My son and I did a pasture walk this afternoon with two purposes in mind. One, to kill time before dinner and, two, to give things a good look over and check progress. It is a good idea to do this often. You won't know what is going on out there unless you look at it.
The grass is growing. Rather slowly for my taste. We have had plenty of rain thus far with more on the way, but it is still slow in coming. I wonder if this is a sign of low N. Anyway, I am anxious to get started on my rotation program and have already had to quarantine the animals to let the grass grow. But I'm almost out of hay and I really don't want to get any more.
I was excited though, as we saw the Korean Lespedeza coming up all over (not in huge quantities, yet) with little flowers on the tips. I showed it to my son and told him what it is. He thinks I'm the smartest guy in the world, far be it from me to burst his bubble. It is this string of fellowship that will bind us together. We need that, as every child does. More so for him, given most of his young life was spent in foster care. Lord willing, this will be his last stop.
Anyway, my excitement rubbed off on him and we both looked kind of silly out there whoopin' and hollerin' over the Lespedeza. Who would have thought that grass or legumes would excite me. Not long ago I was an athlete and competitive cyclist and sports excited me. Now I'm into grass and pastoral landscapes. What a transformation.
I had thought that, due to all the rain we've had, the Lespedeza seed washed away, but not so. Praise God! It is still too short for for sustainability, yet, I can't hardly stand long grass. Needless to say, I am having an inner conflict between the "manicured lawn" guy and the "feed the cows" guy. Any advice on how to conquer this turmoil is greatly appreciated.
I am going to ease them (the cows) into the program, trying to save some grass for later in the summer. This management intensive thing is really intensive. I will keep track of what paddocks get used and when and how long. I need to check the rest period between them to ensure adequate regrowth and prevent overgrazing. The purpose is to get further into the fall than I have in the past. Keep checking back, I'm still learning.
1 comment:
Hi there,
If you're wondering if the soil is low in N then it'd be best to get a soil sample and send it away to see if it is. How tall is the grass right now? Usually its a little slow to start growing at first, but then once it gets to a certain height or stage (in its vegetative stage) it really starts to take off. Throwing some N fertilizer might help it too, I know we used to do that every spring, put a bunch of fertilizer every year, and the grass come up a deeper shade of green and the cattle sure liked it too.
As for the "manicured lawn" vs. the "feed for the cows" thing your having trouble with, just remember that cows dont belong on the grassy area you designate as "lawn" and they belong in areas that are meant to keep them in. Keep in mind too that long grass is a good thing, especially in a hay meadow and pasture setting, it means you've got lots for the animals to eat. It also means that the pasture isn't overgrazed or in poor condition, it means its in good to excellent condition (especially if you have long, and THICK swards of grass). Keeping the grass too short can be determental in the future, reducing in root carbohydrate storage capabilities of the grass, and can also reduce regrowth in the spring, which might be another possibility in the case of what your finding this year. "Manicured" pastures can sometimes mean overgrazed pastures. Pastures with 30 to 50% forage still standing after moving the cattle off to another pasture is ideal, especially if your working towards the sustainability end of things.
Remember, your managing grass to create a healthy and viable herd, not for esthetic purposes ONLY.
Sorry for rambling on like that.
And good luck with this growing year. :)
Post a Comment