Winter Pasture Establishment

1
Winter Pasture Establishment

• Getting it big enough to graze
• Dr. David Kee
• Texas Agricultural Extension Service
• TAMU-Commerce/Dallas

2
Soil Testing

• Do in August
• ummm, its September
• get busy
• Identify Fields
• Multiple samples
• Individual fields
• Stratification
• two samples
• 0-2
• 2-6
• Composite and Mail
• Multiple Labs
• TAMU
• others

3
Sixteen Essential Nutrients

• CHOPKNS CaFe Mg B Mn CuZn MoCl
• Primary C, H, O
• Air Water
• Macronutrients
• N, P, K
• Secondary Nutrients
• Ca, Mg, S
• Micronutrients
• B, Cl, Cu, Fe, Mn, Zn, Mo
• Clovers B
• Wheat Cl
• Beneficial
• Na, Ni, Si, Co

4
Liebergs Law of Limits

• Water Barrel Model
• WaterYield
• Increase short stave length, increase yield
• Management issues
• Controlled
• Nutrients
• Species/variety selection
• Uncontrolled
• Weather
• Match fertilizer inputs to other controlled and
  uncontrolled issues

5
Ryegrass Response to Nitrogen

• Yield and Protein
• Economic N Rate
• 180-240 lbs. N/ac/yr.
• Continuous protein response
• Nitrogen Timing
• Equal Splits
• 60 lbs. N
• Prepared _at_planting
• Sod/overseeded 3rd leaf
• 60 in late Jan./early Feb, then March
• A 4th application in April if needed
• late N suppresses Clover

6
Ryegrass Response to Lime, P and K

• Optimal soil pH
• Ryegrass 5.8-7.2
• Enhances P and K uptake
• Ryegrass
• Very responsive to K rate
• Response to P is very pH dependent

7
Establishment

• Goals
• Plant, grow to reach 6-8 tall, then start
  grazing
• Utilization talk
• Seed requirements
• Stratification period
• Species determinant
• Limited problem in WP
• UV wavelength
• Species determinant
• Water
• Seed imbibe, swell and germinate
• Emerge, grow and produce leaves

8
Seedbed types

• Prepared
• best seedbed
• most expensive
• least stable footing
• Sod Seeded
• Lightly disked/Roundup
• Medium seedbed
• medium expense
• stable footing
• Overseeded
• Defoliated, plant
• Least expensive
• poorest seedbed
• very stable footing

9
Prepared Seedbed

• Process
• Tillage to 6
• Harrow, Pack, Drill
• drill works best
• seed/fertilizer placement
• broadcast possible
• harrow repack afterward
• Most productive
• Most expensive
• pasture costs 120-140/ac
• Earliest Grazing
• Limit to income animals
• stockers, replacements
• milkers
• cow/calf limit graze

10
Sodseeding

• Planting into HEALTHY sod
• Methods cost80-120/ac.
• Disk lightly
• 1-2 deep
• disks turned nearly straight up
• leave undisturbed area
• does not work on dry clay soils
• Roundup
• 1 pint/ac. 7 Days before planting.
• minimum till drill preferred
• Planting Method
• drill everything
• enhance seed soil contact
• broadcast ryegrass and clovers
• small gt1/8 seed only

11
Overseeding

• Least expensive method
• 40-80/acre
• Lowest forage production
• Greatest risk
• Defoliate
• Graze or hay
• thatch removal best
• Mow
• Plant
• drill small grains
• broadcast and harrow
• small seeds
• higher seeding rates

12
Planting Methods

• Broadcast
• Advantages
• speed
• lower equipment cost
• less equipment needed
• multiple operations
• spread with fertilizer
• Disadvantages
• poor seed/soil contact
• increased seed rate
• high stand failure
• requires second trip
• pack, harrow or drag
• even an old drag.
• Drill continued

13
Planting Methods

• Drills
• Types
• minimum till
• grain
• Advantages
• lower seeding rates
• Seed metering
• Excellent seed/soil contact
• Proper Seed depth
• Disadvantages
• slow
• Costs
• New 9K-35K
• Used
• pasture 1K-5K
• grain 50-500
• look in wheat areas

14
Seedbed Preparation

• Commerce, 2000
• 5 varieties, grazed, mowed, JD 850 Min-Till Drill
  on 10/15/99 (Planted fast)
• Gulf
• Lafayette
• Marshall
• Ribeye
• TAM-90
• 2nd experiment
• Site disked, TAM-90, Brillion seeder on 10/22/99
• Take home message
• Seedbed preparation is more important than
  ryegrass variety

15
Seeding Rates

• Situational
• Seed friendly environment
• enhance seed soil contact
• decrease seeding rate
• decrease sod competition
• increase seedling survival
• Seed quality
• plant by PLS not lbs/ac
• Seed price marginal
• animal cost is greatest
• fertilizer and land prep next
• increase seed rate if reducing land prep costs
• Species specific
• Seed size

16
Ryegrass yield response to Temperature

• Ryegrass
• No growth lt 43oF
• small grain needed for colder weather
• Peak growth _at_ 65oF
• spring grazing best
• Planting Dates
• Prepared seedbed
• September
• Sod or over seeded
• Mid-October
• Army worms
• Drought years especially
• delay planting
• watch for worms

17
Fall Armyworms

• Scout your fields
• Insecticides
• Bermudagrass
• Sevin
• 3.5 lbs/acre annual limit
• Alternative 1/2 rate seven 1/2 rate malathion
• Malathion, Meythl Parathion, Lanate
• Wheat pasture only
• Karate
• Plant (?) trapfield of wheat if area of invasion
  is known

18
Species and Variety Selection
19
Winter Annual Grasses
20
Ryegrass Variety Trial at Overton
21
New Varieties

• Several on the market
• Ribeye, Lafayette, others look good
• Ribeye has very early grazing
• NONE have been tested in a severe Texas or
  Oklahoma winter
• Until then standard recommendations apply.

22
Cereal Rye

• Proven Varieties
• Persisted through 83-84
• Elbon
• Bonel
• Wintergrazer 70
• New Varieties
• Greater yields, (unbiased data) but severe cold
  tolerance untested
• Bates
• Fayetteville
• Dallas Oats

23
Targeted Seeding Rates

• Seedbed dependent
• Optimum
• prepared seedbed, well established seedbank
• Ryegrass 15-20
• Small grains 60-75
• Fair to Good
• prepared or sod seeded, some seedbank buildup
• Ryegrass20-30
• Small grains 80-100
• Poor
• overseeded or drill, limited or no seedbank
• Ryegrass 30
• Small grains120

24
Clovers (acidic soils)
25
Clovers (alkaline soils)
26
Summary

• Keys to successful Winter Pasture Establishment
• Seedbed method
• Prepared, Sod, Overseeded
• Choose, and manage correctly
• Fertility
• Nitrogen 180-240
• Sod/overseeded none till 3rd leaf
• Lime, PK soil test
• Forage selection
• Ryegrass base
• Multiple varieties
• Gulfbrown bag
• Small grains early
• Ryegtgtwheat
• Clovers
• pH Selectivity
• No N in spring