completely hairless. Making quality hay can be difficult any time of year. Summer 3. It’s funny when I was helping out, I didn’t cut any hay, so I had no idea when to do it. The first step in hay production is the actual cutting of the hay. Because you’re not spinning the bale as much, there is less loss when spinning. If you’re using a round baler, you will have to wait longer using twine. Some farmers say that net wrap bales stick to frozen ground more than twine. Once bahiagrass grows 10 to 12 inches tall, it produces little new growth and loses nutritive value the longer it stands. By Boyce Upholt Hay tedders turn the hay over with rotating forks to help your harvest dry out better. Fescue- The grass we love to hate. Late Fall . Alfalfa and grasses, like all plants, feed themselves using photosynthesis, converting sunlight and carbon dioxide into sugars. Harvesting of hay should ideally be done at boot stage. A revision of and supersedes Farmers' bulletin 1476, Johnson grass: its production for hay and pasturage, by H.N. So, the longer the drying process takes, the more that hay quality will decline. The equine specialist said that her research showed it’s before noon, as NSC concentration rises in plant tissues through the afternoon and early evening hours. It turns out that in a number of studies in arid climates, cows have demonstrated a clear choice: They consistently selected the taste and smell of hay that was cut in the afternoon. The sun is shining, the birds chirping. About 3 to 4 weeks are enough for rhizome to develop from a seed. Hay 4, 6, and 13 weeks old gives daily gains of 1.2, .9, and 0. Make Hay in 4 Days or Less. –Evaporate dew from cut forage –First tedding about noon –Second tedding about 3:30 pm –Third tedding about 6:30 pm –You can feel and test the change in hay moisture with each tedding operation; can hear it from the tractor seat too. You can use a tedder to turn over hay and to help it dry faster. It is best used for grazing rather than hay production. Be aware that if manure is used as the sole source of N for a grass hay crop, excess phosphorus (P) and potassium (K) will likely be applied over time. So, it’s in the late afternoon, after a full day of sunlight, that a plant’s sugar content is at its peak. When is the best time to cut teff grass? It runs around 30$ for 28,000 feet. When regrowth is desired and accumulated crabgrass forage is tall, cutting height may need to be more than 3 inches because some green leaf tissue should be left to favor quick regrowth. OMAFRA suggests cutting hay in the morning just after the morning dew is off for better drying. Now is the optimal time for Kentucky forage producers to cut hay to ensure they get good quality and yield. Hay cut for baling starts losing toxins as it cures in the field. Once the hay has been tedded and is nearly dry, it’s ready to rake. Also, net wrap bales come out very neat and tidy, which can help if you’re selling hay. What is the most critical piece of ... –Getting off to a good start reduces time hay lays in the field –Cut hay at proper stubble height –Need to establish “dry” area to move hay to on Day 2 . “That’s probably what evened out the effect of cutting later in the afternoon.” In many environments, in fact, morning cutting can ensure that hay has more hours of sunlight, and therefore dries more quickly—making it the preferred time of day. SILAGE MANAGEMENT. Grass hay has a high demand for all manure nutrients so it will make good use of manure nutrients. So when is the best time to harvest? Preventing Johnson Grass from Spreading Download Article Plow immediately after you harvest. It’s a two-step sequence that first produces and then removes the sugars—which are, in the end, what make for tasty, nutritious, high-dollar hay. After hay is baled and stored for winter, toxins continue to drop. It is necessary, therefore, to harvest every 30 to Follow regular soil testing to … In my opinion, the time of day to cut forage for dry hay, is when you’ve figured out you’ve got a good chance to get it made before the next rain. Mid Morning: 8am – 10am Mid-morning is one of the best times of day to cut the grass. The grass is very tolerant of low-fertility, acid soils, but does respond to nitrogen and potassium. But what about pastures devoted to a different type of “livestock”? The reasons why have to do with basic plant biology. Some suggest that net wrap can shed water better than twine. In humid climates, Rankin says, hay cut later in the day often will not dry sufficiently before nightfall. In general, cool season grass species provide higher nutritional quality than warm season grasses. Log in, Starting a hay farm? It’s also a sequence whose balance shifts throughout the day. If you want to know if hay is high quality, who better to tell you than the animals themselves? The answer is both yes and no. Cut hay in early flowering stage for best quality. 3. If johnsongrass has invaded your backyard landscape, you're not the only one to have this problem. Forage contains 8 to 9 percent protein when cut at full bloom and 12 to 14 percent when cut before bloom. Or, if the forage is harvested as green chop, to be fed directly to animals without drydown, the carbohydrates may remain. Johnson freely shared seeds and, in a kind of thankless notoriety, the name Johnson Grass came into common usage shortly after the Civil War. Fertilize as for hay and cut and chop as short as possible every 4 to 5 weeks. (Rankin says that moisture content must drop to around 60% before respiration will cease.) We’re all familiar with the image of a cow, horse or sheep grazing in a lush green pasture under a clear blue sky. It is best used for grazing rather than hay production. To date its our most shared and read article we have written for ur blog. Twine takes a while to wrap bales up. Wait until you