1. How Grass Grows Developed by: Wendy Williams, NRCS, Bozeman, Montana UNCE, Reno, Nev.

2. Topics to be covered:  How plants make food  Legumes and grasses  How pasture plants grow  Growth and reproduction  Managing growing points  Plant identification  Determining forage yield

4. How plants make food for growth

5. What plants are growing in my pasture?  Legumes  Grasses  Weeds (we’ll talk about them later) UNCE, Reno, Nev.

6. Legumes

7. Parts of a legume taproot leaflet flower stem leaf stolon A. Miller

8. How legumes grow  Vegetative growth  Bud stage  Flowering NCSU

9. Grasses

10. NRCS, Bozeman, Mont. Parts of a grass plant

11. Grasses consist of several growth segments Each segment contains a:  Leaf  Node  Internode  Axillary bud or potential bud – can produce a new stem or tiller NRCS, Bozeman, Mont.

12. OSU Penn State Univ. 2 tillers developing from the crown of the plant A joint (node)

13. NRCS, Bozeman, Mont. Growing Points  Location where cells divide and produce new growth  Occur close to the ground early in the growing season  Become elevated above ground as the growing season progresses

14. Stages of grass growth  Vegetative  Growth of leaves  Elongation  Lengthening of stem internodes, also called jointing  Boot stage is the end of elongation  Reproductive  Development of seedhead and seed

15.  Grass plants reproduce by forming seed heads  Some plants also reproduce by sending out spreading roots or shoots Plant reproduction USDA NRCS UNCE, Reno, Nev.

16. Long-shoot phase of growth (elongated internodes) Short-shoot phase of growth Growing points removed; must regrow from basal buds Regrowth Growing point level Intact growing points

17. Forage growth and management USDA NRCS

18. Forage growth patterns  Growing points at ground level  Growing points on the stem  Growing points at the stem tips Smooth brome

19. Carbohydrate reserves (food)  Stored in roots, rhizomes, stolons and base of stem  Used for first spring growth of dormant plants  Allow rapid regrowth from stubble Kentucky bluegrass rhizome Penn State Univ.

20. Adapted from NRCS by A. Miller

22. Adapted from NRCS, Bozeman, Mont.

23. Adapted from NRCS, Bozeman, Mont. by A. Miller Take half and leave half

24. UNCE, Reno, Nev.

25. Nutrient content by plant growth stage A B C Adapted from www.ag.ndsu.edu by A. Miller

26.  Early to mid-season, maximum forage production can be obtained by keeping the plant in a vegetative state by preventing seed head production  Depending on the species, you may want to let the grass form a seed head at the end of the season Managing for productivity

27. Identifying grasses UNCE, Reno, Nev.

28. Plant life cycles  Annual  Biennial  Perennial OSU

29. Cool-season plants  Optimum temperature range 65 to 75 degrees F  Productive in spring and fall  Reduced growth in summer  Higher in crude protein  Respond to nitrogen fertilizer  Orchardgrass, fescues, perennial ryegrass and bromes are examples

30. Warm-season plants  Better at using atmospheric nitrogen  Grow best at high temperatures (90 to 95 degrees F)  Lower in protein but protein is more efficiently used by animals  Triggered by day lengths  Examples are big and little bluestem, switchgrass, Indiangrass, and sudangrass

31. Cool-season versus warm-season grass productivity A. Miller

32. Cool-season bunchgrasses  Growth occurs in early spring or late fall  Grows in bunches or clumps  Grass propagates by seed only  More elevated leaves  Grazing must be managed to optimize productivity

33. Tall fescue www.aginfonet.com www.agry.purdue.eduNational Forage and Grass Curriculum

34. Orchardgrass www.agry.purdue.edu www.aginfonet.com

35. Perennial ryegrass www.agry.purdue.edu

36. Annual ryegrass www.forages.orst.edu

37. Timothy www.aginfonet.com www.argy.purdue.edu

38. Crested wheatgrass www.aginfonet.com National Park Service

39. Siberian wheatgrass APMC, Idaho

40. Tall wheatgrass www.usask.ca

41. Intermediate wheatgrass www.agric.gov.ab.ca

42. Pubescent wheatgrass NRCS, Bozeman, Mont.

43. Slender wheatgrass USDA Plant Gallery

44. Basin wildrye plants.usda.gov Aberdeen Plant Materials Center, Idaho.

45. Russian wildrye www.inspection.ga.ca prairiewild.com

46. Cool-season sod-forming grasses  Growth occurs in early spring or late fall  Growth forms a mat of roots or sod  Plants propagate from both seed and rhizomes or stolons  More tolerant of grazing

