Drier Conditions Affect Pasture Quality

OMAHA (DTN) -- Drier weather in the Midwest and into the eastern states has led to depleting pasture and range conditions, but the central part of the country continues to hold excellent ratings.

Iowa and Missouri have fewer pastures in the good-to-excellent category, with an 8- and 9-point drop at 72% and 65%, respectively. When moving east, decreases are seen, especially in Ohio, with a 24-point loss of good-to-excellent pastures at 36%, Kentucky with a 16-point loss at 31% and Tennessee at a 10-point loss at 38%, according to USDA NASS's weekly Crop Progress report on Tuesday. The report was delayed a day due to Labor Day.

The depleting conditions are also seen with more pasture and range in those areas being marked as very poor to poor. Ohio saw an increase of 16 points in this category, with 27% of pasture and range ranked here. Kentucky saw a 17-point increase in very poor to poor, with 35% of pastures in this category. Tennessee saw a 9-point increase at 31%.

While Nevada continues to see 90% of its pastures ranked very poor to poor, Arizona saw a 10-point improvement with only 74% of pastures in this category. Arizona also saw an 11-point increase in good-to-excellent pastures, at 15% this week.

The top beef cow-calf states of Texas and Oklahoma saw an increase in good to excellent of 1 point and 8 points, respectively. That moves Texas to 39% of pastures in this category and Oklahoma with 63%. These two states also saw very little movement on the negative side, with 24% of Texas pasture and range ranked very poor to poor and 11% of Oklahoma pasture and range here.

Late summer or early fall seeding in pastures can help renovate established forages and boost spring yields, according to Leanna Duppstadt, Penn State University Extension agronomy educator.

She said fall-seeded fields require less maintenance than spring-seeded fields. "This is because fall seedings are well-established by spring, making them more competitive with weeds, better able to withstand dry conditions, increased weed competition, and the possibility of summer droughts can make it more difficult," Duppstadt said.

Seeding needs to be done at least six weeks before the first killing frost, below 28 degrees Fahrenheit. For northern states, this means seeding cool-season perennials between mid-August and mid-September, depending on location and weather. Midwestern and southern states might be able to extend seeding time later into September. She said the weather needs to be warm enough to encourage establishment and not be exposed to extreme temperatures.

Producers should determine the seeding depth depending on the type of grass used and whether renovating or establishing pastures. Duppstadt said this can help with the success of the establishment of the grasses used. If soil conditions are dry and soil moisture is limited, she suggested delaying planting to achieve success.

See the accompanying maps for more on the changes in various states.

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National Pasture and Range Conditions (48 states)

	Very poor	Poor	Fair	Good	Excellent
48 States	11	20	31	29	9
Previous week	11	21	31	28	9
Previous year	16	26	30	23	5

Jennifer Carrico can be reached at jennifer.carrico@dtn.com

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