MANAGING STOCKPILED

FORAGEBob Woods

Area Extension Agronomy Specialist

Poteau, OK – July 23, 2009

Forage GrowthJan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

Cool-season Grass

Cool-season legume

Bermudagrass

Native Range

After 16 years of treatment

Post-oak savannah Harvest pine-burn annually

• Control – no treatment

Thousands of acres in central and eastern Oklahoma are just like this – unmanaged and unproductive

267 acres/cow

Maximizes wildlife objectives

Harvest pine-thin hardwood-

burn every 3 years

23 acres/cow

267 acres /cow

Maximizes livestock objectives Harvest pine-thin

hardwood- burn annually

10 acres/cow

267 acres /cow

WRONG QUESTION•Can I run 500 cows?

RIGHT QUESTION•How many cattle can my forage

system support?

Success Depends on Stocking Rate

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

Determining Stocking Rate on Native Range or Unfertilized Pasture

Web Soil Survey - HomeElectronic version

of the old soil survey books

79870

26035

91875

1875

173,646

•Lbs X 25% X Acres = harvestable yield•4900 X .25 X 16.3= 19967•6350 X .25 X 4.1 = 6508•5250 X .25 X 17.5 = 22968•1875 X .25 X 1 = 468•Total 49911/39 = 1280 lbs/A

Fence or Patch Burn?

0

10

20

30

40

50

60Control

Patch Burn

OSURR-TallgrassDec.1 – Sept.1

Trea

tmen

ts a

pplie

d

Gai

n/ha

(Kg)

1998 1999 2000

Year

Cattle PerformanceTallgrass Prairie PreserveIES (April 1-July 15 2001)

0

0.7

2.6

2

1.4

Aver

age

Dai

ly G

ain

(lb.

)

Traditional, All Burn Patch Burn

Stockpiling on Native Sites Get the stocking rate right Patch Burning Fencing

Stockpiled Fescue

•AUY = 9360 pounds•9360/1280 = 7.3 acres•Stockers SL = 3.6 A/hd•Stockers IES = 1.8 A/hd

•Lbs X 25% X Acres = harvestable yield•4900 X .25 X 16.3= 19967•6350 X .25 X 4.1 = 6508•5250 X .25 X 17.5 = 22968•1875 X .25 X 1 = 468•Total 49911/39 = 1280 lbs/A

Fescue Survey, 1994-95 276 lb. of Forage per Inch of

Height

02468

1012141618

Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul

ControlFert + grazeFert + stockpile

Treatment effect on tall fescue crudeTreatment effect on tall fescue crudeprotein level in northeast Oklahoma,protein level in northeast Oklahoma,

1994-951994-95

Cru

de P

rote

in le

vel (

%)

Cru

de P

rote

in le

vel (

%)

Lactating cow

GrowingSteer

DryCow

Treatment effect on tall fescue TDN levelTreatment effect on tall fescue TDN levelin northeast Oklahoma, 1994-95in northeast Oklahoma, 1994-95

TDN

leve

l (%

)TD

N le

vel (

%)

Lactating cow

Dry cow

52

54

56

58

60

62

64

Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul

ControlFert + grazeFert + stockpile

Growing Steer

Fall Fertilized Fescue 2001

CherokeeCraigDelawareMayesMuskogeeNowataOkfuskeeOttawaWagonerWashington

Unfert.Lbs/A8651108778885111765913291382885723

FertilizedLbs/A3803217421112281320124193733452054801574

IncreaseLbs/A293810671333139620841760240431384596851

Stockpiled Bermudagrass

Late Summer Fertilization, Cherokee Co. 1996 (LB./a)

0500

100015002000250030003500

0-N 50 N Urea100 N Urea150 N Urea150 N Am. Nit.

Yieldlbs./A

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

Chemical composition of grazed forage samples at Stillwater, percent of dry matter

Sample Date Protein TDN‘97-98 Nov. 13.1 54.0 Dec. 12.5 53.5 Jan. 10.9 48.9 Feb. 12.7 47.9‘98-99 Nov. 15.2 48.4 Dec. 14.7 47.9 Jan. 11.6 43.3 Feb. 13.2 46.3

Forage Growth, Rainfall, and Fertilizer Timing

Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep oct Nov Dec0

5

10

15

20

25

30

0 0 0

8

2024

1410

14

64

0

BermudagrassTall FescueRainfall Fertilize

Warm or cool season grass

Fertilize warm season grass

Fertilize cool season

grass

Rainfall for Leflore County (1971-2000)

Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec0

1

2

3

4

5

6

47.9 inches average total rainfallVaries from 42 to 51 from north to south

Fertilize cool season grass

Fertilize warm season grass

Fertilize Warm or cool season grass

Rainfall Exceedence (2 in 10 years)

Sallisaw April 1893 – Feb 2004

Jan Feb

Mar AprMay Jun Jul Au

gSe

p Oct Nov Dec0123456789

10

Precipitation less thanPrecipitation greater than

Totals35.86 to 51.69

Legumes are not a free fertilizer option!

P, K, pH – According to Soil Test

3 Tons/A contribution that did not require N

Legume Management Residue Management – 2 inches or less in

late summer or fall. Follow soil test recommendation Drill to establish if possible Plant cool season legumes in late

summer or early fall, lespedeza in late winter or early spring

Innoculate the seed

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

Hay Avoidance Strategy Graze Bermudagrass to be overseeded

with a cool season legume in August and Sept.,

Graze fertilized and stockpiled bermudagrass in October until fully grazed

Graze native range with added protein supplement until cool season grass is sufficient.

Graze fertilized stockpiled fescue after stockpiled bermudagrass and native grass is grazed

SURVIVAL IN THE COW BUSINESS

The Right Stocking RateMake the Cow do the Work

Smart use of FertilizerGrazing Strategy