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Grazing North Texas
By Tony Dean | [email protected]
In the 1840s, Colonel William Johnson owned a fertile river bottom farm in South Carolina. A friend gave Colonel Johnson seed for a grass originating in Turkey, and the Colonel planted the seed expecting the grass to provide good forage for livestock. The grass became known as Johnsongrass since it got its start on the Johnson plantation.
Just as Colonel Johnson expected, Johnsongrass provided good forage for all classes of livestock during the growing season and could be harvested for hay. In today’s analysis, crude protein in early summer ranges from 12 to 14 percent and reduces to eight to 10 percent in fall. Seeds are utilized by all game and songbirds.
This non-native perennial spreads from seed and from creeping, scaly, underground rootstock. Johnsongrass can reach heights up to seven feet. It has a bright green color, and leaves can reach 24 inches in length and three-quarters inches in width.
To read more, pick up a copy of the February issue of NTFR Magazine. To subscribe call 940-872-5922.
By Barry Whitworth, DVM, MPH
With the prolonged drought, most pastures in Oklahoma end up in poor condition. With the lack of available forage, animals may go in search of alternative foods.
If oak trees are in the pastures, acorns may be a favorite meal for some livestock in the fall. This may result in oak poisoning.
Oak leaves, twigs, buds, and acorns may be toxic to some animals when consumed.
To read more, pick up a copy of the November edition of North Texas Farm & Ranch magazine, available digitally and in print. To subscribe by mail, call 940-872-5922.
By: Tony Dean
There are a handful of grasses on North Texas grazing lands ranchers need to know, not because they are highly desirable, but rather because they are not of much value. I call them “decom” plants, which is am acronym for “Don’t Ever Count On Me.” Silver bluestem is a “decom” grass.
Silver bluestem is a perennial which grows in all areas of Texas. It can survive in almost all soil types, and in full sun conditions or in semi shade. It grows up to three feet tall and is easily recognized with the presence of the white fuzzy seed head. Also, one of the identifying characteristics of Silver bluestem is a bend in the stems at each node, causing the plants to take on a rounded shape as they mature.
To read more, pick up a copy of the November edition of North Texas Farm & Ranch magazine, available digitally and in print. To subscribe by mail, call 940-872-5922.
By: Rayford Pullen
Fall is here which means winter is closing in on us and before we officially get into winter, we need to make sure our factories are either producing or will be producing in a few months.
We have been pregnancy testing our cows this fall and if they are not bred or nursing a calf, we are bidding them adios. With annual costs somewhere between $900.00 and $1,000.00 per cow, those cows not producing a live weaned calf are costing us quite a bit.
To read more, pick up a copy of the November edition of North Texas Farm & Ranch magazine, available digitally and in print. To subscribe by mail, call 940-872-5922.
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