Jerry Volesky - Nebraska Extension Range and Forage Specialist

Hay harvest — The best time to cut grass hay is when the grass nutrient content matches the nutritional needs of your livestock — before heads begin to emerge for young animals, and before seeds develop for mature animals.

Pasture and Forage Minute: Small Grains and Grass Harvest, Fencing Costs

May 23, 2023

This week — Nebraska Extension educators share target protein levels of small grains and grass hay for the upcoming harvest, and analyze the cost of various fencing options.

Cattle in pasture — Whether cereal plant forages are grazed out, hayed or harvested as wheatlage this year, the goal is to timely plant subsequent summer annuals between mid-May to mid-June for optimizing yields.

Pasture and Forage Minute: Wheat Grazing vs. Grain Value, Choosing Summer Forage

May 16, 2023

This week — Recommendations for producers considering wheat for forage, including varieties and planting timelines for summer annual grasses, plus tips on control measures for poison hemlock.

Pasture and Forage Minute: Equipment Maintenance, Controlling Musk Thistle and No-Till on the Plains Tours

May 11, 2023

This week, extension educators review a checklist for pre-season hay equipment maintenance, tips for controlling musk thistle in pastures, and details of this year's No-Till on the Plains Whirlwind tours in June.

Alfalfa field — Spring drought can result in stressed alfalfa from aggressive weed growth, resulting in thinner stands and lower yields. View the options for herbicide control in post-emergent and established alfalfa below.

Pasture and Forage Minute: Alfalfa Weevil, Weed Control and Summer Pasture Turn-out

May 4, 2023

This week — Controlling alfalfa weeds with post-emergent herbicides, scouting for alfalfa weevil, and planning the date and pastures for spring turn-out.

Irrigated alfalfa — For maximum season production, the first alfalfa cutting typically requires six to seven inches of water — if soil profiles are currently very dry, spring irrigation should be considered.

Pasture and Forage Minute: Early Season Alfalfa Irrigation, Trigger Dates and Weed Control

April 19, 2023

This week — Strategies for irrigating alfalfa in early season dry soil conditions, grazing to control abundant weed growth due to drought and forming a drought plan.

Pasture and Forage Minute: Alfalfa Weed and Stand Management, Grazing Winter Annuals

April 10, 2023

This week — Tips on controlling winter annual weeds for optimum first cutting hay quality, evaluating alfalfa stands with a hay square, and grazing rye, winter wheat and triticale during a cool start to spring.

Cattle grazing pasture — With intense drought conditions last year, it may be prudent to reduce stocking rates and delay turnout this spring, to help grasses in their recovery process.

Pasture and Forage Minute: 2023 Grazing Plans, Preventing Grass Tetany

March 30, 2023

With spring officially here, it's time to put 2023 grazing plans in place and be on the lookout for signs of grass tetany.

Triticale — For successful double cropping, small grains like triticale should be planted now through early April, grazed from the third week of May to early June, and then followed by a summer annual grass.

Pasture and Forage Minute: Double Cropping Forages, Alfalfa Dormancy

March 21, 2023

In this installment: Strategies and tips for successfully double cropping annual forages this year, and a breakdown on what fall dormancy means for alfalfa growth during the next growing season.