Diversity in Forage Management
Remember the cross-country trip I took late this past summer? It was 2,600 miles filled with fun and new experiences. More importantly, it was a great experience to learn more about diversity in forage management from producers across the country. No matter the environment in, no one style of management fits every farm or ranch. […]
Armyworms Impact Southern Pastures
This month you begin seeing ranchers scouting the fields (rather what’s left of them), or even on their knees with hands in the grass. Other than praying for rain, we’re looking for an army of caterpillars. These are not your average young butterfly, but rather, as a group, these worms can wipe out pastures in […]
Why Am I Mowing Pastures: Part 2
Why do livestock producers mow pastures? As a follow-up to yesterday’s post, today I’ll let Jesse Bussard, a graduate student at Kentucky, do a little explaining of cleaning pastures from a forage perspective. Thanks Jesse for helping out! I was posed the question, “Why do we brush hog (mow) pastures?” by Ryan this past week. If […]
Why Am I Mowing Pastures: Part 1
As I’m bumping, bouncing, and thumping across the rough pastures lately one question comes to mind. Why am I doing this?!? Why are we brush hogging pastures, clipping the grass and weeds, when we have cows that can do the very same thing? There are many, many answers to these questions. Brush hogging, or as […]
Prepare Now For Fall And Winter Forages
Here’s a short write up I contributed to the local Conservation District newsletter this month. It’s just a brief overview of forage management in Arkansas but thought I would share anyways. Maybe it will give you an idea of production methods in our region. Post any questions you have in the comments and I’ll try to answer […]