have 3 days of dry weather so you can cure and bale the hay without it getting wet. Crabgrass should be cut for hay in the boot to heading stage (normally 18–24 inches high), which should allow at least two harvests per year. Alamo switchgrass was the only other grass in the study that had more bites taken of it than johnsongrass in year one (9,262 versus 6,062, respectively). It is one of the highest quality forage grasses. Perennial ryegrass is more persistent than annual ryegrass but less persistent in the Midwest than other cool season grass species. Young, succulent growth and regrowth has greater concentrations of HCN than older more mature growth. Feeding high-quality The remainder of the hay could be cut at any time. Do not graze regardless of height within four days following a good rain. After all the hay is baled, it may be worthwhile to have a sample of the hay tested for nitrates to be safe. In USDA research conducted in Idaho, animals were filmed selecting between hays. Twine is very cheap. Every time you rake hay there is some leaf loss, so rake strategically. | Photos By David Bagley. Unless you have excellent, extended drying conditions forecasted, this likely means cutting in the morning. Cut your hay with a sickle mower or sickle haybine if you have a small or medium-sized field or a disk mower, if you have a large field. The best way to know the nutritional quality of timothy hay is to take a representative sample from the hay lot and send it to a laboratory for analysis. “These three factors — nitrogen, plant maturity, and time of day — were most important in harvesting low-carb teff hay,” Shaw said. During this time, the concentrations of structural components in the stem, including hemicellulose, cellulose, and lignin, are increasing, while crude protein levels are decreasing. “These three factors — nitrogen, plant maturity, and time of day — were most important in harvesting low-carb teff hay,” Shaw said. People ask me all the time, "when is the best time of day to mow the lawn?" As grass hay matures, forage quality drops rapidly. Preliminary data from the first grazing cycle in 2008 show that johnsongrass is the second most preferred grass in the study this year - second to bermudagrass (5,084 vs. 4,625, respectively). For every ton of legume or tall grass hay harvested from a hayfield roughly 50 pounds of potassium and 13 pounds of phosphorus is removed from the soil. OMAFRA suggestscutting hay in the morning just after the morning dew is off for better drying. 5. The primary use of perennial ryegrass is for pasturing cattle and sheep cows. The grass is very tolerant of low-fertility, acid soils, but does respond to nitrogen and potassium. It is a high yielding grass that tolerates low fertility, drought, insects and diseases. “In the evening, when the sun goes down, respiration will continue but photosynthesis stops,” Putnam explains. Do not allow cattle to graze for two weeks after a non-killing frost. Timothy is a major hay grass, but quickly becomes stemmy and should be cut before, or just at, ear emergence to assure high quality fodder. Early cutting encourages re-growth and stimulates the clover in mixtures. “They would just sort of back away from morning-harvested hay,” explains Dan Putnam, an Extension agronomist and forage specialist at the University of California, Davis. Use post-emergence herbicides in growing crops. Crabgrass Hay. The critical time to kill johnsongrass is while the weed is becoming established and before it has spread over the entire field. Feed hay and begin grazing in late afternoon. “Avoiding rain damage is an important management factor.” But the bottom line is clear: You want your hay to dry as quickly as possible. If johnsongrass is to be used as a forage resource in times of short feed supplies such as during drought conditions, it needs to be grazed between 6 and 18 inches. “We’ve seen differences in afternoon harvests of one or two points TDN [total digestible nutrients], or five to eight points of relative feed value,” Putnam says. Johnson Grass in Hay ? Spring 2. ‐ Follow year‐round grazing program to reduce need for large amounts of hay. So I decided that the the question needed some more attention. Each type and species, however, offers its own unique qualities and benefits to the … Occasionally, afternoon cutting may pay off for Eastern farmers, Rankin notes. Once the species matures and develops a seedhead, forage quality drops rapidly and cattle will avoid the older tillers. That’s the answer I got for first cut. ), triclopyr products (Crossbow, Garlon, etc. The best time to cut hay is when your hay-field is just about to flower. Mike Rankin, a former Extension agent with the University of Wisconsin and now the managing editor for Hay & Forage Grower magazine, points out that when studies like Putnam’s first indicated benefits to cutting in the afternoon, researchers attempted to repeat those findings in other locales. Net wrap is faster than using twine. The windrows shouldn’t be rolled too tightly, as this creates a roping effect that prevents the hay from drying properly and causes it to clog as it enters the baler. When is the best time to replant a Westside grass hay field? It can be lost if the hay takes too long to dry and stabilize the quality.”