Cattle and Pasture Drought Management Tips

August 2011 - South Texas Pasture

    As the drought continues, grass in our pastures is rapidly disappearing, and if you are one that adheres to the old range management practice of “take half and leave half,” referring to grass, it looks like you will have to take more than half before it starts to rain again, that is if you intend to maintain your cattle herd.
    If rotating pastures, continue, but slow down the rotation. It is harder on pastures but maybe one will catch a shower and get some regrowth. If you have very little or no grass, and have decided to feed your cattle, pen them up in a trap or one pasture and feed them there in troughs and hay them in rings (or unroll the bales completely). Feeding in troughs and rings reduces feed waste and loss due to trampling and defecating by up to 20%. Make cattle clean up unrolled hay, and move rings between hay feedings. Test your hay to determine quality and feed supplements accordingly.
    As you evaluate your cattle herd, selling nursing calves, very old or very young commercial cows can stretch your feeding resources and dollar by 1/3 or more. In a drought cattle will be deficient in all nutrients (energy, protein, vitamins, minerals and water). Water is the first limiting nutrient in many pastures. Cattle will require about 1 gallon of water per 100 lbs of body weight (plus 5 or more gallons if they are lactating) of good quality water. Water from ponds and dirt tanks will have significantly reduced quality (increased salt or mineral content) as they dry up. In addition there could be toxic algae blooms or poisonous plants growing near them. If possible these should be fenced off. Check water daily.
    The next two nutrients of importance are protein and energy. Cattle eat to satisfy gut fill and this is associated with their energy intake. Cattle can eat about 2-2.5% of their body weight (24 – 30 lbs) for a 1200 lb cow. When forages are dry, this limits their intake to less than 2% causing them to lose condition (weight). Supplementing these dry forages with 0.4 lb protein (from any source) can improve the digestibility of these forages and improve intake. Cattle usually require about 2 lbs of crude protein per day. Most dry grass is averaging 5% CP, so only about ½ of their protein is being supplied by grazing. The rest will need to be supplemented. Grain can be fed in small amounts daily to stretch or substitute for low hay supply or quality (1 lb grain = 2.5 lb hay).
     Cattle should be supplied vitamins (either injectable or fed) and a good mineral mix, especially phosphorous (8-12%) and salt. Some feeds have minerals and vitamins in them and these can be good sources if consumption is at the recommended level. Cattle should be monitored for dust pneumonia, external parasites, consumption of toxic plants and other nonfeed items (bones, plastic bags, etc). In the south and west, ranchers are burning prickly pear as a supplement but even the quality of the pear is much lower than in previous years. Cattle fed pear need a good protein supplement plus salt to keep from forming fiber balls. Cattle will eat 60-120 pads per head per day and need to be fed daily to keep them from eating unburned pads with spines. For more information on drought management (culling, feeding, water, etc) go to http://texashelp.tamu.edu/004-natural/droughts-animal-science.php

Special Soil Test Campaign Implemented

With the dry soils producers can gear up for next year's growing season by soil sampling now to determine the status of soil nutrients in their fields and pastures.  A year with below normal rainfall resulted in some crops not performing to their fertilized potential, thus some nutrients remain in the soil for the next crop.  Moreover fertilizer prices remain a significant input cost, all the more reason to soil sample now to determine what actual soil nutrients will be needed for the coming crop season.
    The Coastal Bend Soil Testing Campaign, coordinated by local offices of the Texas AgriLife Extension Service, for farms in Aransas, Bee, Jim Wells, Kleberg/Kennedy, Live Oak, Refugio, Nueces, and San Patricio Counties is underway now through  October 31, 2011. Soil samples may be turned in at your local County Extension Office for analysis at up to a 33% reduced testing fee.  Soil tests will be run by the Texas A&M University Soil Testing Laboratory for a reduced fee of $7 per sample for the Routine Analysis and $14 for Routine /Micronutrient Analysis during this special campaign. This special soil testing campaign is for row crop farmers and ranchers with improved pastures.   Soil sample bags and test information sheets may be obtained in the County Extension Office.   For more information call the Nueces County Extension Office at 361-767-5223.

ROBSTOWN TO HOST COASTAL BEND FARM AND RANCH SHOW

        The 2^nd Annual Coastal Bend Farm and Ranch Show will be held October 6-7, 2011 at the Richard M. Borchard Regional Fairgrounds, located at 1213 Terry Shamsie Blvd, just east of Hwy 77 in Robstown, Texas.  Admission and parking will be free. 

