Page 1 The Forager

Reseeding/Renovating Pastures & Hayfields

If your hay field or pasture is not living up to your

needs, it may be time to start thinking about reseeding or ren-

ovating it. Late summer and fall is the perfect time for this

because weeds are no longer as big of a problem. The primary

grasses we use in Boyd County are fescue, orchard grass, and

timothy. The best seeding dates for fescue are August 1st–

October 1st, orchard grass is August 20th– September 20th

and timothy needs to be seeded from August 20th– October

1st.

You may want to improve your stand by adding leg-

umes. Legumes are known for increasing the amount of forage

grown per acre. This means the palatability, intake, digestibil-

ity, and nutrient content are all improved, giving you better

performance from your livestock. Nitrogen is added into your

soil from the legume, thereby increasing the quality of your

grass. You may be able to save money by planting legumes

instead of purchasing nitrogen to add to your soil for existing

grasses. Legumes also give you more growth during the sum-

mer. If you grow a mixture of grasses and legumes you should

be able to have more forage available throughout the year.

There are several methods available to you when

deciding whether to reseed or renovate. You will want to think

about the positives and negatives of each and how it can ben-

efit you and your livestock.

The first is frost seeding, which works great for intro-

ducing legumes. To start this process you need to remove

most of the plant residue from the field by close grazing or

mowing. Then broadcast the seed over the sod on a light snow

or heavy frost, as the ground freezes and thaws, the seed will

work their way into the soil to germinate. This should be done

in late winter, from mid- February into early to mid- March.

Red and white clover are also good candidates for this process.

Red clover should be applied at 8-12 lb./ac, white clover

should be applied at 1-3 lb./ac. After your legumes start to

grow you want to control the grass and weeds so they are not

‘drowned’ out. The grass needs to be kept shorter by grazing

or mowing until the legumes are 3-4 inches tall. You will then

want to stop grazing for several weeks to allow the legumes to

become established. After they are established there needs to

be a mowing or grazing schedule to keep the legumes in good

condition.

Another way to thicken a stand is seeding grasses in

the late summer or early fall. This method requires the use of

a no-till drill to sow seed directly into the ground with existing

grasses to improve the current stand. As with frost seeding,

you will want to mow or graze down the area prior to seeding

to reduce competition from existing plants.

If you are looking to completely renovate a field you

can always kill the existing plants and use a no-till drill to plant

seed directly in the ground. You will want to apply herbicide 1-

2 weeks before planting new seeds.

With any method you choose you need to manage

nutritional requirements of the plants by applying lime and

fertilizer based on a soil test. A high quality, certified seed

should be used to ensure a good stand, and not the cheap

common seed, that can actually cost more in the long run.

Always use the correct seeding rate so you get enough seed in

the ground, and allow immature seedlings to become well

established before putting them to use. Typically a newly seed-

ed pasture needs at least 6 months to let grasses establish.

When you use the over seeding process, you can graze sooner

or take a spring hay cutting before turning it back into a graz-

ing pasture. You should always remember to monitor the

stands for over grazing.

Fall Soil Testing

Page 2 September 2015

If you are person who likes to plan ahead, or want to be prepared for spring

planting, now is the time to have your soil tested. Fall testing is especially important

for proper pH balance because it can take up to 6 months for lime to reach its maxi-

mum potential to benefit your soil and plants.

Taking fall soil samples can give you faster results because the labs are re-

ceiving fewer samples to analyze. If you are a resident of Boyd County you can have

2 soil samples tested for free (courtesy of Boyd County Conservation Office and Boyd

County Farm Bureau), after that they are $6.00 per sample. The $6.00 fee also ap-

plies to non-county residents.

If you farm, raise a garden, or even just have a tomato

plant or a few flowers in town, you know that wildlife can be a

great nuisance.

On the farm, which is going to be the focus in this article,

there are several options open to the landowner to try to get wild-

life under control. And by wildlife, I mean mostly deer, although

many of the options I am going to discuss apply to other wildlife as

well.

According to the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wild-

life Resources (KDFWR), landowners have 4 options available to

deal with wildlife damaging your crops.

They are: 1) Handle the problem yourself; 2) Contact a

trapper for free trapping services, if the animal is a furbearer; 3)

Contact a nuisance wildlife operator; or 4) Contact KDFWR. For the

most part, KDFWR would prefer that you do the latter first. How-

ever, many farmers prefer the first option, because it is quick, and

most times, sure.

When looking at damage control, there are two very

broad forms, exclusion and removal. Exclusion may be something

like fencing, if feasible, or harassment. These methods may include

propane cannons, dogs on a long leash, fireworks or gunfire.

Removal can mean live trapping and relocation, such as

with raccoons or possums. The removal method may not be as

simple as it seems because it is illegal in the state of KY to

transport a live wild animal without a permit. Relocation laws help

control the spread of disease amongst wildlife.

The permanent removal technique involves hunting or

shooting the animals causing the problems. When dealing with

removing deer permanently, there are four ways to go about it.

First, is to hunt them during the annual, legal deer

hunting seasons, either by yourself or by allowing others to hunt

on your property. These are the regular deer hunting tags.

Second, is to be issued ‘in season additional antlerless

control permits’, what many of us call doe tags, from the KDFWR.

