Latest News From Hay

Now is the time to be thinking about cover crops for the coming year. Consider attending a free, online Cover Crops and Soil Health Forum on Feb. 18, 2014, to assist in making cover crop decisions.

A cold, snowy December has caused many livestock farms to reevaluate their winter supply of forage.

Poor hay quality due to last year’s increased rainfall, has Georgia cattle farmers searching for alternative ways to supplement the hay they feed their herd.

Why is it that nearly every article on beef cow nutrition in the winter seems to focus on body condition?

Winter cover crops on corn and soybean acres are a natural fit for crop-and-beef farms.

The fully redesigned Kuhn Knight RA 100 Series Helix Reel Auggie mixers provide outstanding durability and performance.

Scorched pastures offered little substance for O.D. Cope’s 1,000-head cowherd in summer 2012. Desperate for forage in August, the Aurora, Mo., cattleman says he took a cue from area dairy producers.

Whether on the soil or in the barn, corn stover is a valuable resource on crop and livestock farms.

Winter feed represents one of the largest costs for a livestock production enterprise.

Here is laundry list of actions you can still take to make your forage production better next year.

The bale grazing concept of devising ways to feed and care for livestock with less labor input continues to grow in popularity and expand in creativity.

Temperatures drop, sunshine dims and pastures stop growing. That’s when cow nutrition becomes critical.

Top producers strive to continue to improve their operations. Here are 10 tips to help you do just that.

Feed and forage represents your largest annual production costs, and they provide the greatest opportunity for you to make significant changes in a short period of time.

Imagine if the majority of your cowherd nutri­ent base came from grass with minimal supplementation. What would your annual production costs look like then?

While the U.S. Drought Monitor still shows dry areas across the state, the soil moisture profile is well on its way to being full again.

Consider these things when deciding to take an alfalfa harvest during the critical period.

Harvest method affects the risk of prussic acid poisoning.

Drier weather in the last month has led to slow growth of forages in parts of the Midwest, meaning livestock producers need to double check their forage supplies for the rest of the season now.

To promote a healthier pasture next spring, producers need to start planning for the end of the season now and help their plants prepare for fall.

Recovering pastures and reduced feed prices are likely to spark a slow trend of heifer retention for U.S. beef producers, says one ag economist.

Steps to get the most out of your feed, water, and forage supplies to ensure a healthy herd that doesn’t break the bank.

Use these four simple tips to increase summertime productivity of cool-season grasses.

There are steps farmers can take to get the hay up quickly and reduce the potential for rain damage.

The House of Representatives Committee on Natural Resources today advanced the Grazing Improvement Act to improve the livestock grazing permitting processes on managed lands.

The 2013 hay season, with little sunshine and lots of rain, increases interest in making baleage, or silage in a bag, says Rob Kallenbach, University of Missouri Extension forage specialist.

Armyworms, which can strip pastures and hayfields bare as they march across the landscape, are showing up Missouri, near Joplin and eastward to Hermann and Montgomery City, says Wayne Bailey, MU entomologist.

Much of the Texas’ warm-season grass pastures have yet to recover from damage suffered during the 2010 drought.

The next two to three months are critical to determine the forage prospects for the remainder of the year.

What can be done to thicken up forage stands that have been thinned out?

Heading into calving, breeding and grazing seasons, livestock producers have much to learn and apply from last year's drought,

Even after storms dumped many inches of snow in February, water shortages and dirt-dry pastures across the Great Plains are shrinking herds.

The drought has had lasting effects on farmers across the country—cattlemen in particular.

Higher grain costs are creating opportunities for beef producers to explore other feed options, says Derrell Peel of Oklahoma State University.

Nebraska researchers’ new design may prove popular in smaller feedlots.

Feeder design makes a difference

Winter wheat could still present good grain opportunities for farmers, experts say, but a lack of moisture has stressed pastures.

Low available mineral nitrogen limits grass production more than low water on grassland pastures.

Even with the farm bill in limbo, EQIP funds are available to producers to make improvements on their land.

Poor weather conditions have resulted in high feed costs and big financial losses, Purdue Extension agricultural economist Chris Hurt says.

This year, one nitrate test on cornstalks isn’t enough for cattle producers. Know the nutrients and dangers that they contain.

Know the nutrients and dangers that cornstalks contain.

Know the nutrients and dangers that cornstalks contain.

Fall frost increases potential for prussic acid toxicity in livestock.

While it’s tempting to turn cows onto new fall growth when rains return after a drought, holding off can help pastures and cows.

The new varieties should be available to producers for planting in fall 2013.

Having adequate supplies of hay available is critical as producers make plans for winter management.

Recent rains have given producers hope that they will be able to plant wheat this fall for cattle to graze..

Ammoniation increases the digestibility and crude protein content of forage, improves intake and inhibits mold development.

Thin pastures and meager forage supplies prompt producers to seek alternative feed sources.