# Crabgrass?



## jdhayday (May 12, 2014)

Really would like to try some crabgrass this summer for hay. I get some volunteer, seems like it could do well in a stand managed by itself. Anyone have any experience with crabgrass? Varieties? My biggest concern would be planting. I know the seed is small and I only have a jd 750 drill with no small seed box.


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## somedevildawg (Jun 20, 2011)

I have some damn good varieties I'm battling on a yearly basis....have no idea what variety they are but the certainly are prolific......good luck, er...maybe not?


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## FarmerCline (Oct 12, 2011)

Crabgrass can make good hay with good feed value but isn't the most attractive product in a bale if your growing horse hay. The problem I have with planting crabgrass is once you plant it in the field and it goes to seed......which it is very prolific in doing so.....that the field will now be infested with volunteer crabgrass which will be very difficult to eliminate if you decide to grow a different crop in that field in the future. I have a hard enough time trying to control wild volunteer crabgrass in my fields that it is hard for me to imagine planting it on purpose.


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## Tim/South (Dec 12, 2011)

The newer varieties are being promoted around here for pasture.

I have never heard of Crabgrass making much yield when cut for hay.


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## somedevildawg (Jun 20, 2011)

On the flip side, it does make excellent hay, just not very marketable....if I was just feeding up, I wouldn't worry with it at all


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## somedevildawg (Jun 20, 2011)

Wow, three simultaneous posts.....nothing else going on at 8:54 in the Deep South huh, cold over in alabamer ain't it Tim?


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## jdhayday (May 12, 2014)

This would be for my own feed for cattle. I think the first problem I would have, is that I would want some winter cover on fields, and in order for that to happen I would probably risk letting it grow to long in the fall and it would go to seed


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## somedevildawg (Jun 20, 2011)

jdhayday said:


> This would be for my own feed for cattle. I think the first problem I would have, is that I would want some winter cover on fields, and in order for that to happen I would probably risk letting it grow to long in the fall and it would go to seed


Hard to keep it from going to seed....really have to be "Johnny on the spot"


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## Vol (Jul 5, 2009)

Crab is a pain in the tail to get dry....you wouldn't think as fine stemmed as it is, but if it does not lay for several days it will dust up in a round.

Regards, Mike


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## Tim/South (Dec 12, 2011)

somedevildawg said:


> Wow, three simultaneous posts.....nothing else going on at 8:54 in the Deep South huh, cold over in alabamer ain't it Tim?


It is cold for us. Temps in the high teens over night. The snow and most ice is just south of us.

I have the tractor and farm truck warming up now.

Life will be back to normal Tuesday. Temps in the 50's.


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## Vol (Jul 5, 2009)

Tim/South said:


> It is cold for us. Temps in the high teens over night. The snow and most ice is just south of us.
> 
> I have the tractor and farm truck warming up now.
> 
> Life will be back to normal Tuesday. Temps in the 50's.


Temps are supposed to get back into the fifties here Tuesday also....I don't like cold weather.

Regards, Mike


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## TJH (Mar 23, 2014)

At redrivercrabgrass.com you can learn all you want to know, look for the factsheet tab. I've grown it for three years now and am going to plant 25 more acres this year into the quick n big variety. Cattle love it, when I feed it I have to take the wrap off before I go into the pasture or get run over. Takes three days to cure it if you condition and ted it at 90 plus degrees or four to five if mowed with out conditioning and tedding. If you fertilize it will beat Bermuda for TDN and protein and be slightly under Alfalfa. The stems dry soft and pliable, cattle just love to eat it. Let it go to seed in the fall for volunteer stands but keep one thing in mind once its killed by frost it becomes very bitter. It's not a grass to stockpile.


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## jdhayday (May 12, 2014)

TJH said:


> At redrivercrabgrass.com you can learn all you want to know, look for the factsheet tab. I've grown it for three years now and am going to plant 25 more acres this year into the quick n big variety. Cattle love it, when I feed it I have to take the wrap off before I go into the pasture or get run over. Takes three days to cure it if you condition and ted it at 90 plus degrees or four to five if mowed with out conditioning and tedding. If you fertilize it will beat Bermuda for TDN and protein and be slightly under Alfalfa. The stems dry soft and pliable, cattle just love to eat it. Let it go to seed in the fall for volunteer stands but keep one thing in mind once its killed by frost it becomes very bitter. It's not a grass to stockpile.


Ahhh, just when i thought I had my mind made up! Looks like I have some reading to do. thanks TJH


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## rajela (Feb 15, 2014)

I drilled in 60 acres of Q&B late last spring (first week of June) at 3lbs per acre and got good stand but was a little thin 5lbs for a thick stand). Got up about 18" tall and the dry summer hit. I was afraid to cut as I thought it might burn up the roots if I did. Talked to TJH and he said cut it will survive so I cut 40 acres and got 2 4X5 rolls per acres. Went a couple months with nothing but a little morning dew but it stayed green and when the late summer rains came it took off again. Got up about a 12" tall and was looking good and I was looking at a second cutting until the army worms hit it and eat about 30 acres to the ground I mean nothing but dirt. Sprayed the rest and thought I had wasted my time and money on crabgrass but in a few weeks and a little rain it was back again. Did not grow enough to make a second cutting of hay due to another dry spell but it did seed out nicely so I ran the Bat wing over to spread seed for next summer.

I was hoping to put in some rye grass but it was so dry this fall that I never did. Thinking of trying a spring planting of rye grass.

These pics are about 3or 4 wks after planting


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## jdhayday (May 12, 2014)

Did you mix anything with the seed when you drilled to slow down the flow? Thanks for the pictures


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## rajela (Feb 15, 2014)

Drill had small seed box. TJH says he just spreads it with a seeder. Getting seed to deep is very easy to do. If I put out any more I am gonna have it mixed with fertilizer and spread with buggy.


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## rajela (Feb 15, 2014)

Drill was also 10" spacing 7" would have been better


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