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ARS Home » Plains Area » Bushland, Texas » Conservation and Production Research Laboratory » Livestock Nutrient Management Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #407756
Research Project: Strategies to Manage Feed Nutrients, Reduce Gas Emissions, and Promote Soil Health for Beef and Dairy Cattle Production Systems of the Southern Great Plains

Location: Livestock Nutrient Management Research

Title: Can moderate-quality bermudagrass baleage be used to stretch wheat pasture?

Author
item BECK, PAUL - Oklahoma State University
item Beck, Matthew
item HUBBELL III, D - University Of Arkansas
item HESS, T - University Of Arkansas
item FOOTE, ANDREW - Oklahoma State University
item GADBERRY, M - University Of Arkansas
item KEGLEY, ELIZABETH - University Of Arkansas

Submitted to: Applied Animal Science
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 11/27/2023
Publication Date: 2/1/2024
Citation: Beck, P.A., Beck, M.R., Hubbell III, D., Hess, T., Foote, A.P., Gadberry, M.S., Kegley, E.B. 2024. Can moderate-quality bermudagrass baleage be used to stretch wheat pasture? Applied Animal Science. 40(1):1-13. https://doi.org/10.15232/aas.2023-02466.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.15232/aas.2023-02466

Interpretive Summary: Grazing wheat for growing beef cattle is an economically important enterprise in the US. Considering the expected intensity and frequency of drought to increase with the changing climate, producers need options to maintain adequate stocking densities and improve economic stability in the events of lower forage availability. Accordingly, scientists from ARS (Bushland, TX), Oklahoma State University, and the University of Arkansas conducted a three-year experiment to determine the ability of feeding bermudagrass round-bale silage to steers grazing wheat pasture to increase stocking rates, increase gain per acre, and increase overall system income. Feeding bermudagrass round-bale silage to steers grazing winter wheat in the fall allowed stocking rates to be doubled, increase body weight gain per acre by 53%, and increased net return by $114 per acre (48% increase). However, there appeared to be no economic benefit to feeding bermudagrass haylage to steers during the spring grazeout period. Ultimately, this research demonstrates that producers can feed moderate quality bermudagrass haylage to stockers grazing winter wheat in the fall to maintain stocking rates and profitability of wheat stocker enterprises.

Technical Abstract: Objectives: Our objectives were to determine the effect of feeding free choice bermudagrass (Cynodon dactylon) round-bale silage to increase stocking rates of growing calves grazing wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) pasture in North Central Arkansas. Materials and Methods: In the fall and winter steers were stocked at 2.47 steers/ha without bermudagrass baleage (HCON) or were stocked at 1× (H1.0), 1.5× (H1.5), or 2× (H2.0) the HCON stocking rate with ad libitum access to bermudagrass round bale wrapped silage. Each pasture was stocked at 5.6 steers/ha (8 steers/pasture) in the spring, with continued ad libitum silage offered to pastures in the H1.0, H1.5, and H2.0 fall treatments. Results and Discussion: When steers in H1.0 were offered ad libitum bermudagrass haylage with no change in stocking rate, ADG were increased (P < 0.01) by 12% over HCON to 1.43 kg/d. As stocking rate increased in the fall and winter from H1.0 to H1.5 and H2.0 treatments ADG decreased, so that ADG of H1.5 (1.25 kg/d) did not differ from HCON (1.27 kg/d), and ADG of H2.0 (1.12 kg/d) was reduced by 12% compared with HCON. There was no effect (P = 0.92) of offering supplemental round bale haylage on ADG of steers grazing grazeout wheat pastures. Steer grazing days per hectare increased (P < 0.01) when round bale haylage was offered, even though stocking rates were not increased during this part of the experiment. Total system net returns did not differ (P = 0.97) between HCON and H1.0. But total system net return ($888 USD/ha) was greater (P = 0.01) for H2.0 compared with H1.0 ($578 USD/ha) while H1.5 ($703 USD/ha) was intermediate differing from neither H1.0 nor H2.0 (P = 0.11). Implications and Applications: Feeding moderate quality roughage during the fall can increase production stability and thus improve economic stability of the wheat stocker enterprise. There does not appear to be economic advantage of feeding moderate quality roughage ad libitum to stockers grazing spring wheat when producers decide to forgo wheat grain harvest and steers graze out the wheat crop.