It’s the first part of May, and so far (at least in the past
week or so) we’ve had rain to make us think we’re going to have plenty of
grazing in the summer. However, we
probably all know that the rain will shut off before long. So, now is the time to think about what your
horses are going to eat during the summer.
A lot of pastures have a base of fescue, which is a cool
season perennial. That means it comes
back from year to year and grows best in the cooler times of year – spring and
fall. It doesn’t do a lot of growing in
the summer because of the temperatures.
So, planting something that grows well in the hot, and most likely dry,
summer is an idea you should consider. This
will allow you to provide your horses with grazing during this time when the
fescue growth slumps off, and can potentially decrease overgrazing in those
perennial pastures. Also, a lot of
summer annuals can be higher in nutritional value than fescue or bermudagrass.
Summer annuals typically grow quickly which means that you
can potentially graze them within one or two months after planting. With adequate moisture, they will grow back
so that you can graze them multiple times throughout the growing season. Frost kills summer annuals and they will not
grow back next year.
Nitrate poisoning can be a problem with summer annuals. When heavily fertilized with nitrogen, these
plants can develop toxic nitrate levels if they are slow-growing and drought
stressed. Take home message – do not
graze summer annuals that have had significant nitrogen and are drought
stressed. Plants can be tested for
nitrate levels. Check with your local
extension office about sending samples off to be tested.
Pearl Millet is a popular summer annual for horse
pastures. It should be planted in May
and will provide grazing from June to September. Begin grazing with the millet is 16-20 inches
tall and remove the horse when the stubble is 6-10 inches tall. This leaves adequate energy stores so that
they plant can regrow. Pearl Millet does
not produce prussic acid.
Crabgrass is often thought of as a weed, but it can provide
high-quality summer grazing for horses.
Typically, it is higher in nutrition that many warm season perennial
grasses. It can produce forage from June
to September and can grow from 12-24 inches tall. Just like most summer annuals, it responds
well to nitrogen fertilization and small amounts of rainfall with is typical in
our summers. Proper management of
crabgrass may allow for some reseeding to take place.
Teff is a summer annual grass that originated in Ethiopia. The seed is tiny but is an aggressive
competitor once it is established. It
can be ready to harvest 45-55 days after planting. It can do well in both drought-stressed
situations and water-logged soil conditions.
There are some summer annuals that are NOT recommended for grazing by horses. These include sudangrass, sorghum,
sorghum-sudangrass hybrids, and foxtail millet. Sudangrass, sorghum, and
sorghum-sudangrass hybrids can accumulate prussic acid, especially after frost.
When drought-stressed plants are grazed, they may cause cyanide poisoning,
cystitis, incoordination, and sometimes fatal kidney disease. Since prussic
acid volatilizes during curing, properly made and stored hay produced from
these grasses may be safely fed to horses. Foxtail or German millet has been
reported to have a diuretic effect in horses that may lead to kidney and joint
problems. The coarse, fuzzy heads may also lodge in the tissues of the mouth
and gums and create sores.
Below are some additional resources you may find helpful.
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