Although primarily a cool-season variety, the StockMaster mix is summer-hardy and adds 30 to 40 grazing days at the start of the season, plus 30 more grazing days at the end. “If we irrigate and fertilize ahead of grazing, we get a lot of 2-plus pounds-a-day gains from March through May,” Gossett says. “The StockMaster pastures get an additional fertilizer application, but we get that back in pounds of gain.” An Ocean of Weeds In summer 2022 — about the time the rest of the world had emerged from supply chain disruptions — broadleaf weeds threatened to throw Gossett’s tightly managed production schedule out of whack. “It kind of came out of nowhere,” he says. “We had this unbelievable flush of buffalobur and some silverleaf nightshade. Those pivot circles looked yellow with all the buffalobur flowers.” Gossett couldn’t find an applicator willing to tackle those rough, rugged pastures with ground equipment, and a neighboring cotton field left him searching for a solution. His first call was to his county Extension agent, who suggested he contact Jodie Stockett, the Corteva Agriscience Range & Pasture Specialist for the area. “Around here, the nightshade family tends to rear its ugly head a little more when conditions are drier, and we were just coming out of drought,” Stockett explains. Because it was later in the 2022 grazing season when the weeds caught Gossett’s attention, Stockett recommended waiting to spray. “We scouted the pastures a couple of times last spring to check the weed pressure and ensure we had our timing right,” Stockett says. “Anywhere the soil was poor and the grass was a little thin or where there were some native grasses in the pivot perimeters, it was solid nightshade and buffalobur, plus a couple different biennial thistle species.” In May, Gossett hired an aerial applicator to apply 20 fluid ounces of DuraCor® herbicide per acre. Timing and conditions aligned.
\\ We’re managing an inventory, I could run 1,400 head for the entire summer and make a good profit. But 3,600 head will make a better profit. // — Byron Gosset
“We caught it just perfect,” Gossett says. “We had a lot of rainfall, and those weeds were flourishing.” An untreated buffer along the neighboring cropland solidified Gossett’s decision to spray. “It was so dramatic,” he says. “That buffer is about the only place where there are any weeds. But there’s likely quite a seedbank, so we’ll definitely budget for more DuraCor until we get that cleaned up.” “Had we not controlled those weeds, it would have been a disaster,” Gossett explains. “Our business plan dictates we acquire inventory, graze about 60 days and move cattle to the feedlot. With all that lost forage production, we would have had inventory inbound and no place to put ’em.” Disaster Averted Without treatment, Gossett, who also provides consulting services, working with ranches across the country to improve their management and culture, estimates the weeds potentially would have reduced forage production by at least 20%. “Because of the buffalobur spines, cattle won’t stick their noses in there to get the grass growing among the weeds, so we lose forage utilization too,” he says. That double-whammy during the 2023 grazing season likely would have led to overgrazing, reduced gains and major scheduling issues. (con’t on page 17)
™ ® Trademark of Corteva Agriscience and its affiliated companies. Under normal field conditions, DuraCor® is nonvolatile. DuraCor has no grazing or haying restrictions for any class of livestock, including lactating dairy cows, horses (including lactating mares) and meat animals prior to slaughter. Label precautions apply to forage treated with DuraCor and to manure and urine from animals that have consumed treated forage. DuraCor is not registered for sale or use in all states. Contact your state pesticide regulatory agency to determine if a product is registered for sale or use in your state. Consult the label for full details. Always read and follow label directions. © 2023 Corteva
29
Made with FlippingBook Ebook Creator