Other Forage

One can hardly read an article about forage management without encountering some variation of the “3-inch rule.” If you have somehow escaped it, the rule states that 3 inches of residue is required after harvest to maintain a healthy stand of grass.

Make the most out of silage planted late.

For many years, a forage niche Oklahoma and surrounding states have been well-known for is grazing weaned calves, also known as stocker cattle, on wheat during the fall and winter.

Purple prairie clover (PPC, Dalea purpurea Vent.) is an important native perennial legume widely distributed across North America with high palatability, adaptability and forage quality.

High-quality corn silage and alfalfa is often used for feeding dairy heifers. These can work well for young heifers up to about 8 to 12 months of age depending on forage quality.

What comes to mind when the words “alternative forages” are mentioned? I often think of warm-season annuals of sorghum and sudangrass hybrids, pearl millet, and forage sorghum; or cool-season annuals of wheat, barley, ryegrass and crimson clover, just to name a few.