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July 27, 2022
Your guide to soil testing on a dairy farm
"Soil sampling and soil testing – is the key to healthy soil, healthy pasture and healthy cattle.

If you don’t know the nutrients in your dairy farm’s pasture soil – you might be at risk.

Of what? Of growing less grass than is possible, producing a less nutritious feed, and even at risk of damaging the health of your soil, cows and harming the environment as well.

It’s that important that you do a soil analysis on your dairy farm!"

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June 23, 2022
Bermuda Pasture Management
"Bermudagrass is a valuable forage resource across much of Oklahoma.  It is tolerant of a wide range of environmental conditions and offers several management options, including grazed pasture, hay production, and also as stockpiled forage."
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June 16, 2022
Strategies for northern summer dairy pasture management
Summer heralds the onset of the reproductive phase of cool season perennial grasses. The ‘spring flush’ is gone for another season. While the plant will divert some of its nutrient draw to growing leaf, most of its effort will go into producing a seedhead.
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March 17, 2022
Where is the beef?
"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."
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January 24, 2022
USDA expands conservation opportunities
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.
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September 27, 2021
Soil health principles and practices

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.

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September 27, 2021
A guide to rotational grazing
This extensive guide includes a variety of topics, including seasonal pasture growth patterns, soil fertility, stockpiling, stocking rates, paddock set-up and more.
 
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September 27, 2021
Research explains why cool cows can provide more milk
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.
 
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September 27, 2021
Management of Fall Armyworm in Pastures and Hayfields
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.
 
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September 27, 2021
Stockpiling tips
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.
 
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September 27, 2021
How to plant into cover crops
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.
 
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September 27, 2021
Establishing Cool-Season Annual Grasses
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. 
 
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September 27, 2021
Pasture, Body Condition, and Reproduction
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.
 
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March 01, 2021
Bermudagrass Establishment

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. 

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January 26, 2021
Residual Grazing
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. 
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January 05, 2021
Fall Soil Testing
Fall is the optimum time to conduct soil testing. Whether a farmer tests annually or bi-annually, a soil test can be the ‘cheapest fertilizer dollar’ he/she can spend. The soil is the foundation of strong forages and pasture so knowing the state of the soil’s nutrient profile is important. 
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January 02, 2021
No-till Overseeding
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.
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Recent News
  • Your guide to soil testing on a dairy farm
  • Bermuda Pasture Management
  • Strategies for northern summer dairy pasture management
  • Where is the beef?
  • USDA expands conservation opportunities
  • Soil health principles and practices
  • A guide to rotational grazing
  • Research explains why cool cows can provide more milk
  • Management of Fall Armyworm in Pastures and Hayfields
  • Stockpiling tips
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