# Switchgrass in muck ground



## downtownjr (Apr 8, 2008)

Have a question and my research isn't getting me anywhere...or I should say isn't what I was told. I may have a chance to rent a field that has about 10 acres of muck ground. I am going to plant a mixture of seed for hay in the non-muck...for my horse customers. I friend told me switchgrass will grow well in muck after it gets going. Takes a year to get established. Said his cousin feeds it to cattle in IL and found it grows well on his muck gound. My research seems to show it should be planted in a well drained field and is pretty decent in drier fields. So, my questions is, does anyone raised any in wetter ground or grown it at all? Most everything else will have trouble, but I would like to try something in there. Most years I should be able to get in there and bale. I did learn no switchgrass to the horse folks, not good for the horseys, but I can round bale it for the my few cattle customers and if the yield is decent make a few bucks. Also, open to any other ideas for some muck ground. Thanks.


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## Heyhay..eh (Aug 7, 2009)

I have a lot of pot holes that stay wet for extended period. Reed Canary goes in those holes. In wet ground that I can get to near summers end I put Timothy & Trefoil.

These wet areas are the type that always leave your tires wet when you travel on them and may even have standing water when you hay in a bad year and track slightly in a good year!

Actually was in one today and it looks like the bull rushes are taking over ... and that insidious fox tail that ruins the hay.

Take care


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## swmnhay (Jun 13, 2008)

More info.How deep of standing water and how long?

I have a few fields that are bordering on muck,they can be very wet but have surface drainage.I have planted alfalfa in them to open them up with very good results.Poor mans tile job.LOL.

Don't think switchgrass would be a good option for muck ground or that great for feed value.

If it's extremly wet with water standing for weeks reed canary maybe a good option.Another thing about it,it is a sod type grass and will help you from getting stuck.


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## mlappin (Jun 25, 2009)

I've heard the same about reed canary and a neighbor has done it in the past, in his low spots in a few fields he planted reed canary as those spots tended to stay too wet for anything else.


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## okhillbilly (Jun 18, 2009)

I don't understand why switchgrass is bad for horses? It's the first gras that is grazed out of and pasture by any animal. It does'nt tolerate constant grazing. As far as "muck ground" low land it grows 6 ft tall in the ditches around here where water stands or runs year round. I see it growing well around the lakes edges around here. I also was thinking of getting some to add to my hay meadows to try and fill them in.


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## UpNorth (Jun 15, 2009)

Like a lot other people have said reed canarygrass should do the trick. Make sure you get one of the improved varieties that are low in alkaloids.

Also it might take a little bit to get established as it's a little slow to start and you'll probably run into annual broadleaves and some foxtails competing with it in the seeding years, at least that's what we run into up in WI.

Has anyone else had good establishment with reed canarygrass with less weed pressure? If so what do you guys do?


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## Hayboy1 (Jul 19, 2008)

We have a 60 acre meadow that is very wet in places, loaded with Canary. If you cut it early enough it will make nice looking horse hay, cut too late, and you can pass it off for straw. LOL If you manage it well, it would be a more viable option IMO. Good Luck


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## downtownjr (Apr 8, 2008)

Thanks a bunch guys, the reed canarygrass may be the ticket...I may be able to get some legumes in there with it and make a pretty decent hay.

On the horses...during my research I read a lot of articles like this one...

Pastures dominated by switchgrass are abundant throughout Nebraska and adjoining states. Managed correctly, these pastures can be a good source of grazing or hay for cattle. Unfortunately, the same can not be said for horses.

Switchgrass can cause serious health problems for horses. It contains chemical compounds called saponins. These compounds can cause severe reactions in horses, including photosensitization, destruction of red blood cells, and liver disease, which eventually can lead to death of the horse. Fortunately, if affected animals are removed from switchgrass early enough, they recover normally.

The main saponin in switchgrass is called diosgenin. It's not known exactly how this compound reacts in horses. In fact, it was only four years ago that the danger to horses was discovered, and it took several months after that to discover the likely cause as diosgenin.

Because the discovery of this danger to horses is so new, it's difficult to know what conditions are most dangerous. The compound apparently is stable when dried, so switchgrass hay may be just as dangerous as pasture. Although there may be a small risk in pastures where switchgrass is part of a mixture, I think the danger is quite low, otherwise we would have seen more problems many years ago. So for now, avoid pasture or hay with your horses where switchgrass is the main plant. Since horses don't like switchgrass very well anyhow, it probably will never be a problem for you.
[July 30th, 2004]

Dr. Bruce Anderson, Professor of Agronomy
Agronomy & Horticulture, University of Nebraska - Lincoln, Lincoln, NE


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## swmnhay (Jun 13, 2008)

Jim,Once the reedcanary gets established it will choke out everything else.It may take a couple yrs to get established so to have a legume in the mix will be good for awile but it will get choked out eventually.The RC spreads by rhysomes and will create a sod.


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## okhillbilly (Jun 18, 2009)

A link to reasearch testing switchgrass in horses. Nonconclusive results on horse feed tests.ARS | Publication request: Switchgrass (Panicum Virgatum) Toxicity in Rodents, Sheep, Goats and Horses . I just hate yell fire about anything a horse eats. Those horse people take it as gospel and its hurts all hay sellers in the long run.


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