forage questions

gwithrow · #1 04/21/12, 08:44 AM

we are in our third year of MIG, and last year we had a lot of lime spread....all good there....this spring, I can see the results, but I have a question about what is now growing out there...and where it came from..

we have what looks exactly like alfalfa only it has a small yellow flower...it is everywhere..I have not sown alfalfa at all, only fescue, Marshall rye and some clover seed..there is also a fair amount of vetch...the cows are fat and happy and moving fairly quickly thru their rotation...

our rainfall has been ok, not great, but so far adequate as is evidenced by the lush grasses and whatever else this yellow flowered thing is...

I have three questions: first is there a yellow flowered alfalfa? if so where did it come from?

how often should lime be spread, or how long do the effects of lime last?...ok, so I know I should get the soil tested...but I wondered how long what we did spread might last...

and most importantly: What should we be thinking of overseeding for summer grazing???

bruce2288 · #2 04/21/12, 09:02 AM

Yes some alfalfa has a ;yellow flower. Alfalfa hard seed can lay for years before germinating or it was in the seed you bought and planted. Purchased seed usually has a label as to % of pure seed, and other material in the bag. Very seldom is a bag 100% pure seed.
Black Medic a low growing legume has very small yellow flowers, but does not has growth of alfalfa.

genebo · #3 04/21/12, 03:39 PM

It is probably native lespedeza. Look it up and compare it.

SuperDog · #4 04/21/12, 03:55 PM

Around here, they plant Birds foot trefoil in the ditches. Great stuff for cattle. It is a legume that won't cause bloat. Sure sounds like thats what you have.

tinknal · #5 04/21/12, 05:13 PM

I was going to say bird's foot trefoil also. Does the plant appear to be on the spindly side? Trefoil usually has more stem in comparison to leaves than alfalfa.

genebo · #6 04/21/12, 07:50 PM

If it is Birds foot trefoil, you are lucky. I decided to buy some to seed my pastures. It's over $10/lb!

My cattle just love lespedeza. I feed them the seed all winter, a little at a time. Come next summer I have lespedeza growing everywhere. It doesn't last, though. It's an annual and they keep it eaten down so it can't go to seed.

Around here, the best horse hay has a little lespedeza in it. Horses love it, too.

So you'll be in good shape whichever one it is. Even if it's dock, you should be fine. My cattle and goats like dock, too. It's a spring plant around here, so it's in first cutting hay only.

myersfarm · #7 04/21/12, 07:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by genebo

It is probably native lespedeza. Look it up and compare it.

what I thought on her other post but Native Lespedeza is called HOP CLOVER here

gwithrow · #8 04/21/12, 08:13 PM

we have lots of lespedeza but this has a yellow small flower that is blooming now, which looks a lot like a small clover bloom....I am pretty sure it is black medic......or the hop clover...I guess what really matters to me is whether the cows will eat it or not...if they eat it and it is good for them, then we are good....and this year it is helping to cover the soil, so there are fewer bare places....I still am not sure where it came from unless it was in some of the rye that we put out in the fall....

HDRider · #9 04/22/12, 09:16 AM

This is a great place to find mystery plants.

Plant Image Gallery

Plant Image Gallery

The Noble Foundation Plant Image Gallery is designed to assist botanists, ecologists, natural resource managers, educators and hobbyist with the identification of plants commonly found in the southern Great Plains.

Cindy in KY · #10 04/23/12, 06:17 AM

It sounds like Buttercups. Not good really. Buttercups can take over whole fields, and yes, it covers the ground fast. It is blooming now. I have a field in the front that Buttercups got started in, and I've already mowed them down twice this year. They are bitter and noxious and none of our animals eat them. I never had them before a couple years ago, and have no idea where they came from.

Karin L · #11 04/23/12, 12:05 PM

Maybe the OP should post a picture so we can really determine what it is. There are hundreds of species of plants that grow out on fields and pastures with yellow flowers, I think it may be best to post a picture of it so we can see what it is.

BTW, the other possibility is that it's yellow sweet clover.

But I'd really like to see a pic though.