Bob WoodsArea Extension Agronomy Specialist,
NE OklahomaCentral OK Cattle Conference 2009
Managing the Forage Base on a Central OK
Ranch
Managing the Forage Base
1. Inventory2. Stocking Rate3. Stockpiled Forage4. Grazing Management
InventorySoils
ForageLivestockOther?
Cool Season
Native
Introduced Warm Season
Site potential?
xx
x
x
xx
x
= 920
= 26,789
= 87,931
= 13,475= 28,140
= 549Total 211,319
= 53,515
40% Canopy Closure?
60% grass and Forbs = 126,791 lbs.40% woody plants = 84,527 lbs.
Biomass Potential
Harvestable EstimateTypical harvest efficiency on a NR site is about 30%
grass and Forbs = 126,791 lbs x .3 = 38,031 lbs
browse = 84,527 lbs x .3 = 25,358 lbs.
Forage Requirement for a Spring Calving herd under 4 different management options
Herd Descrip. AUM/Cow Lb./cow/year
Cows and replacements
17.6
13,780
Sell calves, buy replace.
15.3
11,934
1100 lb. cows and replace.
18.9
14,742
Retain steers 21.4 16,692
Each 100 pound increase in cow weight adds950 pounds to yearly DM requirement
Or Goats?Add 1 mature goat/6.4 A
38,031 lbs available /11,934 lbs. needed = 25A/cow unit - year round
5A/stocker April 15 to July 15
Control trees with herbicide($90/A)?Increases carrying capacity from 25 cows per section to 42 cows and costs $1355 per added cow
Manage with Fire
You can double your stocking rate with 10% of your acreage in introduced forages – Dr. Wilfred McMurphy
80 acre Example 792 lbs./A (biomass)
9 acres = 7132 lbs.
Increasing Carrying Capacity with Introduced Forages
80 Acre Example1 acre of bermudagrass fertilized with 175 pounds of N per acre would produce the same.
Forage Expense in Relation to S.R. (5/19/09)
A/Cow Forage T/A
N Lbs/A NPK Total $ /
Cow
Forage Expense $/Cow
Sales - Forage Expens
e10 .6 195 3745 1.2 30 144 314 2554 1.5 50 145 290 2793 2 70 131 251 3183 2 2 T
litter ($22)
222 342 227
2 3 120 160 255 314N 37¢, P 29¢, K 59¢, $45 Hay/cow, $15 native rent, $25 introduced rent 40 lbs P and K/A, $569 gross sales per cow
Fertilizing Introduced Forages•Soil test (P, K, Lime)•Determine a yield goal•Nitrogen – 50 lbs/ton of additional forage needed.
Complementary Forages
Rainfall for Lincoln County(1971-2000)
Fertilize cool season grass
Fertilize warm season grass
Fertilize Warm or cool season grass
Stocking Rates
High
ZeroVery light
HeavyModerateLight
Gain/animalNet Return/acre
Gain/acre
Stocking Rate Explained
Manage to Graze!
Stockpiled Forage
Typical Hay Feeding Season
2.5 3
11
47
33
05
101520253035404550
Percent of respondents
< 30 days31 -60 days61 - 90 days91 - 120 days> 121 days
Average Snow Cover – 4 days
Overstocked Under fertilized
Weather ExtremesHay is cheaper than fertilizer or
renting more land
Reasons to feed hay more than 30 days
60 to 90 days of Barn Storage with a forage/grazing plan that only needs 30 days.
Forage GrowthJan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
Cool-season Grass
Cool-season legume
Bermudagrass
Native Range
Stockpiled Forage (standing, hay, silage)
Fall Fertilized Bermudagrass
0
1000
2000
3000
4000
5000
6000
Stillwater Haskell
Fora
ge y
ield
(lbs
/acr
e)
1997 1998
Live Wt. Change, Year 1Nov.4 - Jan. 22 (77 days)
40
-84
46
-33
46
-20
44
-20
-100-80-60-40-20
0204060
CONT LOW MED HIGH
Period 1Period 2
Wei
ght l
bs.
Period 2 Quadratic Effect (P<.05)
Treatment
Overall Wt. Change, Year 2Nov. 3 - Feb. 2
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
Cont Low Med High
Lbs.
61
91 9783
Small Grains Planting Dates
Picture taken 11/30/99
9/10/99
10/21/99 9/23/99
11/4/99
10/7/99
First planting was clipped 10/27/99 removing 1,880 lb/a of forage
Grazing Strategy
Objective BasedForage
Class of Livestock
Grazing Strategies for Introduced ForagesBermudagrass or OWB
Rotation to control maturity – Complete a rotation every 21 to 30 days when forage is growing.
Cool Season GrassesRotation can increase grazing days per acre by 40%
Cool Season LegumesShort residue height in fall and winter
Multiple paddocks can be peace of mind (easier to count days remaining)
Grazing Strategies for Native Range
Stocking Rate is especially critical – Can’t fix it with fertilizer
Stockers -individual performance declines with rotational grazing
Cows –multiple pastures orpatch burn
Rotation without fencingSummer burn – reduced winter
supplementation by 120 pounds/cow
Improved habitat for wildlife
Patch Burning Native Range
760 Acres (560 native, 200 Introduced)1. No fertilizer, grow all forage – 74 cows2. No fertilizer, buy hay 60 days, 90 cows3. Cows on native and fertilized introduced,
buy hay for 60 days, 158 cows4. Fertilize bermudagrass and fescue, 83
cows stockers on native , 316 head (IES)
5. Add a recreation component6. Multi-species grazing
Multiple Options -
It won’t work on my place!I need to plant more____!I have to have “X number” of cows.I have to spray weeds!Conventional wisdom can change!
Avoid “Locked In Mode”
The Ranch That Feeds Less Hay Wins!