April 30, 2024 Forage Quality Scissors Cut Results

Early Start

Welcome to the first Forage Quality Scissors Cut report for 2024. The CCE and WAC Team sampled 40 sites in Delaware County and the NYC Watershed on April 30, a little earlier than normal. Grass is growing like gangbusters and was already at the average height for the first week of May.
The chart of grass height over the years shows what most of us already know, no two springs are alike, and if there is a trend, I think it is toward more variability. The key to successfully managing through the ciaos, is having everything prepared and being nimble and ready to act when the conditions are right.
The grass fields tested in the mid to high 40s NDF (Neutral Detergent Fiber) this week, a little higher than we expected since we recommend starting harvest at 50% NDF for dairy quality. (See chart below) Early May fiber samples can be misleading, however, often the second week samples will be the same NDF or even lower. We do not expect any fields to be at optimum harvest quality in the next week.
Looking at our scissor cut records from 2008 -2023 the average date for grasses to reach 50% NDF has been May 19, but the range is fairly wide from the earliest May 10 (2012), to the latest May 25 (2020 & 2023). We will sample every Tuesday, send the samples to Diary One lab for NIR analysis, and plan to send results on Thursdays. Our next sample day will be May 7, 2024.
A note on early harvest of grasses. As grasses grow and start the heading process, the growing point is at the top of the stem as it elongates. If plants are cut before the growing point is above the cutting height, the cut plant will continue to push the seed head up, with few leaves, resulting in couple weeks with a field that looks like all heads. When this happens, the grass will eventually fill in, but quality will be reduced. This is something to consider if you are cutting very early. You can split a few grass stems and see the length of the developing stem, if the growing point is lower than cutting height you may want to wait a day or two to avoid rapid heading of the regrowth.
Reminder: Check mower cutting height settings. Grasses store energy reserves in the base of the stem, cutting too low can remove the reserves the plants need to start regrowth quickly. Setting cutting height to 4 inches is a good practice to ensure heathier plants and quicker regrowth.
Looks like we might have the making of a good cropping season, let’s make the most of it.