Beef Up Your Forage Management!

1. Beef Up Your Forage Management! Joe Sellers Brian Peterson

2. Why are forages important? • We are losing grazing and hay acres • Soil erosion and water quality losses • Cow-calf, sheep, goat, dairy industries are important • Ruminant production costs are escalating • As corn and land goes up, so does everything else • Squeezing more grazing days or pounds per acre is even more important

3. Winter Feeding • Large part of cow costs • Need different diet for stages • Need different diet for young, thin cows • Adjust as needed • Move to grass when ready

4. BRaNDS

5. Calving Season • Early • Cow requirements high when feeding needed • Colder weather • Bedding, sanitation • Calf in dry lot + Calves hit earlier market + Avoid planting time

6. Calving Season • Later calving + Match cow requirements to grass production + Calve on pasture, not in lots + May be less health problems • Calves are later, smaller in fall • May miss seasonal high fed cattle markets • Breeding in hot of summer (fescue)

7. Calving time sanitation • Do you calve in the lot or barn? • Is it well bedded? • Ventilation, humidity, moisture • Do you move out to larger group soon? • Facilities, labor

8. Calving time sanitation • Do you calve on pasture? • Checking cattle more complicated • Do you move out cows who have not calved, pairs, or leave in group until all are calved? • Damage to pastures? • Less manure to handle

9. Sacrifice Paddock • Easy access for feeding • Limited slope • May require rock or heavy use areas • Feeding area >200’ from water sources • Maintain vegetative cover • Reseed if needed • Remove manure accumulations

10. J F M A M J J A S O N D Seasonal Growth Pattern of Cool-Season Grasses

11. Seasonal Growth Pattern of Forage Legumes

12. Transition • Move cows to improve calf health, reduce feed costs • Continue to feed early on grass? • Grass tetany – high Mag minerals? • Graze fescue first? • Move through paddocks rapidly

13. Cool Season Annual Forages

14. Fescue • Keep vegetative • Introduce legumes • Careful with N fertilization • Fescue toxicosis is a health disorder, not nutritional, but -- • You must meet cow mineral requirements • Dilute with other feeds, forages • Renovate with spray/smother/spray

15. Fescue • Good calving pastures • Hay will have 50% alkaloid level compared to grazed • If stockpile, do it from August 1 • New varieties, Endophyte-free or Novel-Endophyte • Mineral additives – some data finds response, but mixed results

16. Seedstock selection • If you want to rely more on grass – • Select for moderate size • Select for longevity with low feed resources • Select for easy fleshing ability • Use visual appraisal to continue to look at • Depth and volume • Confirmation • Structural soundness

17. DO NOT • Use individual data to replace genetic predictions (use that data to supplement Expected Progeny Differences) • Believe only “heritage” breeds can work • Pay more for genetics that may be flawed

18. Start Planning For Added Forage • In the summer when grass is short, will you graze hay fields? • Graze CRP? • Warm season grass? • Summer annuals?

19. Seasonal Growth Pattern of Warm-Season Grasses

20. Warm Season Annual Forages

21. Annual or Short Lived Grasses • Italian Ryegrass • Corn • Perennial Ryegrass • Others???

22. Quality vs Quantity • Stockers or grass fed • Need higher energy, leafier material • May be able to get high gains with “best” of grass mix • May be able to justify using annuals or short lived perennials that are more costly • Cow calf – can use lower energy grasses to meet needs • Cereal grains, sorghum, etc can work well • Need to have longevity of perennial forage stands • Dry cows and even pairs can “clean up” behind stockers

23. J F M A M J J A S O N D Seasonal Growth Pattern of Cool-Season Grasses

24. Seasonal Growth Pattern of Forage Legumes

25. Matching Species and Class to Forage • Leader follower • Stockers followed by pairs • Pairs followed by dry cows • Lambs followed by dry ewes • Selectively graze best parts of plant by growing animals; Use mature animals to clean up and set up for regrowth

26. Take 1/2, leave 1/2

27. Selective vs Quantity • For grass fed beef you need more selectivity and higher quality – they need the leafy material, not stems • For beef cows you do not need that level of quality, but need to graze when ready and leave enough leaf area • Just going to highly intensive (more paddocks, less selective), will actually reduce individual gains while increasing production per acre

