Opinion

Currently, there are still tight hay supplies and many overgrazed pastures. Additional management will likely be warranted this year to help recover perennial warm-season pastures. On these farms, removing livestock and receiving much needed rainfall are going to have the largest impact. The two main management practices that can be done are taking care of soil fertility and weed control. There will be a higher probability of seeing a return of input investments when dealing with an introduced forage grown for hay. Bermudagrass is a great example to seeing a response from increased fertility and use of pesticides. While tonnage can be increased with added fertility to native grass pastures, often it can be hard to justify economically since the total season production is usually less than introduced species. When deciding on how much fertilizer to apply it is always recommended to base the application rates off a soil sample and a yield goal. A $10 soil sample through the OSU Soil, Water, and Forage Analytical Laboratory collected every few years will almost always pay for itself. Hay pasture with a 4-ton yield goal will need 200 pounds of actual N per acre, while a grazed pasture that supports one cow for four months will only need 50 pounds of actual N per acre. Research has shown no benefit to split applications of nitrogen (N) when total application rates are below 200 pounds of actual N per acre. If application rates are greater than 200 pounds of N, then split applications can be economical. If applying N to farms with coarse, sandy soil types it is recommended to limit application rates to 100 pounds of N as it is mobile in the soil and can be leached out of the system.

The late, great Democratic President Harry S.

Footnotes