Country World Archives 2001-2008
County forage tour offers tips on proper pasture management
By KRISTY HEMMINGSEN | Country World East Texas
April 26, 2001 -- Forages, using only sunlight, water and soil nutrients, provide the nourishment for the animals that produce meat, milk, and other products. And forages do this by
Forages were the highlight of the Cherokee County tour on April 12. Throughout the day, Extension specialists were on hand to offer helpful advice, new ideas and demonstrate new techniques which can all be applied to the improvement of pastures and meadows.
At the first location of the afternoon event (held at Stuart Bird Farm, north of New Summerfield) Dr. Larry Redmon, Extension forage specialist, spoke to tour participants on the management of ryegrass and clover.
"Ryegrass can be a good and bad thing," he explained. "While ryegrass can save as much as $60 per cow throughout the winter months, it can also kill-off bermudagrass and bahia grass if left on the field into the spring."
And clover, said Redmon, is always good for carrying nutrients into the soil, especially within a well-established field.
Therefore, according to the specialist, a mix of ryegrass and clover works well together if properly managed. While ryegrass cuts the costs, the soil benefits from the nutrients provided through clover.
And cutting costs, said Redmon, is an important factor in itself. "Producers must learn to cut costs," he stressed.
"Hay production, for one, can be very expensive," he said. "Unless you plan on making (several) hundreds of bales of hay per season, you cannot justify the expense of costly hay equipment."
Redmon also believes producers must wean themselves off of all "off-farm" purchases, including nitrogen fertilizer. He said chicken litter is always a good organic fertilizer substitute, if applied and monitored properly.
"But both the range of nutrient and moisture contents of the litter can vary and therefore should be monitored," he said. "Phosphorous levels can especially vary, if these levels become to high, the next time to distribute the litter may need to be postponed."
Hugh Soape, Cherokee County Extension agent, who was also on hand, said, "It's best to take a soil test before you ever apply chicken litter to a field; then again every three years to monitor phosphorous levels."
Soape also noted he believes the combination of commercial fertilizer and chicken litter works well.
Other topics discussed throughout the day included livestock grazing on pastures.
Cherokee County Extension Agent Jack White said before grazing livestock on pastures, producers need to first decide what type of pasture they want and what they already have.
"If you don't have the type of meadow you desire, find out what steps it will take to reestablish it," he explained.
He said soil testing will show what is missing and can inform the producer on what it will take to correct it.
Other stops during the day included the Soape Farm in the Blackjack community and the Taylor Farm in the Mixon Community.