Grower experiments with corn silage, millet swath grazing

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Published: September 13, 2001

PIPESTONE, Man. – Seated in his Ford pick-up truck with one arm resting on the steering wheel, Trevor Atchison searches for words to explain the changes he is bringing to the farm.

During the past couple of years, Atchison has experimented with corn as a way to extend the grazing season. This year, he is also testing the merits of growing tame millet for swath grazing.

He appears relentless in his desire to keep his cattle on pasture longer while trying to trim operating costs. Rotational grazing is already well established on Atchison’s Poplarview Stock Farms.

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“I just want to quit hauling manure and baling hay,” said Atchison, thankful that his parents and co-owners are open to the changes he is making.

“Times are changing and I think more of these things are going to have to be done.”

Atchison has had mixed results with an early-maturing silage corn.

In 1999, he grew 12 acres of it for stockpile grazing. Using electric fencing, he limited the cows to three to four acres of the crop at a time.

The standing corn provided 18 consecutive days of grazing for 115 dry cows. Atchison then kept the cattle on the corn field for a couple more weeks by supplementing their feed supply with hay.

“That first year was excellent,” he said, noting that he was able to zero till the field the following spring because the cattle had eaten most of the corn stubble.

“There was very little left in most spots.”

But last year’s results were less encouraging. Atchison thinks it was a disaster.

A cold spring meant poor germination in the silage corn.

“There was some corn, but there was probably only 25 percent germination. And then, of course, there was the weed competition.

“We just put the whole herd in there. They grazed for three or four days and then we fed them hay on there for another three or four days.”

Atchison was not deterred, however. This year he planted 40 acres to the silage corn and is again planning to graze cattle on it in late fall. He also is growing the shorter Canamaize corn on another 10 acres for stockpiled grazing.

He viewed this year as a make-or-break year for corn on his farm. Judging by the lush crop, he’s certain it has a place on his family’s farm.

“It has worked, and we will grow it again in the future.”

The per acre cost to grow silage corn was $20 for corn seed, $22 for fertilizer (50 pounds of nitrogen and 25 lb. of phosphorus), and $30 for herbicide.

Roundup, at $8 per acre, was applied after the corn was planted but before it emerged. Accent was applied in early July, mainly for wild millet control. Not included in these expenses are things like fuel, equipment and land costs, which can vary from farm to farm.

While some people consider the cost of growing corn for stockpiled grazing too high, Atchison found it comparable to the expense of growing a barley crop for swath grazing.

“It’s not a major difference in my mind.”

His cost for corn seed is lower than what some producers might expect. The seed, a blend of three different varieties, is grown in southern Ontario.

Atchison is also testing the merits of growing tame millet for swath grazing. The millet was planted June 28 and swathed in late August.

Atchison has about 20 acres of swathed millet set aside for his first-calf heifers. He will release them onto the field in early October. Electric fencing will restrict the heifers to five acres at a time.

Atchison hopes to keep the heifers on the swathed millet for 30 days. They will then be moved to graze on corn for a couple of weeks.

In the spring, the millet field will be grazed again, beginning in mid-April at the earliest. Hay will be used to supplement the forage supply.

Atchison is reasonably confident the tame millet will keep its quality in the swath.

However, he worries about the risk of rain damage this fall and what will happen if there is heavy snowfall on the farm while the millet is being swath grazed.

“They tell me cows will graze in it (snow) up to their eyeballs.”

Geese will be migrating through the area while the millet is lying in the field. That has been a problem in previous years for other producers in the area who grew millet for baling.

Another 50 acres of millet have already been rolled up into round bales. To resist the temptation to bale the millet still lying in swaths, Atchison reminds himself why he is attempting swath grazing.

“It gets to the point where you have to try something different. If you don’t try it, you won’t know whether it is cheaper to leave it in the field or to bale it and haul it home.

“We’ve been want-ing to do swath grazing for a number of years. We just finally got brave and tried it.”

Atchison’s cost to grow millet, not including equipment, fuel and land costs, was as follows:

Before seeding, he sprayed Roundup for weed control, which cost $8 per acre. He seeded 15 to 20 lb. of millet per acre and underseeded with fall rye, which cost roughly $8 an acre. The fertilizer, 40 lb. of nitrogen and 20 lb. of phosphorus, cost $18 per acre and was applied at seeding.

The total cost for herbicide, seed and fertilizer was $34 an acre to grow the tame millet and fall rye.

“There is not quite as much risk with it as there is with corn,” he said.

“The cost is considerably less.”

About the author

Ian Bell

Brandon bureau

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