The past few years have been a roller coaster ride for ranchers across the country. Some have experienced extreme droughts, while others have experienced excessive rainfall. The common problem faced by all of these ranchers has been the increased price of hay for their livestock. Even ranchers who haven’t seen the weather extremes have seen the price of hay increase, so this is becoming a bigger issue. This combined with rising corn prices, fuel prices and the current economy is putting more pressure on all farmers across the country.

Fortunately, there are steps that can be taken to cut costs, provide more forage to your animals and increase TDN (total digestible nutrients) available to your livestock. Weed management and taking steps to improve the pasture conditions are invaluable aspects of pasture management for every producer.

So how much does weed management really affect forage output? In most Native Grass Pastures you can expect and one-to-one ratio of grass produced per pound of weeds controlled. In Bermuda Grass Pastures you can expect a higher ratio than in Native Grass Pastures. You can get between two to five pounds of grass per one pound of controlled weeds. Weeds are more likely to occur when grass density and vigor is decreased. Decreased grass density can be symptomatic of overgrazing, which needs to be monitored for best results.

To understand weed control more we need to examine the different types of weeds that are likely to infest pastures. There are broadleaf weeds, grasses and other plants. There are annual weeds and perennial weeds, and this will affect the ease of removal. Annual weeds are easier to control than perennial weeds due to the limited root systems. Your management needs to be tailored for the seasonality of the weeds and the type of the weeds to increase efficacy. For the purpose of this article I will be giving examples of different weed types, even though these weeds may not be found throughout the Continental United States. A simple Google search of “broadleaf annual weeds, North Carolina” for example, will give common weeds for that geographical region or you can contact your local Extension agency for the common weeds in your area.