Despite a cool and rainy start to the season, the weather\nhas once again flipped to being quite hot and dry. You may be noticing your\ncool season pasture perennials, such as timothy, orchardgrass, and clover,\ngrowing much slower and requiring longer recovery periods before subsequent\ngrazing or harvesting. This may also be worse in stands already stressed from\nwinter injury. If this decline in production is leaving you short on feed,\nconsider planting a summer annual. Summer annuals are warm-season grasses\ntypically planted in early summer and can be grazed or harvested as stored feed\n(hay or silage) once or twice during the season, depending on the weather. Although\nthey require hot weather and modest fertility rates, they can grow quickly\noutcompeting weeds and develop extensive root systems that can scavenge\nnutrients and water that would otherwise be unavailable to most other crops.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sudangrass, Forage Sorghum, and Sorghum-Sudangrass Hybrids<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sudangrass\nestablishes quickly, produces a lot of biomass, and has an extensive scavenging\nroot system. Sorghum-sudangrass hybrids, and especially brown mid-rib (BMR)\nvarieties, have been gaining in popularity as these hybrids produce similar\nyields to sudangrasses yet are of higher digestibility and forage. Sudangrasses\nand sorghums should be seeded into soils that are about 65\u00b0F with adequate\nmoisture at a depth of about 0.5 to 1 inch at a rate of 50 lbs. per acre. High\nbiomass production can make curing for hay difficult. At heights above 36\ninches, these grasses begin to produce seed heads, and crude protein and\ndigestibility levels will drop dramatically. Plants should not be grazed below\n10 inches if regrowth is desired. These species can contain toxic prussic acid.\nThe following guidelines should be followed to avoid poisoning:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Millets<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Millet is another warm-season grass that can be grazed or\nharvested as stored feed. It tends to grow more slowly than sorghum and\nsudangrass; however, it can tolerate more acidic soils and does not contain\nprussic acid. Millet should be seeded at a rate of 20 lbs. per acre via the\nsame methods as sudangrasses. If nitrogen is to be applied, it should be done\nin multiple, smaller applications after grazes to avoid over-fertilization and\npotential problems with nitrate accumulation. Proso, foxtail, pearl and\nJapanese millets are the common types used for livestock feeds. Proso and\nfoxtail millets are often ensiled as they have shorter grazing seasons and tend\nnot to produce as much biomass as pearl and Japanese millets. Millet can be\ngrazed when it reaches a height of about 18 inches. It should not be grazed\nbelow 10 inches if regrowth is desired. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Teff<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Teff is a relatively new crop to the Northeast. It is native\nto Ethiopia where it is grown as a cereal crop in traditional foods. It can be\ngrazed or harvested as stored feed. It does not have issues with prussic acid\nor nitrates. Teff\u2019s thinner stems allow for faster hay curing than millet or\nsudangrass. It should be seeded at around 6 pounds per acre at a shallow depth\nof 0.25 inches as the seed is quite small; seeding deeper than 0.5 inches will\nlikely result in very poor stand establishment. \nCultipacking after seeding may be beneficial in providing adequate\nmoisture to the seed. Teff can be grazed or harvested approximately 50 to 55\ndays after seeding depending on weather. Before grazing, test the stand\u2014by\npulling on a handful of the grass\u2014to see if the roots have established enough to\nwithstand grazing. For optimal forage production, do not graze or harvest below\n5 inches as this will stunt the crop. Subsequent harvests should be possible in\nanother 45 to 50 days after the first graze\/harvest. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
For information on summer annuals, see the eOrganic webinar,\n\u201cFocus on Summer Annuals,\u201d with Heather Darby and Rick Kersbergen: http:\/\/articles.extension.org\/pages\/68106\/organic-dairy-forages:-focus-on-summer-annuals<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Despite a cool and rainy start to the season, the weather has once again flipped to being quite hot and dry. You may be noticing your cool season pasture perennials, such as timothy, orchardgrass, and clover, growing much slower and requiring longer recovery periods before subsequent grazing or harvesting. This may also be worse in … <\/p>\n