The landowner may be issued 10, 20 or 30 doe tags during the

regular hunting seasons. He or she can give the tags to others that

he is allowing to hunt on his or her property, but each hunter can

only take up to 5 additional antlerless deer. You must apply for

these tags through the KDFWR.

Third, are ‘out-of-season permits’. These allow the land-

owner or his or her designee(s) to take deer out of season. These

are much harder to get than the doe tags, but are applied for

through the same channels. These tags can be for any deer.

Fourth, the landowner can immediately kill deer that are

damaging his or her property or crops. This requires no permits

and can be done year round. All of the laws regarding this are in

KRS 150.170. Last year, the legislature amended KRS 150.170 with

the passage of house bill 448.

If method #3 or 4 is used, the hunter must destroy or

turn over all non-edible parts to the KDFWR. This translates into

the antlers and hides.

If permits are applied for, methods 2 or 3, there is a pro-

cess that must be followed before they are issued, including site

visits by KDFWR personnel.

According to KRS 150.645, landowners in Kentucky are

protected by Statute to allow hunting on their property and not be

liable for any injuries to those hunting.

Also, under the amendments of HB 448 to KRS 150.170, if

a deer shot out of season with no permit while causing damage, it

must be reported to the KDFWR within 24 hours. Unlike before

with HB 448, the landowner or his designee can now use the meat

without any paperwork if it is processed on the property it was

shot on. If the animal is to be taken to a processing facility, a per-

mit or number must be obtained from the local KDFWR officer,

game warden, or when the kill is reported to Frankfort.

Nuisance Wildlife Control Options

Boyd County Extension Agriculture and Natural Resources Newsletter

The Forager

Inside this

issue:

Winter Cover

Crops

1

Grass Pastures 2

Soil Samples 3

Wildlife Control 3

Upcoming Events 4

September 2015

Winter Cover Crops:

If you are looking for a way to preserve

the soil you worked so hard for this growing sea-

son, why not try a cover crop this winter instead

of leaving it bare? Using a cover crop is not a new

idea, farmers have been using them for centuries.

Cover crops help reduce soil erosion, improve

organic matter, and can provide extra grazing

until early spring. Another advantage of using a

cover crop is their

ability to take in and

hold onto excess

nutrients that were

not used by the pre-

vious crop. Cover

crops also remove

water from the

ground reducing the

risk of pesticides

leaching through the

soil. In the spring they will also help reduce weed

problems and the need for herbicides, saving you

time and money. There are numerous species

that could be successful as a cover crop, such as

small grains, grasses, and legumes. You just need

to see which one fits best into your situation.

Every plant provides different positives and nega-

tives, so make sure you choose one that is right

for you and your land.

When looking at small grains, rye and

wheat are at the top of most people’s list. Rye is

thought to be the best cover crop when talking

about small grains because it is very winter hardy,

fast growing and it suppresses weeds very effec-

tively. Early planting is important for soil protec-

tion and nutrient uptake; the planting period for

rye is from September 1st—October 30th de-

pending on what you are using it for. Rye will

need to be harvested early in the spring or

plowed under before developing seeds. Wheat is

a more adaptable crop and is good to be seeded

throughout October. Plan on planting before mid-

October, because after that, wheat may not be

able to provide a good winter cover or be useful

suppressing weeds. Earlier planting is also better

if you are going to use it as a fall grazing crop

If you want to use a

grass winter cover crop,

annual ryegrass is a good

choice. Annual ryegrass

should be seeded between

August 15th-October 1st.

This grass produces dense,

leafy growth and can be

easily tilled in the spring; it

can also be grazed or cut

for hay in April or early

May.

Legumes are also a great choice for a

winter cover crop. These plants will help the

growth of future plants by leaving nitrogen in the

soil. One option is hairy vetch, which is easy to

establish and hardy enough to endure harsh win-

ter weather. This crop should be planted be-

tween August 1st-September 10th. You will want

to remember though, hairy vetch is hard to kill in

the spring. It produces a hard seed that germi-

nates the following year, so be sure to plow it

under before it develops seeds. Crimson clover is

another legume to think about using, this year

annual clover needs to be seeded between Au-

gust 1st-October 15th. Crimson clover does not

have the bad reputation of hairy vetch for being

hard to get of, but also produces less growth and

nitrogen fixation. You will have to decide which

aspect is more important to you and your soil.

Upcoming Events:

Agriculture and Natural Resources

Cooperative Extension Service

University of Kentucky Boyd County

2420 Center Street

Catlettsburg, KY 41129-1279

(606) 739-5184

Lyndall Harned

County Extension Agent

For Agriculture & Natural Resources

Cheyenne Black

ANR/Horticulture Program Assistant

September 15 @ 5:30 PM Eastern KY Hay Contest and Field Day, Wolfe County, KY

(Call the office to reserve a seat in the van!)

September 17 Kentucky Forage and Grasslands Council State Field Day, Pembroke, KY

September 26-27 Heritage Harvest Tour, Boyd and Lawrence Counties, KY

October 17 @7:00 AM Boyd County 4-H Ham Breakfast Fundraiser, Callihan's at KYOVA Mall, Ashland, KY

November - Highlands Beef Cattle Association Annual Beef Tour, Missouri

If you would like to stop receiving these newsletters or would rather receive them via email, please contact

us at the Boyd County Extension Office at 739-5184 and let us know. If you want to continue to receive

them by mail, do nothing, we will keep you on the mailing list and you will continue to receive them just

like this one.

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