How much oats to sow per acre

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You are here Home. Use the following formula to calculate oat seed drop rate: Determine desired final stand per acre and divide by: 1-expected stand loss. Calculate seeds per pound and multiply by the germination rate of the seed lot.

Divide 1 by 2 for the final seeding rate. Crop Production. Biomass and Forage. At this point, the stems have begun to elongate and will provide an adequate amount of forage for grazing. Keep in mind that grazing during this time will remove the reproductive points, not allowing plants to mature, but maintaining forage production for a longer period. Stop grazing when plants are 2 to 3 inches tall. The remaining 2 to 3 inches of green leaf tissue and stems are essential for pasture recovery if conditions allow.

Consider rotational grazing with other pastures as to not overgraze the system. Doing this will ensure pastures will always be available with good forage availability, and it eliminates overgrazing of a single area. Spring-planted oat matures quite rapidly once the spring temperatures begin warming. Each acre of spring-planted oat should provide between 35 and 60 days of grazing for mature cattle.

Growing animals pounds can be stocked at approximately 1. Spring-planted oats harvested for hay should be cut at early heading. Once the seedheads begin to emerge, there will be no appreciable increase in forage yield. Likewise, once the seedheads begin to emerge, a substantial decrease in nutritive value occurs, due to the accumulation of stem tissue and also leaf loss. If harvested for hay, delaying harvest until early heading will maximize yield for that production method.

Finally, do not consider spring-planted oat to be the fool-proof solution to remedy a short forage supply. There are potential risks involved due to weather, insects and diseases. With planning and a little luck, a spring-planted oat crop may add some additional forage to an already short or non-existent forage supply.

Learn about green-stem, or green pod syndrome, which has become one of the biggest challenges for Oklahoma soybean producers. Learn about new research about protein concentration of winter wheat varieties. When using oats as a forage crop to fill autumn feeds gaps, consider how much nutrient is being taken from the soil.

Topdressing with small amounts of nitrogen after each grazing may be more efficient than applying heavy rates at sowing. Care should always be taken when introducing stock to these highly digestible forage crops, as there are a number of animal health issues such as nitrate poisoning and grass tetany that can occur. We are updating the DPI website as part of our commitment to deliver high quality information to our customers.

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