Early Season Cool Season Monitoring

The laundry list of ‘issues’ dragging down forage stands is long:

• Weather
• Weeds
• Fall Armyworms
• Fertility

You name it and our forage crops have had the ‘opportunity’ to encounter them – often in combination! They’re showing it, too. Before recent rains, brome plants on thinner soils were rolling in response to warm/dry weather. Stands are exhibiting uneven heading and heading out when plants are relatively short as well. Even with improving conditions, we’ll likely see some level of production losses requiring increased attention to management.

It might be time for a second look at forage stands. If that evaluation raises concerns for the rest of the season, consider these thoughts from a recent First Friday Forage Focus Facebook post courtesy of NRCS Rangeland Management Specialist Dustin Schwandt and Meadowlark Extension District Livestock & Natural Resources Agent Ross Mosteller:

How is your grass holding up? Is it staying ahead of grazing, even at ‘average’ stocking rates? It might be time to take a second look and start considering some of the grazing management strategies outlined above.Few stands are in a great position to weather a lot of stress. Being on top of issues early in the season might be one of the best things we can do to help stands longer term.