"Consumers are asking more than "where's the beef," the original slogan for the fast-food chain Wendy's, that debuted in the early 1980s. Today consumers want to know where a piece of beef came from and the story behind it."

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) is announcing several new and expanded opportunities for climate smart agriculture in 2022.

Managing for soil health allows producers to work with the land – not against – to reduce erosion, maximize water infiltration, improve nutrient cycling, save money on inputs, and ultimately improve the resiliency of their working land.

This extensive guide includes a variety of topics, including seasonal pasture growth patterns, soil fertility, stockpiling, stocking rates, paddock set-up and more.
 

With increasing global temperatures, dairy cattle face heat stress more frequently throughout the year than in the past. Thanks to cooling technology, dairy cattle can enjoy a better quality of life, but farmers and consumers may wonder if cattle comfort results in more milk.
 

The fall armyworm is a chronic pest in the Southeast and can cause severe damage to grass and forage crops. Damage varies in appearance and severity according to the type of grass and management practices. They are most numerous in late summer or early fall.
 

In 2005 I had the opportunity to attend a grazing conference in Roanoke, Va. As the manager of a background grazing operation for a beef feed lot I was hoping to find a way that I could increase my dismal average daily feeder gain on Kentucky 31 tall fescue dominant pastures.
 

Every year during springtime, we get many calls about how we successfully plant into our high biomass cover crops. In this video, we detail what we've learned about what works and what doesn't on planter setup into high biomass (30,000+ lbs/acre) cover crops. This video is not meant to be a definitive guide on how to plant into cover crops.
 

Three methods for establishing cool-season annual grasses include planting into a prepared seedbed, the light disking method and overseeding or sodseeding into undisturbed soil. 
 

Pasture systems often result in lower BCS or greater loss of BCS during the first 1 to 2 months of lactation, and supplementation to restore body condition has many benefits.
 

Now is the time to start thinking about sprigging bermudagrass in the southeast. Sprigging bermudagrass is an expensive investment, but if done properly, it can pay for itself rather quickly. So here are some recommendations that you may take to reduce the risk of bermudagrass stand failure. 

The Importance of Residual in Grazing 

Late winter/early spring is the time most dairymen that graze fall planted cool season annuals in the southeastern US, start thinking about turning their cows out on to this pasture. For most, its a rewarding time of the year. The weather is still cool, there are no issues with flies and grazed dry matter intakes can be high if there is adequate forage. 

To those Southeast Area dairy folks that rely on winter annual forages for early winter through spring … NOW is the time to be no-till overseeding your warm season perennial pastures. Any of the cereal varieties i.e. winter wheat, triticale, winter rye and oats are especially time sensitive because of all tend to head out in mid spring.