28. J F M A M J J A S O N D Seasonal Growth Pattern of Cool-Season Grasses

29. What plants are higher in energy? • Leafier grasses (rye grass, bermuda, etc) • Leafy legumes (alfalfa, white and red clovers) • The more immature, leafy parts of all plants

30. Extend Grazing - Winter • Stockpile • CRP Split Grazing Option • Corn stalks • Winter annuals

31. Stockpiled fescue

32. Stretching with Stockpiled Feed • Length of feeding program • Grazing standing corn • Winter annuals

33. Stockpiled Forages • Some studies show 1000 lb added DM with N, not quite that much at McNay on average • Add pounds with nitrogen fertilizer • Fertilize 40lbs N, after haying in July, 3 yr ave • Smooth brome/red clover • Fertilized, 2751 lbs DM/acre • Unfertilized, 2425 lbs DM/acre • Tall fescue/red clover • Fertilized, 3368 lbs DM/acre • Unfertilized, 2729 lbs DM/acre

34. Grazing stockpile • Reduces Hay 2390/lbs per cow compared to dry lot (three year average) • Stockpile from around August 1 for beef balance of yield and quality • Graze cornstalks first, then stockpiled fescue (quality, less alkaloids in fescue)

35. Stockpiled legume/fescue

36. Does Supplementation Pay? Joe Sellers

37. Grass Quality • As grass matures, protein content decreases, NDF and ADF (fiber) increase (energy decreases) • Not true that protein is never limiting • Not true that more mature grass has high energy

38. Fiber and Energy • High fiber – lower energy • More vegetative, less fiber • Legumes, less fiber • Looking for ways to break down cell walls • Effect of both animal, diet, and rumen contents • Research still on-going • Lignin, cellulose, hemicellulose

39. Emerging issues in grazing • Animal adaptation to lower energy, high fiber diets from young age • Effects of excess protein (blood urea nitrogen) • Need for specific amino acids for higher rates of gain (supplements) • Balance of rumen degraded and by-pass proteins (supplements)

40. Supplement to extend grass • Corn and soybean co-products fit grazing • With higher land charges it may pay to stock heavier and substitute feed for grass • Delivery methods may be limited

41. What should you use? • Corn – economical, higher starch, do you need protein? • Corn gluten pellets – higher in protein, lower in starch • Distillers grains – higher in protein and fat, bypass protein • Soybean hull pellets – more fiber, intermediate in protein and energy

42. What’s DDG Got to Offer? • Economical (?) • High Protein • High Energy • Positive associative effects • But can be variable

43. How much grass can you replace? • Most studies find 1 lb DM of distiller’s grains will replace ½ lb of grass DM • Individual performance should go up with supplement • May help dilute effect of fescue

44. Value added programs Joe Sellers

45. Alternatives • Market through very effective local auction barns • Retain ownership as grain fed, natural, or grass fed • Join supply chain to supply calves to programs • Market into branded programs, food coops, or direct to consumer

46. What determines value? • Quality and yield grade • Carcass specifications • Production standard • Age and process verification

47. Quality Grading • Quality grades indicate expected palatability or eating satisfaction of the meat • Quality grading is a voluntary service packers request and pay for on an hourly fee basis. • Don’t confuse this with meat inspection, which is mandatory and ensures safety and wholesomeness of our meat supply.

48. The USDA Quality Grades Fed Beef Grades Prime Choice Select Standard • NonFed Beef Grades • Commercial • Utility • Cutter • Canner “House Brands”: No Roll, CAB, Sterling Silver, etc.

49. Factors in Quality Grading • Major factors under consideration: • Maturity - estimation of carcass age • Marbling - the flecks of fat in the lean • Other factors in Quality Grading • Lean color • Lean texture • Lean firmness

50. Marbling Scores for 4 USDA Quality Grades that are Deterministic in Grid Markets Marbling = Slight Quality = Select Marbling = Slightly Abundant Quality = Prime - 83 out of 100 99 out of 100 Marbling = Modest Quality = Choice 0 Marbling = Small Quality = Choice - 98 out of 100 92 out of 100