Chris JeffcoatAssociation Perspective
Evaluate your pastures.
Fall is here and whether you’re calving, breeding or just waiting for that spring calving season to start, now is a great time to evaluate your pastures or hayfields and make plans for next year.
As you’re retaining heifers, expanding your cow herd and making an investment in Angus bulls, it’s also time to consider the quality of your pastures and how it can impact your herd’s performance. Improving the quality of pasture and hay can certainly have an impact on your herd’s performance, and the first step should always be a soil test. Soil sampling can be one of those important tools in maintaining the proper fertilization levels in your pasture or hayfields and overall forage quality.
The value received from a soil test vastly outweighs the minimal cost for an analysis. Soil tests can be taken at any time during the year, but now is a great time (unless your fields are already snow-covered) because it will allow you time to make plans for spring fertilization and beat the rush of soil samples in the spring. With fertilizer being an expensive input cost, soil tests allow you to apply correct levels of phosphorus and potassium to maintain peak forage quality without overapplication. Furthermore, soil test results allow you to maintain the optimal pH through lime applications.
Individual soil sample cores should be taken using a soil test probe or shovel. Permanent grass pastures should be sampled at about 4 to 6 inches deep. Sample cores should be randomly taken throughout the field, crushed, mixed thoroughly, and placed into the official soil test container for your state. Most labs do require the soil to be somewhat dry, so you may need to allow the sample to air-dry before submitting it for analysis.
It is recommended to soil test your pasture every two to three years for sandy-textured soils and every three to four years for clay-textured soils. However, hayfields should be tested every other year and for a higher-value forage crop, such as alfalfa, you will want to soil test every year to maintain the correct plant fertilization levels. Samples should be representative of the field, so avoid taking samples in wet spots, old building sites, fencerows, burn pile areas, and areas where lime or manure has been previously piled.
Editor’s Note: Regional Manager Chris Jeffcoat covers the states of Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia and the New England states. Click here to find the regional manager for your state.