Corn and soybeans aren’t the only crops that benefit from your attention. Manage your forages more like you care for grains and oilseeds and you can produce more yield and better quality and make your forage acres an even more valuable resource.
When commodity prices are high, forages can be a cost effective replacement for expensive grains in rations. Increasing forage production reduces the unit cost of production for livestock and contributes directly to your bottom line.
A healthy forage stand contributes more than just feed. It can help boost corn and soybean yields too. Inserting a forage crop into a corn-soybean rotation can break insect cycles, add organic matter to the soil, and improve soil tilth. Research from the University of Guelph shows that corn planted after two years of alfalfa achieves 7% higher yield than corn in a simple corn-soybean rotation.
When corn and soybean prices are strong it increases the temptation to push forages out of the rotation. Some dairy farms sacrifice their rotations as they plant corn back-to-back in order to harvest more corn silage. This is causing issues with corn rootworm, including growing populations of corn rootworm resistant to Bt corn. Putting a forage in the rotation, even a single crop like ryegrass, breaks up the insect cycle.
Deep-rooted alfalfa in a good forage stand will help manage water by increasing infiltration into the soil. The stand will also have increased water-holding capacity and reduced surface runoff. Soil aeration will increase without the need for tillage and soil health will improve with a richer microbial life.
A forage crop can also fix at least 40 units of N, reducing the amount of N required when the forages comes out of rotation and back into a cash crop.
Even with all these soil health and rotation benefits, forages need to fight with corn and soybeans for acres, especially when commodity prices are so high.
Don’t plant a forage crop and then walk away for five years. Too often growers sow a forage crop and then mark a date on the calendar when they’ll rip out a forage stand. Forage fields reach their peak production in the third year. After that, yield and quality declines.
To accurately judge the health of a forage you need to do a stand count. That means counting plants within a square foot. Consider replacing an older stand when there are fewer than 40 stems per square foot. Alfalfa is the main plant you need to check. Make sure roots and crowns are large with many shoots. Reach out to your local P&H retailer for help.
You need to manage fertility to maximize hay yield and quality and to maintain the right balance of alfalfa and grass for your feed requirements.
A significant amount of biomass leaves a hay field with each cut including phosphorus (P) and potassium (K). The first step is to do a soil test in order to develop a fertilizer strategy. Keep records and track fertility from year to year. Test manure samples before application.
OMAFRA says alfalfa yield is lost when P soil tests below 12 ppm and K soil tests are below 120 ppm. Adding fertilizer when levels are low can have a significant impact on yield. An older hay field may require a significant amount of fertilizer or manure when it’s time to reseed.
Soil tests should measure soil pH, P, K, and boron, a micronutrient that can test low in forages in Ontario. Test more frequently on sandy soils. It’s better to do relatively frequent testing so you can monitor the soil and add nutrients regularly to maintain optimal levels.
You can limit the need for nitrogen by maintaining 50% legumes in a stand. Nitrogen promotes the growth of grasses. Plant a mix with more legumes and don’t leave a stand too long before reseeding.
Contact your local P&H retailer for advice on soil testing location and frequency.
Potato leafhopper, armyworm, and alfalfa weevil can reach economic threshold in Ontario. The only way to tell when you should spray is to scout.
A well-timed fungicide spray can increase yield in forages too. Perhaps more important is bunk management and hay storage when considering long-term quality.
