Spring Planted Forages Holt Boyd Extension Podcast

Spring Planted Forages - February 13, 2023 - Amy Timmerman, Extension Educator

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• [0:00] This is Amy Timmerman with this weeks Extension Ag Update.
• [0:04] It is hard to start thinking about planting season around the corner
• [0:07] with all the snow piled up and calves hitting the cold, muddy ground.
• [0:11] But this is the time to start planning and thinking about any spring forages
• [0:15] that you may plant to help offset feed needs for next spring.
• [0:19] Spring-planted small grain cereals
• [0:21] are the first things we will consider planting this spring.
• [0:24] These annual forages can be planted when soil temperatures
• [0:27] are in the 42-45 degree Fahrenheit range
• [0:30] which typically occurs late March to early April.
• [0:33] As of February 12th, the weekly average
• [0:36] 4-inch temperature of bare soil ranged from
• [0:38] 32-35 degree Fahrenheit according to the
• [0:42] Nebraska State Climate Office in this area.
• [0:45] Careful monitoring of your soil temperatures to optimize
• [0:48] germination and overall yield of the crop is critical.
• [0:51] Depending on weather, planting dates can either be pushed up or pushed back.
• [0:56] So please refer to the Nebraska State Climate Office or collect
• [0:59] your own soil temperatures to optimize that planting date.
• [1:04] Oats are the most common cool-season annual foraged planted.
• [1:07] When planting oats as a forage, planting rates of 2 to 3 bushels or
• [1:12] 76 to 114 pounds per acre is commonly suggested.
• [1:16] Research data from UNL has shown that planting at rates greater than
• [1:20] 25 pounds per acre did not significantly increase total forage yield thus
• [1:24] determining that seeding rate did not influence forage quality.
• [1:30] Spring triticale and spring barley are two other small grain options
• [1:34] that have been found to perform similar to oats in terms of forage yield and quality.
• [1:40] Also days to maturity are very similar to oats.
• [1:43] Seeding rates for spring barley are 2 to 2½ bushels or 96 to 120 pounds per acre.
• [1:49] With Spring triticale at 2 bushel or about 116 pounds per acre.
• [1:55] When determining varieties for small grain cereals make sure if
• [1:58] forage is primary goal that those particular varieties are selected.
• [2:02] These varieties have characteristics very specific regarding plant height,
• [2:07] leaf width, day to maturity and overall forage yield and quality.
• [2:12] Before planting the small grains, check to make sure there isn’t
• [2:15] any potential of herbicide carryover from the previous year.
• [2:19] Some products have a very long residual and the weather
• [2:23] conditions can have major impacts on the longevity of these products.
• [2:26] If there is concern, perform your own soil-bioassay prior to planting.
• [2:31] Collect enough soil to fill a 20 ounce cup.
• [2:33] Plant your small grain of choice and observe.
• [2:36] If the plants emerge without showing signs of herbicide damage such as curling,
• [2:41] yellowing or white blotches most likely there isn’t any
• [2:44] herbicide carry-over to be concerned about.
• [2:47] If your primary goal is to have something for grazing prior to going to pasture,
• [2:51] consider including Italian ryegrass to the small grain cereal to
• [2:54] increase the grazing period.
• [2:57] Italian ryegrass grows well following grazing and will
• [3:00] continue to grow into the summer when supplied with adequate moisture.
• [3:04] An oats-Italian ryegrass mixture, the seeding rate would be about
• [3:08] 60 to 80 lbs oats/acre and 15 to 20 lbs ryegrass/acre.
• [3:14] Another option to consider is field peas which have enhanced
• [3:18] forage quality and provide some nitrogen fixation.
• [3:21] Field peas have been shown to grow exceptionally well
• [3:24] in Nebraska and are a great alternative option.
• [3:27] Research from an irrigated trial at North Platte found that a mixture
• [3:31] of 52 pounds/acre oats and 17 pound/acre field peas
• [3:36] resulted in a forage crude protein content of
• [3:40] 14% compared to 8% crude protein of oats alone.
• [3:44] In the oat-pea mixture, the peas accounted for 25% of the total forage.
• [3:50] Remember to fertilizer the annual forages to maximize yield potential.
• [3:55] Nitrogen applications should be done according to soil test recommendations.
• [3:59] Generally, nitrogen is the limiting factor for spring planted small grains.
• [4:03] For irrigated fields, 50 to 70 pounds of nitrogen
• [4:07] per acre can be applied at planting or within the first month.
• [4:11] For dryland fields, nitrogen rates can be similar if there is adequate precipitation.
• [4:16] However, make sure to check the soil test to actually
• [4:19] determine how much nitrogen is needs to be applied.
• [4:23] Additional questions about planting early season spring forages,
• [4:27] please contact your local extension office.
• [4:30] This has been Amy Timmerman with Nebraska Extension.