PR-871: 2025 Alfalfa Report

Gene Olson, Ray Smith, Chris Teutsch, Brittany Hendrix | December 18, 2025 (New)

Alfalfa (Medicago sativa) has historically been the highest-yielding, highest-quality forage legume grown in Kentucky. It is an important part of Kentucky’s cash hay enterprise and is an important component in dairy, horse, beef, and sheep diets. Choosing a good variety is a key step in establishing a stand of alfalfa. The choice of variety can impact yield, thickness of stand, and persistence.

PR-870: 2025 Red and White Clover and Annual Lespedeza Report

Gene Olson, Ray Smith, Chris Teutsch, Brittany Hendrix | December 18, 2025 (New)

Red clover (Trifolium pratense L.) is a high-quality, short-lived, perennial legume used in mixed or pure stands for pasture, hay, silage, green chop, soil improvement, and wildlife habitat. This species is adapted to a wide range of climatic and soil conditions. Stands of improved varieties generally are productive for 2½ to 3 years, with the highest yields occurring in the year following establishment. Red clover is used primarily as a renovation legume for grass pastures and hay fields. It is a dominant forage legume in Kentucky because it is relatively easy to establish and has high forage quality, yield, and animal acceptance.

PR-877: 2025 Cool-Season Grass Grazing Tolerance Report

Gene Olson, Ray Smith, Chris Teutsch, Tim Phillips, Eric Vanzant | December 9, 2025 (New)

Cool-season forages such as tall fescue, orchardgrass, and Kentucky bluegrass are the primary pasture grasses in Kentucky. Other species such as perennial ryegrass and festulolium can also be used in pasture systems. Little is known about the effect of variety on the grazing tolerance of these cool-season grass species.

PR-878: 2025 Cool-season Grass Horse Grazing Tolerance Report

Gene Olson, Ray Smith, Chris Teutsch, Tim Phillips, Laurie Lawrence | December 9, 2025 (New)

Cool-season forages such as Kentucky bluegrass, tall fescue, and orchardgrass are dominant pasture grasses for horses in Kentucky. Variety evaluations for yield have been carried out for many years, but little work has been done to evaluate varieties of these grasses for persistence when subjected to close, continual grazing by horses.

PR-876: 2025 Alfalfa, Red Clover, and White Clover Grazing Tolerance Report

Gene Olson, Ray Smith, Chris Teutsch, Eric Vanzant | December 9, 2025 (New)

Alfalfa (Medicago sativa) is the highest-yielding, highest-quality forage legume grown in Kentucky. It forms the basis of Kentucky’s cash hay enterprise and is an important component in dairy, horse, beef, and sheep diets. Recent emphasis on its use as a grazing crop and the release of grazing-tolerant varieties have raised the following question: Do varieties differ in tolerance to grazing? To answer this question, we have chosen to use the standard tolerance test recommended by the North American Alfalfa Improvement Conference. This test uses continuous heavy grazing to sort out differences in grazing tolerance in a relatively short period of time.

AGR-64: Establishing Livestock Pastures and Hayfields

Ray Smith, Jimmy Henning, Chris Teutsch, Stephanie Smith | August 20, 2025 (Major Revision)

Profitable ruminant livestock operations depend on the production of high-quality forages. High yields can only be obtained from a dense, vigorous stand of an adapted forage species. The first step in obtaining such a stand is establishment. The establishment phase of forage production is critical because the response to all other management inputs depends on having a healthy and vigorous stand. Successful forage establishment requires careful planning and attention to detail.

AGR-283: Interpreting Baleage Fermentation Test Results

Jimmy Henning, Ray Smith, Chris Teutsch, Jeff Lehmkuhler, Michelle Arnold | June 6, 2025 (New)

Baleage is the wrapping of bales of wilted forage such that anaerobic fermentation occurs. Most commonly made with large round bales, larger rectangular bales may also be stored as baleage.

AGR-281: Improving Kentucky Horse Pastures

Chris Teutsch, Krista Lea, Ray Smith, Bob Coleman | February 13, 2025 (New)

For many horses, quality pasture can provide almost all nutrients needed for maintenance or light work for much of the year. Pasture reduces the cost of keeping horses while providing safe footing and minimizing impacts on the environment.

PR-861: 2024 Annual Grass Report Warm Season and Cool Season (Cereals)

Gene Olson, Ray Smith, Chris Teutsch, Jimmy Henning, Bill Bruening | January 21, 2025 (New)

Summer annual grasses provide an important forage crop option for producers in Kentucky. These grasses are mainly used as emergency or supplemental pasture, silage, or hay crops, but little information is available on their yield potential. The purpose of this publication is to summarize the University of Kentucky 2008-2024 forage yield trials with sudangrass, sorghum/sudangrass, forage sorghum, millets, teff, crabgrass, and cereal crops.

PR-859: 2024 Cool-Season Grass Grazing Tolerance Report

Gene Olson, Ray Smith, Chris Teutsch, Jimmy Henning, Tim Phillips | January 17, 2025 (New)

Cool-season forages such as tall fescue, orchardgrass, and Kentucky bluegrass are the primary pasture grasses in Kentucky. Other species such as perennial ryegrass and festulolium can also be used in pasture systems. Little is known about the effect of variety on the grazing tolerance of these cool-season grass species.