How long does orchard grass take to grow?
For most grasses, this is about 3-6 weeks after planting, but could be longer depending on growing conditions. Remember to be gentle when mowing the first few times — the seedlings will be somewhat tender.
Does orchard grass come back every year?
These are cool-season perennial grasses, meaning that they grow during the spring and fall, but are somewhat less productive or dormant during the summer. Since they are perennial, they come back each year from a crown in- stead of through seed germination.
Does orchard grass need a lot of water?
Orchardgrass performs best in areas that receive 18 inches annual precipitation or on irrigated sites but will establish and persist in areas that receive as little as 16 inches of annual precipitation. It will not tolerate soils that are saturated with water for extended periods of time.
How many tons is an acre of orchard grass?
Orchardgrass grown alone will produce an average hay yield from 1 to 3 tons per acre, but when grown with clover or alfalfa, yields of 3 to 5 tons per acre can be expected.
Do cows like orchard grass?
A sought-after grass known for its soft, highly palatable leaves, orchardgrass is suitable for horses, cattle, and small ruminants. It has good quality forage with heavy spring yield and moderate fall production but is less drought tolerant than fescue.
Can orchard grass be broadcast?
A deep furrow or range drill with press wheels may be used; Orchardgrass is easily established with grain drills or by broadcasting seeding. The seeding rate is 8 to 12 pounds/acre. For range and critical area treatment a seeding rate of 3 to 4 pounds/acre is recommended. If broadcast, double the seeding rate.
Will deer eat orchard grass?
Deer don’t eat orchard grass – or any pasture grass. They will eat the clover, but the grass will outcompete the clover for nutrients. Seeing clover grow and deer getting good nutrients from clover are different. Certainly deer will benefit from the clover more than solid grass.
How often should you cut orchard grass?
Orchard grass and other cool season perennial grasses should be harvested at 4- to 6-week intervals, ideally between 35-40 days. Production and cutting frequency are greatly affected by soil moisture, soil temperature, soil fertility, and disease incidence.
What is a good hay yield per acre?
Even an average rule of thumb can vary widely by region, soil, and type of hay. For us here in the Midwest, a mixed grass/legume hay can yield anywhere from one to five tons per acre for a full season.
What’s the best hay for cattle?
Timothy hay is recommended by many experts due to its ease on various animal’s digestive system as well as promotion of bowel regularity. Additionally, there have been scientific studies done that show Timothy hay is an ideal feed for pregnant or lactating cows.
What is a deer’s favorite grass?
The grasses which they prefer (a maximum of nine percent of their diet) are rescue grass, wintergrass, witchgrass, panic grasses, sedges, and rushes, as well as wild and cultivated rye, oats, and wheat. White-tailed deer prefer forbs when they are available.
What’s better timothy or orchard grass?
Orchard Grass is higher in protein (10-12%), higher in calorie content and contains the same balanced levels of calcium and phosphorus as Timothy grass. The higher calorie content of Orchard Grass is a result of higher fiber digestibility compared to Timothy Grass.
How many bales of hay can 1 acre produce?
However, in general, an acre of land can produce about eight to 10 round bales of hay, considering that the average production of hay in one acre amounts to two tons. Since a ton of hay can give us four to five bales (40 to 45 pounds each), two tons can raise the tally up to 10.
Is a hay farm profitable?
“If you are getting $125 per ton for quality hay, you are going to see a profit of $51 per ton, or $204 per acre. “The potential is there to make some pretty good money on hay.” Brown says producers could decide to grow higher-quality hay and sell into the dairy or specialty hay markets.
What is the cheapest way to feed cattle?
“Corn residue is one of the lowest cost forages on a cost per pound of energy. That’s why mixing a high energy and protein feed like distillers’ grains with a low quality forage like corn stalks is so cost effective. Distillers’ is often a low-cost source of both energy and protein.
What is the best feed to fatten cattle?
What is the best feed for fattening cattle? Barley is the best grain for lot feeding cattle, but wheat, triticale, sorghum, maize, and oats can be used. Oats is not an ideal grain on its own for cattle fattening but can be used with any of the other grains. Hay or silage could be used as the roughage source.
What do deer love to eat the most?
Deer will primarily eat browse (woody portion of leaves and stems), forbs (broad-leaved plants), mast (acorns, apples, etc), and grass. Although these are the main foods deer like to eat, the quantity of these different foods differ throughout the year and the region you are hunting.
What is a deer’s favorite thing to eat?
Deer adore fruits and nuts. They love pecans, hickory nuts and beechnuts acorns in addition to acorns. A couple of favorite fruits are apples, blueberries, blackberries and persimmons.
What hay is best for older horses?
A reduction in fiber fermentation means that older horses receive less nutrients from forage resulting in higher quality forages being required. Alfalfa hay and good quality grass hays are preferable to stemmy and mature hays that have tougher fiber to ferment.
Do horses like orchard grass hay?
“As a source of fiber, well-made orchardgrass hay has a place in the diets of all types of horses. When it’s clean and sweet-smelling, its palatability is wonderful, and few horses refuse it,” said Kathleen Crandell, Ph. D., nutritionist for Kentucky Equine Research (KER).
How much hay can 50 acres produce?
Here was the thought, on 50 acres you would get 100 square bales per acre, which is a conservative number. If we do the math, that works out to be. 100 bales x 50 acres = 5000 bales of hay for 50 acres of land.
How much can you make off an acre of hay?
What is the largest expense in cattle feeding?
Cattle feed cost
Cattle feed cost is the single largest expense in the cow-calf sector, and prices are still on the rise. (.) Whether you’re in an area suffering from drought or not, cattle feed cost is the single largest expense in the cow-calf sector, and prices are still on the rise.
What is the fastest way to put weight on a cow?
Add Grain into Their Daily Diet
While your cattle likely make their primary diet of hay and grass forage, adding some healthy grains too can increase their weight substantially over time. Grain won’t from the basis of your herd’s nutrition, but the calorically-dense food can provide a boost to cattle weight.
What is the cheapest thing to feed deer?
An inexpensive way to feed deer is with corn. Deer love corn and many hunters rely on it for supplemental feeding. That being said, corn is not an excellent source of protein, which is essential for antler growth and the nursing of fawns.