Pasture and Forage Minute

July traditionally means the beginning of the haying season for Sandhills subirrigated meadows. A key point related to the quality of meadow hay is harvest date. Ben Beckman, Nebraska Extension Forage Systems Educator.

Wheat harvest usually pegs the half-way point in the Nebraska crop growing season. As hot days shutdown wheat growth; though, there is still adequate growing season days left for new plantings of forage or cover crops following wheat harvest if soil surface moisture is not a limiting factor. Todd Whitney, Nebraska Extension Forage Agronomist.

Have you noticed tall weeds with umbrella-like white flowers in pastures, ditch banks, and along the roadsides?  It may be poison hemlock, a toxic plant to both people and livestock. Ben Beckman, Nebraska Extension Forage Systems Educator.

By mid-summer, summer annual grasses like foxtail, sandbur, and crabgrass are already up and growing—and they’re starting to cause issues in perennial hay or pasture fields. Ben Beckman, Nebraska Extension Forage Systems Educator.

In Nebraska, there are two species of fly that cause the most economic injury to pasture and rangeland cattle. Selection of an appropriate control method for each will depend on the time of year; the efficacy, cost, and convenience of the treatment. Samantha Daniel, Nebraska Extension Crops and Water Educator.

It's time for the first cutting of alfalfa, and as you're out in the fields, it's a prime opportunity to spot any issues and plan corrective actions. But what should you be looking for?

Is your pasture paying its way? This is a question I have heard lately with regards to changing input costs. Shannon Sand, Nebraska Ag Economics Extension Educator.

Rained-on hay plagues all of us eventually. The 'windrow disease' that often follows presents lingering problems. Jerry Volesky, Nebraska Extension Range and Forage Systems Specialist.

Since the first cutting of alfalfa has been completed in much of the state, Nebraska producers may be tempted to believe our troubles with alfalfa weevil are over. Samantha Daniel, Nebraska Extension Crops and Water Educator.

Early Spring alfalfa irrigation may be beneficial; especially when it is the prime irrigation growing season time to build water reserves for summer use. However, over-watering alfalfa can cause plant injury, disease, and possibly weed invasion. Todd Whitney, Nebraska Extension Forage Agronomist.