Farm & Ranch
Meanwhile, Back at the Ranch…
By Rayford Pullen | [email protected]
We are definitely in the season of holidays, family and being appreciative of what we have. While our ventures can be enduring and rewarding at the same time, the real question I ask myself is, “Who are we doing this for?” While most of the time it is for ourselves because we love what we do, in the long term, we probably do this for our families, our hired hands and the ones that put as much towards our success as we do. Our circle is our community and while we certainly want to do good in life it also gives us as much or more pride to see others do good themselves.
Winter officially begins this month and with that comes the feed and hay bills. This year was really tough on our native forages due to the drought and heat combination. Our pastures haven’t been this bad in 20-plus years. We normally don’t overgraze our pastures, but it is obvious now that we did this year while not noticing we were doing so. The moisture we did receive did not keep our forages growing because, in my opinion, the extreme heat shut the plants down. So, the normal $400 to $500 winter feed bills for 120 days of feeding are going to increase. As I mentioned in earlier articles, we did double our winter forage planting this year so hopefully we will see some relief from store-bought protein supplements.
To read more, pick up a copy of the December issue of NTFR magazine. To subscribe by mail, 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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