. Moisture can turn a perfectly-timed cut into low-quality feed. It is best adapted to mild-temperate climates. The drier the hay is at raking, the greater the leaf loss. Brome hay should be cut between early heading and full bloom — usually mid-May to June l — to optimize quantity and quality. Vinall. Similar results have emerged from other studies in Western states across a variety of locations. Baler. However, if you want more sugar in your hay OMAFRA suggests cutting hat later in the day. That, of course, makes the forage more marketable. You must manage for the predominant species. Historically this is what farmers have always aimed for; in a poem of 1926 (‘The Land’ by Vita Sackville-West) it was Pests and Potential Problems 3). Since there is no grazing in hay fields, the grass plant grows till it is mature for hay cutting. I've read where Johnson Grass can be toxic to horses but wondered if once it was dried if it was still toxic. Posts: 3,577 Threads: 398 Joined: Jul 2004 Reputation: 0 #1. The old-timers used to talk about cutting hay around the Fourth of July, when they said, “it was stout and had some bottom to it.” Although maximum growth of the plant and peak yields occur around that time, the nutrient value is greatest earlier in the season, when pl… To get the most value out of your hay, you have to cut it at the right time. Make Hay … Adult plants can range in height from 2.5 to 7 feet tall. 1. (Late fall or early spring is really the best time to treat them). Your lawn should be dry enough to cut and the grass can recover before the heat of the day sets in. 07-26-2007, 02:21 PM . Sickle-bar mowers have long cutting heads with reciprocating teeth. Not surprisingly, the crop flourished, and he reported cutting two tons of hay per acre from each of his four cuttings per year. “The stage of maturity at which the hay is cut is the biggest factor that affects quality,” said Tom Keene, UK hay marketing specialist with the University of … When rhizome is established, it starts producing a large number of shoots and roots (a single Johnson Grass can produce more than 5,000 nodes in a single season). About this same time an Alabama planter named Col. William Johnson traveled to South Carolina and acquired seeds of Governor Mean’s grass and took it … Producing high-quality hay should be a goal of each cattle producer. One of the most critical factors in making quality dry hay is timing. Producers need to time haymaking to coincide with the right stage of plant growth and weather conditions. 1. The ideal ratio of fertilizer for this type of hay-producing field would be one part phosphorus to four parts potassium. It’s an image deeply ingrained in our minds – a product of thousands of years of agrarian heritage. Disk mowers have cutting heads with several small rotating cutters. How to Kill Johnson Grass. Vinall. Freshly-cut grass and cereal can dry out and be made into hay the same day. Early Fall 4. ‐ Begin fertilization of warm season forages when night‐time low temps reach 60 According to our Smooth Brome publication, “Brome hay should be cut between early heading and full bloom — usually mid-May to June l — to optimize quantity and quality.” Hay Production Production of high-quality brome hay … Smooth bromegrass was widely used in the upper half of North America during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with distinguishable northern and southern varieties. what to look for in high quality hay will help in determining when to cut hay, and will give a guide for the relative ranking of hays. Even if you do two wraps, it’s quicker than twine. The flower head is a panicle (highly branched) and can reach up to 1.5 feet long. The toxin usually dissipates within 48 hours. Research has shown that crude protein content declines rapidly between boot & mature seed stages. If possible, raking alfalfa at moistures between 30 - 40% is often a good compromise between low leaf loss and good drying. The geographic and environmental diversity of Georgia allows for the extensive use of both cool and warm season grass species. Avoid rain, if possible. Hay Meadow Management th Hay meadows are grasslands that are cut for hay in July-September, and usually aftermath grazed. Smooth bromegrass (Bromus inermis) is a cool-season grass introduced into the United States from Hungary in 1884. High quality hay is early cut, green, soft, leafy, free of foreign material and has a pleasant odor. Raking turns the hay one more time to dry the bottom and forms it into a windrow ready to be baled. Unlike fibers, these simple carbohydrates are entirely digestible. Make Hay in 4 Days or Less. Once bahiagrass grows 10 to 12 inches tall, it produces little new growth and loses nutritive value the longer it stands. (Late fall or early spring is really the best time to treat them). These sugars are then broken down by plant cells into other useful materials through a process called respiration. 1. So I asked when you should cut hay. For best quality, hay should be cut just as flowers begin to emerge. It can be one dollar per bale whereas twine is cents. Once bahiagrass grows 10 to 12 inches tall, it produces little new growth and loses nutritive value the longer it stands. Low fertility critical areas should be fertilized prior to seeding. It can come from many different crops. The site is sponsored by AGCO Corporation and covers farming and the farm life our readers live, as well as love. If the winter has been relatively warm and dry, the meadow could be lightly grazed in February with 1.5-3 Livestock Units (LU) per hectare to remove any early growth that could swamp wildflowers later in the year Pack tightly in an airtight silo without allowing grass to wilt. For horse hay, it’s best to use the old sickle bar mowers or swathers. Adult plants can range in height from 2.5 to 7 feet tall. One rain can cut the nutritive value of the hay one-third. 2) and disk mowers (Fig. Issued July 1929; reprinted "with slight changes" in 1940 (as listed in April 1940 Monthly Catalog, p. 463). “Johnsongrass is a warm-season grass, so it is growing more rapidly than a cool season grass, like fescue, right now,” Jill Scheidt, agronomy specialist with the University of Missouri Extension, explained. Issued July 1929; reprinted "with slight changes" in 1940 (as listed in April 1940 Monthly Catalog, p. 463).
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