Forage Fax

What is TCSI? The Texas Climate Smart Initiative (TCSI) is a 3-4 year program that allows producers to engage in climate-smart practices to improve the efficiency of their agricultural production systems. We are looking for farmers, ranchers, and small forest owners in Texas to participate in this project. Whether it’s trees, row crops, grazing land, hay pasture, etc., you could benefit from joining this program and we would love to have you! What are the benefits? There are many great benefits to joining the TCSI. First, if you… Read More →

Friday, April 5, 2024 VIRTUAL PROGRAM Hosted by Dr. Vanessa Corriher-Olson and Dr. Jason Banta Pest Control in the Pasture Pesticide Modes of Action External Parasite Control Drift Management and Drone Use in Agriculture Weed Control in Pastures and Hay Meadows   Program starts 8:30 am Adjourn 3:00 pm 5 Pesticide CEUs Available  Meeting will be conducted with ZOOM   Registration Deadline: Thursday April 4 at 11:00 am Register online at: https://agriliferegister.tamu.edu/ereg/index.php?eventid=786170& For more information on this program please contact Michelle Sensing @ 903-847-0611        … Read More →

After a cold, dreary winter we get anxious about our warm season perennial pastures and hay meadows. We start panicking about the winter weeds we see growing, the volunteer ryegrass we see growing and we start making calls to our local fertilizer retailer. Find more information about dealing with volunteer ryegrass here and dealing with winter weeds here. Now, let’s take a moment and talk about the RIGHT time to fertilize our warm season pastures/hay meadows.   First and foremost, soil test. If you have not done so… Read More →

Mayweed chamomile, often called dog fennel, stinking chamomile, or stinking mayweed is an annual bushy broadleaf plant that germinates in early spring. Mayweed chamomile inhabits crop fields, roadsides, pastures, hay meadows and other disturbed, unmanaged sites. Leaves are alternate to one another along the stem, are lobed to deeply divided, and nearly hairless to hairy. Mayweed chamomile can have a spreading form or be an erect plant, reaching 6 inches to 3 feet long. A distinguishing characteristic of mayweed is it’s unpleasant odor. Flowering takes place from spring… Read More →

Friday, April 5, 2024 Hosted by Dr. Vanessa Corriher-Olson and Dr. Jason Banta Texas A&M AgriLife Research and Extension Center 1710 N. Hwy 3053, Overton, TX 75684 Virtual (Zoom)   Pest Control in the Pasture Pesticide Modes of Action Drift Management and Drone Use in Agriculture External Parasite Control Weed Control in Pastures and Hay Meadows   Program starts 8:30 am Adjourn 3:00 pm   5 Pesticide CEUs Available  FLYER Registration: Cost: $35/ person Registration Deadline: Thursday April 4, 2024 @ 11 am Register online at: https://agriliferegister.tamu.edu/ereg/index.php?eventid=786170&;  … Read More →

Most people think these forages are a species of their own. But they are not. They are hybrid varieties of Bermudagrass (Cynodon dactylon). Bermudagrass is a warm-season perennial grass that spreads mainly by rhizomes (underground stems) and stolons (horizontal aboveground stems).  The grass tolerates a wide range of soil types and soil pH values, thus making it adapted to most of the southern US.  ‘Coastal’: A hybrid between ‘Tift’ bermudagrass, a vigorous growing bermudagrass found in an old field near Tifton, Georgia, and an introduction from South Africa. … Read More →

Texas groundsel or Texas squaw-weed (Senecio ampullaceus) is a cool-season annual broadleaf plant that grows to 12 to 30 inches tall. The plants are often whitish with hair, but can be nearly hairless.  The unlobed, clasping leaves gradually reduce in size toward the top of the plant. Showy yellow flowers are produced in the spring.  Texas groundsel is found in the eastern half of the state and is abundant on sandy soils and may be a predominant species in freshly cleared forest. Members of the genus Senecio can… Read More →

The bermudagrass stem maggot (Atherigona reversura), a pest of bermudagrass forage in Texas has been reported annually since 2012. The fly (yellow with black head) lays its eggs within the stem of the bermudagrass plant. Once the egg hatches the larva, or maggot, (white with black head, 1/8” – 3/16” long) moves to the last plant node and consumes the plant material within the stem. This stem damage results in the death of the top two to three leaves while the rest of the plant remains green. This… Read More →

Reduce Winter Feeding with Stockpiled Forage and Winter Pasture   Friday, August 25, 2023 Texas A&M AgriLife Research and Extension Center 1710 N Hwy 3053, Overton, TX 75684   Would you prefer to feed hay for 60 days? 100 days? or 150 days? Here’s an opportunity to learn how to significantly reduce your hay feeding needs.   Nitrogen fertilizer prices have decreased from recent highs and continue to trend lower. Winter pasture can be a good option to greatly reduce winter feeding costs.   Topics Include: Stockpiled forage:… Read More →

Wild Carrot (Daucus carota): Wild Carrot, also known as queen anne’s lace, is a biennial broadleaf plant. Wild carrot forms a rosette of leaves the first year, then flowers, produces seed, and dies the second year. It forms a deep, whitish taproot that has a distinctive carrot odor. Mature plants reach 2 to 4 feet tall and have erect stems and few branches. Leaves divide several times, forming many long, narrow segments. Leaves on the lower part of the plant have stalks. Those on the upper part of… Read More →