Pasture and Forage Minute

With ongoing drought throughout the state, some people have started wondering about pricing corn silage. According to UNL research, corn silage priced standing in the field before harvest would be valued at 7.65 times the price per bushel of corn. Shannon Sand, Nebraska Ag Economics Extension Educator.

Are you planting or at least thinking about planting wheat, rye, or triticale for forage next spring? Which of these small grains should you plant this fall? Let’s look at some of their characteristics to help you select. Jerry Volesky, Nebraska Extension Range and Forage Systems Specialist.

I just got my forage test results back with a nitrate score was 3,000. Am I in trouble? Ben Beckman, Nebraska Extension Forage Systems Educator.

Best management practices, like cutting alfalfa in the morning to speed drying to preserve sugars and starch for higher quality hay, are followed by most producers. However, timing the last fall alfalfa cutting seems to vary among growers. Todd Whitney, Nebraska Extension Forage Agronomist.

Summer is flying by and fall is just around the corner. While it may seem like a weird question to ask already, do you know how much feed or hay you have for this fall or going into winter? Ben Beckman, Nebraska Extension Forage Systems Educator.

Making good silage includes many factors. Are you prepared for corn silage harvest this year? Ben Beckman, Nebraska Extension Forage Systems Educator.

Depending on where you are in the state, putting up hay this year may have been a struggle. Dry conditions were prevalent early on and continue to plague some areas, while too much rain has been an issue for some. Ben Beckman, Nebraska Extension Forage Systems Educator.

Areas of the state are beginning to dry or continue to suffer from drought conditions after the recent hot and dry weather which has created an environment conducive to grasshopper movement into crops from field edges. Alfalfa and grasses seeded this late summer can be especially susceptible to grasshopper feeding damage. Samantha Daniel, Nebraska Extension Crops and Water Educator.

Late summer always seems to be a time when weeds can become quite noticeable in pastures. This is especially true this summer because of the abundance of annual weeds like sunflowers, lambs quarters, or snow-on-the-mountain that are a result of last year’s drought conditions. Jerry Volesky, Nebraska Extension Range and Forage Systems Specialist.

Alfalfa can be successfully seeded in the Spring or Fall, but mid-August through mid. September is usually the best fall seeding time for new stands. Todd Whitney, Nebraska Extension Forage Systems Educator.