Using small grain pasture for your winter forage

Fall is approaching, which means the time has come for cattle producers to decide whether calves are going to be sold or held over until next spring. Gary Bates, a forage production specialist with the University of Tennessee Extension, suggests careful consideration of grazing options before making such a decision.

“While keeping calves can result in bigger calves and higher prices, this marketing alternative depends on having a good source of feed during the winter,” said Bates. To ensure adequate grazing throughout the winter, Bates recommends implementing small grain pasture into their feeding plan. “Small grain and ryegrass pastures provide high quality grazing during the fall, winter and spring,” said Bates.   “It doesn’t matter if you plant 5 acres or 100 acres, the high nutrient content of these forages can promote excellent performance from any group of livestock.”

Grazing on small grain pasture can be used both to fatten calves as well as to supplement the diet of beef cows.

Bates suggests the following steps for planting and utilizing small grain pasture:

(1) Planting method - Both conventional and no-till methods of planting can be used, however, no-till planting has been shown to provide a firm base for winter grazing and less winter kill than conventional planting.  Each of these methods depends on the reduction of competition from existing vegetation.  For successful no-till planting, this vegetation must be killed chemically with a herbicide.  Seeds should be placed between one-fourth and one-half inch deep in the soil. 

(2) Planting dates - For fall grazing, seedings should be made early.  Rye, which will produce the earliest fall grazing, should be planted August 15 to October 15.  Wheat should be planted September 1 to October 15.  Adequate moisture is essential for stand establishment during fall months, however, small grain plantings made after October 1 usually produce little fall grazing.  Including ryegrass in the mixture will produce grazing later into the spring.  

(3) Seeding rates - If fall grazing is expected from wheat or rye, 2 bushels per acre should be used with 10 pounds of crimson clover.  If no fall grazing is expected, then seeding rates can be dropped back to 1.5 bushels per acre.  15 pounds per acre of ryegrass can be added in place of half a bushel of the small grain to provide grazing later into the spring.  Producers can check with their local Extension office for recommended varieties.

(4) Fertilization - A soil test should be taken to determine if there is a need for lime, potash or phosphate.  Information from a soil test will provide assurance that the establishment and production of the pasture will not be limited by low nutrient levels, or that money is not wasted by excessive application of fertilizer.  Small grain pastures are highly responsive to nitrogen fertilizer.  Apply 30-45 pounds of nitrogen per acre at planting, and then 30-45 pounds nitrogen per acre on March 1.  If ryegrass is included in the mixture, add another 30 pounds of nitrogen per acre on May 1.

(5) Grazing management -Harvesting the forage by grazing generally results in a large amount of waste, due to trampling and rejection of forage around manure piles.  The amount of waste can be decreased if animals are confined to small areas of the pasture, called a paddock, and then rotated to another area when all of the forage in the first paddock has been consumed.  Grazing should begin when the forage is approximately 8-10 inches tall.  The animals should be removed when plants are grazed down to about 3 inches.  Electric fencing can be used to divide a large pasture into several paddocks, with paddock size adjusted so that 3 to 7 days is required to graze it down.  After the animals are rotated, the paddock should be clipped to remove any rejected areas that have become mature.