Forage Maturity Across Ohio

Warm weather this spring especially over the last couple of weeks has rapidly progressed forage maturity. Harvesting forages at the proper time for the livestock you are feeding is critical to farm profitability. Poor quality forages must be supplemented to maintain livestock. In the southern part of the state, many forage grasses are in head while in the northern part of the state, some species are in head but most are still in the vegetative stage but will be in head within a week.

Alfalfa weevil issues are also very prevalent in fields that have not been treated. As alfalfa matures with dry weather forecasted for much of the state this week harvesting maybe your best option to manage weevil populations with many insecticides having a 14-day preharvest interval. To determine if harvesting or applying an insecticide is your best strategy you should assess the stands maturity and the quality to meet your forage needs. One method of determining when to harvest alfalfa fields to match your livestock needs is PEAQ which estimates %NDF quickly by measuring the height of the alfalfa and the growth stage. A full explanation and measurement chart can be found at:   https://forages.osu.edu/sites/forages/files/imce/Estimate%20Alfalfa%20NDF.pdf Another option is to use a PEAQ stick that has the NDF measurements on it.

The following table indicates average maturity stage, height, and %NDF values over the weekend across Ohio.