Grazing corn stalks can reduce feed costs for cow herds

EFFINGHAM, Ill. — Utilizing corn stalks for winter grazing is an option for cattlemen to impact their profitability.

“I feel that is low-hanging fruit for a beef cow operation to stay profitable,” said Travis Meteer, University of Illinois Extension commercial agriculture educator.

“We have good profitability now and these are the times we need to reinvest in our operations the right way,” said Meteer during a presentation at the Heart of America Grazing Conference hosted by the Illinois Grazing Lands Coalition, the Illinois Forage and Grassland Council, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Resources Conservation Service and University of Illinois Extension.

“I don’t know where cattle prices are going to go, but since feed costs represent about 60% of the total costs of a beef cow-calf enterprise, that is a really good place to start,” he said. “Calf prices explain just under 3% of the impact on profit.”

At the Dudley Smith Initiative Farm, Meteer said, researchers have completed many corn stalk grazing research projects to compare stocking rates, continuous versus strip grazing and different timing of moving fences for strip grazing.

“We continue to see above or more than adequate cow performance when grazing corn stalks,” he noted.

“We have byproduct availability, so we are feeding distillers grains or maybe a mix of corn gluten and soybean hulls,” he said. “Even for cows with higher requirements, we can still utilize corn stalks.”

Cows are really good at traveling around a field and finding the best bite of feed.

“In that travel, they are going to trample a lot of feed,” Meteer said.

In Illinois, many cattlemen with cow-calf herds are also row-crop farmers and have more fields of corn stalks than their cattle can utilize.

“So, maybe the trampling is not an issue,” Meteer said.

“But if you are trying to make those corn stalks last a little longer, strip grazing is a great method to reduce the trampling and increase the grazing days that you have available,” he said.

Researchers used GPS collars on the cattle to learn about their grazing behavior.

“When we let cattle into a new strip, we did not use a back fence,” Meteer said. “The cattle spent the predominate amount of time in the new strip, so I don’t think we need to back fence when grazing corn stalks.”

Some cattlemen are concerned about the removal of nutrients when cattle graze corn stalks.

“Cattle are pretty inefficient, so about 70% to 80% of what the cattle eat goes out the backside,” Meteer said. “So, you are not removing very much.”

In addition, research has shown that there are no significant differences in soil compaction.

“If there are areas of concern, it would be right around the waterer or feeding areas where cattle tend to congregate,” the educator said.

When cows first start grazing pastures in the spring, Meteer said, the forage can be wet and washy, moderate in terms of energy, low in fiber and pretty high in crude protein.

“Reproduction is a sensitive mechanism and there are a lot of pieces to the puzzle, but that dynamic sets up some issues if you are trying to get cows bred at turnout,” he said.

“We have seen really good response to 2 pounds of corn and 2 pounds of soybean hulls delivered every day to the cows,” he reported. “Those cows are seeking some fiber and energy, so it is amazing the quick response that you will get.”

This can also apply to fall cover crops that consist of a lush stand of oats and turnips.

“Producers have told me they put calves out on what looks to be the best cover crop stand they have ever had, and when they brought the calves back in, they did not gain any weight,” Meteer said. “That is because we did not supply those cattle enough dry matter since dry matter is what drives average daily gain.”

“In Illinois, we have some of the most fertile ground in the U.S., but it sits empty for six months of the year,” he said. “One way we can add revenue to the farm is through a cover crop.”

Meteer likes complex mixes of cover crops for grazing cattle.

“We saw really nice increases in responses by adding more species,” he said.

U of I research work is evaluating several cereal grain cover crops including cereal rye, wheat, forage variety of triticale and winter barley.

“All these plots follow corn, and the first year, our biggest take-home was that barley is pretty susceptible to winterkill,” Meteer said. “We’ve seen cereal rye and triticale work great in terms of tonnage.”

Nutrient analysis of the cover crops showed some nice values for the crude protein and energy.

“We can support a production level for cattle by making a good amount of feed,” Meteer said. “So, we can get the soil benefits of a cover crop and feed livestock, too.”