        Between the farm and ranch equipment and services displays, there will be numerous educational sessions offering CEU’s for Pesticide Applicators, Certified Crop Advisors, and BQA’s.  There will also be a class on Thursday, Oct. 6 for those producers that would like to obtain their Private Applicators License, immediately followed by testing.  Booth space is still available for those wanting to have a commercial exhibit at the show.  For more information visit the web site at; www.coastalbendfarmandranchshow.com  or contact the Nueces County Extension Office at 361-767-5223.

        This show is being sponsored by the Texas AgriLife Extension Service, Nueces Extension Program Foundation, Farm Service Agency, Natural Resources Conservation Service, and Nueces Soil & Water Conservation District.

        Educational programs of the Texas AgriLife Extension Service are open to all people without regard to race, color, sex, disability, religion, age, or national origin.  Individuals with disabilities, who require an auxiliary aid, service or accommodation in order to participate in any of the mentioned activities, are encouraged to contact the County Extension Office eight days before all programs for assistance.

COTTON STALK DESTRUCTION REMAINS KEY TO BOLL WEEVIL REMOVAL

    As the cotton harvest nears completion, it is important not to forget about destroying those cotton stalks as soon as the crop has been removed from the field to aid in reducing costs for the Boll Weevil Eradication Program (BWEP).  This year there has been a 99% reduction in the number of boll weevils caught in the zone, with only on weevil caught in Nueces County, while only 108 boll weevils have been caught in the entire zone which was comprised of 564,000 acres planted in cotton. Good progress has been made on this front, so lets keep the weevils on the march and out of town for good!
    The cotton stalk destruction deadline for Nueces County remains September 1, 2011.
In its native habitat cotton is a perennial shrub that may survive for many years. The perennial habit of cotton allows it to regrow following harvest, providing the potential for development of hostable fruit (squares and bolls) for boll weevil feeding and reproduction. Under good environmental conditions, cotton plants can generate hostable fruit in three to four weeks.
    When field conditions and weather are favorable for tillage, stalks can be shredded and then disked to destroy the intact plant. Stubble stalk pullers can also be used to uproot the stalk. These mechanical methods are generally successful, but some stalks may survive these operations. Also, many growers are implementing reduced tillage systems which do not allow for primary tillage operations, causing producers to evaluate new methods for stalk destruction.
    There has been much interest in alternative cotton stalk destruction throughout the South Texas area in recent years. While many producers still use various tillage methods to destroy their cotton stubble, be aware that there are other choices available. Regardless of the method chosen, the primary purpose of destroying cotton stalks remains the same and that is the removal of both feeding and fruiting sites that may be used by the boll weevil to reproduce.
    Several herbicides have been registered for cotton stalk destruction. Herbicides available include, but are not limited to 2,4-D (ester and salt formulations), several dicamba products (Weedmaster, Clarity, Banvel), and Harmony Extra (thifensulfuron-methyl + tribenuron-methyl). For these products to be legal for cotton stalk destruction, the label must contain a section addressing “crop stubble” or specify cotton as the target pest following harvest.
    Based on most recent field research, it appears the low-volatile, amine salt formulations are equally as effective as the ester formulations for cotton stalk destruction, and minimize problems associated with off-target drift. The first application should be at the rate of one pound of active ingredient/acre (eg. 1 qt. of a 4 lbs. a.i./gal. formulation). Generally, a second application of 0.5 to 1.0 lb. a.i./acre will be necessary for control of any live stalks and emerged cotton seedlings.
    To obtain optimum results, cotton stalks should be shredded (6 to 8 inch height) and the spray application should be made soon after shredding. Best results are achieved if the herbicide is applied the same day as the shredding operation. To achieve optimum effectiveness, some growers have mounted spray booms directly on their flail shredders and are banding their herbicide during the shredding operation, and achieving excellent results. Note that thorough coverage is essential, and should be in the range of 5 to 10 gallons water/acre. Also, the addition of surfactant at the rate of 0.5% v/v (2 qts./100 gals. water) is recommended.   In a recent study conducted at the Texas AgriLife Research and Extension Center, there was essentially no difference in killing regrowing cotton plants with 2,4-D between treating shredded or left standing stalks,
    If one uses a hormone herbicide like 2,4-D, remember that there is always that potential for off-target drift that might affect other susceptible crops in the area, so be careful and monitor local environmental conditions that could promote the off-target movement of the product.
As we work to wrap up another cotton harvest, it is important to remember that without an effective cotton stalk destruction program here in South Texas, boll weevil eradication cannot be accomplished!