UF/IFAS Beef Cattle & Forage Specialists, and County Extension Agents serving the Florida Panhandle worked to develop a basic management calendar for cattle producers.  The purpose of this calendar is to provide reminders for management techniques with similar timing to those used at the North Florida Research and Education Center’s Beef Unit, near Marianna, Florida.  Links to useful publications with more information are also provided.

Just like soil sampling before purchasing fertilizer, hay should be sampled and sent to a lab for evaluation before purchasing supplemental feeds. Don’t guess, forage test! Credit: Doug Mayo

October Management Reminders

October is a very busy month on cattle operations ranging from heifer vaccinations to hay harvest and winter forage planting.  With so much to do, it is a good idea to review this list of management reminders to develop your own “To-Do” list.  Make sure you reserve at least one day to go to Moultire for the Sunbelt Ag Expo!

Cattle Herd Management

  • Pre-breeding Cow & Heifer Vaccination (1 Month prior to breeding)
  • Feed weaned heifers limited supplement
  • Inventory hay and purchase additional bales as necessary (2 tons/cow)
    • Forage test hay to determine supplement needs
    • Evaluate and repair hay feeding equipment and replace as needed
      • Hay rings, spears, trailers
    • Move yearling heifers to clean, dry calving pasture & record body condition
    • Put together calving emergency kit
  • Increase supplementation to weaned replacement heifers and start feeding hay

Pasture Management

  • If considering alfalfa as a monoculture, adjust pH near 7.0 and use a prepared seedbed

Pest Management

  • Scout pastures for poisonous weeds, spray, mow, or remove if found
  • Use nonselective herbicide on pastures that are due for renovation.  Especially for heavy infestations of grass weeds such as centipede or common Bermudagrass.

 Annual Educational Events

Attend Sunbelt Ag Expo October 17-19  (Stop by the UF/IFAS Barn)

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Pan Ag logo finalUse the following link to download the entire Cattle & Forage Management Annual Calendar:

Panhandle Ag Extension Team Cattle & Forage Management Calendar

Developed by the Panhandle Agriculture Extension Livestock and Forage Team:

Doug Mayo, Cliff Lamb, Mark Mauldin, Ann Blount, Cheryl Mackowiak, Jose Dubeux, Jay Ferrell, Jennifer Bearden, NicolasDiLorenzo, Shep Eubanks, Jed Dillard, Mike Goodchild, Roy Carter, Henry Grant, John Atkins, Kalyn Waters, and Ray Bodrey.
Doug Mayo
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