Amount of alfalfa

In discussion with neighbor. He says don't cut it so often, leave it grow more. I say at the end of the season you will ge the same amount of hay no matter how many times you cut it. What do you think?
This is for alfalfa but I think same principles apply to grass.

Quality over quantity.

Glenn

Glenn is right. Especially with alfalfa. Its all about quality. You can make more money with low quantity and high quality alfalfa than you can with low quality but high quantity alfalfa. (bet you read that more than once) The timing to cut hay is not as critical as it is with alfalfa. But there is still an optimal window for a hay harvest.

Once alfalfa starts to flower the feed value starts to go down hill. The environmental conditions dictate the best time to cut alfalfa and how many good-quality cuttings you get per season, not the whim of farmer. Any type of forage that is left standing too long before cutting will become stemmy and tough with a lower feed value and will likely result in more waste when feeding due to the reduced appeal the animal has for it. I'll echo Glenn F's comment - a lesser amount of good quality hay is typically more beneficial than a larger quantity of poor quality hay.

So if I'm reading you guys right then you agree with my neighbor. At end of season I will get less tonnage by taking 5 cuttings verses 3.

I don't think that would be correct. Each cutting would be less, but the total will be close. That assumes you get enough timely rains to get each cutting growing again after cutting.

Here in Ohio it has always been said first cutting of alfalfa on May 15 and every 30 days after that. Usually cannot get that schedual because of rain or too much to be able to do the 30 day cutting. But do it as close as you can. May 15, June 15, July 15, August 15, September 15 Usually winter is to close to do a Oct 15 cutting.

flying belgian, as I read the comments they all DISagree with your neighbor and agree with you!

The roots and base stems remaining after a cutting must recover and begin regrowth from the cut stubble. This happens every time it is cut. Three cuttings, three setbacks toward rapid growth. 5 cuttings, 5 setbacks. Proper analysis or the maturity of each stand before choosing to mow, is best practice. Cutting more often if rain and temps coupled with good sunny days promote ideal growth, and fewer cuttings if conditions are marginal. Choosing to cut more often is a poor choice if made arbitrarily.
Test the value by dividing a field into 2 reasonably equal quality plots cut one 5 times, and the other 3 times. weigh, and compare nutrient value in each! Jim

Get it before the BUG'S . and between rain . Some years here in OHIO first cutting is AFTER June then AFER the Forth of July and then late AUG. and late Sept. and after that it is a craps shoot . Oh wait i am in N/E Ohio Nothing is Normal around here . The most cloud covered part of the country . Today it was short sleeves and for TOMORROW it is back to insulated tops and flannel shirts .

Bottom line, if your after quality, you'll clip it off more often. I personally think you'll end up with less hay if you do, but the quality will be better.

That said, if your waiting to long to cut it off (full bloom or past), you'll start losing tonnage also. It'll start losing leaves while still standing, and that in turn would have to render tonnage loss. Would be double loss actually, by the time you figure in the start over delayment.

What your feeding it to makes a difference also. Your dairy guys are after (and in need of) top quality. You watch those guys, and you'll see alfalfa clipped off barely in bloom. Maybe just before it starts to bloom.
Your beef guys seem to be more lenient and not as strict about top quality. Perhaps even going for quantity rather than quality. You watch those guys, and they are more apt to clip it off at 15 to 20 percent in bloom or after. But you got to realize that they are just in need of good hay, and don't really need that top quality dairy hay.

A guy might be smarter if he looks at some other factors, rather than putting all of his eggs in one basket with plant maturity. Weather, weavels, grasshoppers, and such all playing a part in factors as well. It wouldn't make any sense at all to cut alfalfa down just before a forecasted week long rainy spell. All because your plant maturity scale says to wack it off today. And it also wouldn't make much sense to 'NOT' mow it off early when it's getting riddled by grasshoppers and hasn't yet met your maturity liking.

You can RUIN a WHOLE cutting of alfalfa by mowing it off at the wrong time. And that can happen at any maturity level. If your following a strict clip off schedule, you are making yourself more prone to running into a catastrophe with weather or whatever else that might not be cooperating.

I feed 95 percent of my hay. And I feed it to beef cattle. I need all of it to be feedable hay once its in the bale. I do care about quality. But it's definately not my only concern. I would definately settle for fare to good on all of it, rather than supreme on most of it and ruining a whole cutting here and there. A guy might have a different opinion if he was selling all of it and going after the prime dollars.

Truly a subject that can be deciphered from different angles. What one does, might not pencil for somebody else.

The longer you let alfalfa grow the bigger the stems, horse people hate stems. You may achieve more tonnage but way less quality.

on soil here in southwest mo whatever your fertilizer requirement divide it into 3 and put 1/3 on in late winter early spring. after the june cutting put 1/3 on then after last cutting put last 1/3 on. the root system needs that to help insure better root system and future growth.
july august fertilizer is risky due to dry and lack of moisture.
i usually chopped first cutting cause about ready to bale it rains.second cutting quarter bloom third cutting same august to first frost i never cut but either pastured cows on it after frost or baled it depending on my feed supply

Depends on whether your customers are looking to buy hay or lumber.

I'm waiting this year for sure. As dry as it's getting, one cutting might be all we get.

One thing I read one time about alfalfa is that you can cut it 20 times, whether it's five times a year for four years or once a year for twenty. If that's true, your neighbor's idea might shorten the life of the stand.

Around here in Manitoba if you get 3 cuttings you are doing good. Weather and fertilizer have more to do with total yield than how many cuts. If you get lots of rain day or two after first cut Id off, you can get as much on second cut as first. Same goes with third. Most years we get no rain for six weeks after July 4-8. Second cut suffers a lot unless you cut and silage June 15. Most guys are cutting first last week of June and first of July. Just hope for a good rain. I have gone 10 of 12 years with no second cut because of no rain. Just north 10 miles my dad gets 3.

We never had a bug problem and all hay went to dairy cows. That schedual is what seed dealer told us to aim for when we switched from red clover for the cows. About 80 mile south of Michigan line and 40 mile east of Indiana. Used to be a lot of dairy farms but now only a very few. Even tho I no longer farm I still see when they start cutting. And we are 3 weeks late getting corn and beans out due to rains. Just this past week planting going full blast. Lot of ground not touched yet and you can tell it has not been no tilled either.

If dairy you want high protein quality. 4 cutting on a regular schedule will give you more milk. It probably wont give you more volume.

If cattle you want nice feed but lower protein higher volume is fine, three cuttings will give you about the same amount of feed for less cost and less work cutting gathering.

Paul

The dairy farmers around me cut it every 28 days regardless of how tall it is. I have seen them cut it on 2nd, 3rd and 4th cuttings where due to a lack of rainfall it might only be 6 to 12 inches tall. They are going full bore this week around me. They cut it one day and chop it the next.

I've been around alfalfa for the past 60 years, I live at 6000ft we normally cut twice a year. I've talked to growers all over the the country my conclusion is that you will be able to cut it 24 times in the life of a stand. I am not talking about quality, but pushing the plant to hard will shorten the life of the stand.