AGR-263: Growing Wheat for Forage

Jimmy Henning, Tim Phillips, Ray Smith, Chris Teutsch | Apr. 14, 2021 (New)

Wheat is a multipurpose crop that can be used for cover crops, stored forage or grazing. As much as 25% of Kentucky's wheat acreage is not harvested as grain but used for cover crop or forage production. Wheat has excellent winter hardiness and can be sown later in the fall than barley. Wheat is a good choice for planting following corn or soybean harvest to capture residual nitrogen, build soil organic matter and prevent erosion. Wheat provides high quality, early spring growth, but has limited fall growth compared to grazing types of cereal rye.

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AGR-48: Bermudagrass: A Summer Forage in Kentucky

Jimmy Henning, Ray Smith, Chris Teutsch | Apr. 6, 2021 (Minor Revision)

Bermudagrass can be used successfully as part of a livestock forage program to supplement summer production of cool-season grasses. It is high-yielding, sod-forming, warm-season perennial grass that is most productive on well-drained, fertile soils. Bermudagrass is widely grown in the southern United States for pasture and hay.

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AGR-232: Crabgrass

Jimmy Henning, Tom Keene, Ray Smith, Chris Teutsch | Apr. 6, 2021 (Minor Revision)

Crabgrass possesses significant potential for supplying high quality summer forage although it is considered a weed by many. A primary advantage of crabgrass is that it is well adapted to Kentucky and occurs naturally in most summer pastures, especially those that have been overgrazed. It is also highly palatable and a prolific re-seeder. Planting an improved variety of crabgrass is recommended because the production of naturally-occurring ecotypes varies greatly. Crabgrass is best utilized by grazing.

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AGR-86: Growing Lespedeza in Kentucky for Cattle, Sheep and Goats

Jimmy Henning, Garry Lacefield, Ray Smith, Chris Teutsch | Apr. 6, 2021 (Major Revision)

Annual and perennial lespedezas are grown in Kentucky for pasture, hay, and soil stabilization. Lespedezas are warm season legumes that complement cool-season grasses in both pasture and hay situations. They are more tolerant of less fertile, more acid soils, but have lower yield potential than other forage legumes such as red clover and alfalfa.

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AGR-264: Improving Kentucky Small Ruminant Pastures

Jimmy Henning, Krista Lea, Ray Smith, Chris Teutsch | Apr. 2, 2021 (New)

For many small ruminants, quality pasture can provide almost all nutrients needed for maintenance or light work for much of the year. Pasture reduces the cost of keeping livestock while minimizing impacts on the environment. Below are some guidelines for improving pastures.

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ID-108: The Kentucky Beef Book, 2021

Les Anderson, Michelle Arnold, Darrh Bullock, Kenny Burdine, Roy Burris, Ben Crites, Jimmy Henning, Steve Higgins, Steve Isaacs, Kevin Laurent, Jeff Lehmkuhler, Lee Moser, Gregg Rentfrow, Kylie Schmidt, Ray Smith, Chris Teutsch, Lee Townsend, Katherine VanValin, Paul Vijayakumar | Mar. 23, 2021 (Major Revision)

Kentucky is ideally suited for cattle production. The main feed for cattle is a renewable resource Kentucky has in abundance--forages. The majority of the state's terrain favors cattle production over row crops. Kentucky farms cover 14 million acres, with approximately half of that occupied by forage grasses and legumes. Our natural resources and climate permit the growth of most cool-season and warm-season species. Water is readily available in all areas of the state, and we have a relatively long growing season.

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AGR-262: Utilizing Drought Stressed Soybeans for Forage

Jimmy Henning, Ray Smith, Chris Teutsch, Katherine VanValin | Feb. 10, 2021 (New)

Although soybeans are commonly grown as a grain crop, they can be grazed or harvested as either a hay or silage crop. This most commonly occurs when the grain potential of the soybean crop has been reduced by drought, hail damage, or early frost. A realistic forage yield expectation for drought stressed soybeans would be 1.5 to 2.0 tons of dry matter per acre. The objective of this article is to provide practical tips for successfully, grazing, conserving and feeding drought stressed soybeans.

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AGR-173: Baling Forage Crops for Silage

Jimmy Henning, Ray Smith, Chris Teutsch | Jan. 11, 2021 (Major Revision)

Forage may be stored for winter feeding when pasture production is limited, for use in confinement feeding systems, or for cash hay. Dry hay is the most popular storage method since it stores well for long periods and is better suited to cash sale and shipping than high moisture forages. However, silage may be more suitable in situations where hay curing is difficult. It is possible to make high quality silage or haylage using long (unchopped) forage crops baled with large round balers, although balers may need modification to handle wet material.

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PR-792: 2020 Long-Term Summary of Kentucky Forage Variety Trials

Jimmy Henning, Gene Olson, Ray Smith, Chris Teutsch | Dec. 8, 2020 (New)

Forage crops occupy approximately 7 million acres in Kentucky. Forages provide a majority of the nutrition for beef, dairy, horse, goat, sheep, and wildlife in the state. In addition, forage crops play an environmentally friendly role in soil conservation, water quality, and air quality. There are over 60 forage species adapted to the climate and soil conditions of Kentucky. Only 10 to 12 of these species occupy the majority of the acreage, but within these species there is a tremendous variation in varieties. This publication was developed to provide a user-friendly guide to choosing the best variety for producers based on a summary of forage yield and grazing tolerance trials conducted in Kentucky over the past twenty years.

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PR-791: 2020 Annual Grass Report: Warm Season and Cool Season (Cereals)

Bill Bruening, Jimmy Henning, Gene Olson, Ray Smith, Chris Teutsch | Dec. 4, 2020 (New)

Summer annual grasses provide an important forage crop option for producers in Kentucky. These grasses are mainly used as emergency or supplemental hay and pasture crops, but little information is available on their yield potential. The purpose of this publication is to summarize the University of Kentucky 2013-2019 forage yield trials with sudangrass, sorghum/sudangrass, millets, teff, and cereal crops. Cool season annual grasses (specifically cereal crops) are also used as forages crops for hay, baleage or grazing. The cereal crops used in this report are wheat (Triticum aestivum), rye (Secale cereale), oats (Avena sativa) and triticale (Triticum secale).