrow with the teeth on a flattened angle over the entiire pasture to break up manure piles and distribute the N over a wider area. Inoculate your seed BEFORE seeding.

Then - buy more cattle to keep up with the increased forage growth!!

DOC HARRIS