47. Kentucky bluegrass www.agry.purdue.edu

48. Brome, annual species  Soft chess / Blando brome  Japanese brome  Red brome  Undesirable species  Ripgut  Cheatgrass

49. Soft chess / Blando brome elib.cs.berkeley.edu

50. Japanese brome incolor.inebraska.com

51. Meadow brome www.agric.gov.ab.cawww.aginfonet.com

52. Red brome Burke Museum of Natural History

53. Smooth brome www.agry.purdue.edu UNCE, Reno, Nev.

54. Garrison creeping foxtail www.aginfonet.com agronomy.unl.edu

55. Meadow foxtail www.forages.css.orst.edu

56. Quackgrass www.ppws.vt.edu www.ipm.ucdavis.edu

57. Reed canarygrass www.agry.purdue.edu www.aginfonet.com

58. Streambank wheatgrass www.aginfonet.com

59. Thickspike wheatgrass NRCS Plant Database www.dnr.state.wi.us

60. Western wheatgrass www.inspection.ga.ca USDA Plant Gallery Kansas Grasses

61. Warm-season bunchgrasses  Growth occurs late spring to early summer  Growth occurs in clumps  Plants propagate by seed only  Grazing needs to be managed correctly so that seed heads do not form too early

62. Alkali sacaton www.noble.org

63. Big bluestem www.noble.org National Forage and Grasslands Curriculum www.noble.org

64. Little bluestem www.noble.org

65. Sideoats grama www.noble.org

66. Warm-season sod-forming grasses  Growth occurs in late spring to early summer  Growth forms a mat of roots or sod  Plants propagate from both seed and rhizomes or stolons  More tolerant of grazing

67. Indiangrass www.noble.org

68. Switchgrass

69. Sudangrass National Forage and Grasslands Curriculum www.agry.purdue.edu/ext/forages

70. Sorghum-Sudangrass hybrids www.agry.purdue.edu/ext/forages

71. Legumes  Plants that fix nitrogen from the air  Can reduce the need for nitrogen fertilizers  More growth in the hot summer months than grasses  Watch out for bloat  Need to be inoculated

72. Bloat Laurie Ball-Gisch

73. Alfalfa www.agry.purdue.edu www.aginfonet.com

74. Birdsfoot trefoil www.agry.purdue.edu UIUC

75. Alsike clover www.agry.purdue.edu Burke Museum

76. Red clover www.agry.purdue.edu www.noble.org

77. Strawberry clover clay.agr.okstate.edu

78. Subterranean clovers elib.cs.berkeley.edu

79. White clover www.agry.purdue.edu

80. Yellow and white sweetclover www.agry.purdue.edu

81. Sainfoin clay.agr.okstate.edu

82. Cicer milkvetch extension.agron.iastate.edu

83. Common vetch (also called spring vetch) www.noble.org National Forage and Grasslands Curriculum

84. Grass identification – it’s time to try your skills!

85. How much grass do I have?

86. Determine forage yield Construct a clipping ring using an eight foot long piece of cable that has been bolted together.

87. NRCS, Bozeman, Mont.

88. General estimates for determining forage yield Usable forage in reasonably good condition pasture = 35% of total forage Usable forage in “native” pasture or rangeland = 25% of total forage

89. Forage yield examples If the clipping weight is 200 grams, multiply by 20 for a total available forage yield of 4000 pounds per acre Usable forage – pasture 4000 lbs x 35% (0.35) = 1400 lb/acre Usable forage – “native” pasture 4000 lbs x 25% (0.25) = 1000 lb/acre

90. Forage availability estimates  Check your pasturelands handout to match hay yield to forage availability.  Clip the grasses for more accurate forage production figures

91. What are you going to do with your forage?  Graze it!  How long can you graze?  Just long enough that you preserve growing points and leaf area  Then you must rest your pasture

92. How long do you have to rest your pastures?  Depends upon:  Period in the growing season  Availability of irrigation water  Amount of active leaf area remaining following the grazing period  Cool-season grasses recover more quickly in spring and autumn

93. Approximate grazing length and regrowth periods SeasonGrazing lengthRegrowth period Spring4 – 5 days10 – 14 days Summer9 – 10 days21 – 30 days Late summer 12 – 15 days30 – 45 days

94. Wait a minute! I don’t have grazing animals!  What are you trying to manage?  What are your management goals?  Attract and maintain wildlife  Discourage wildlife  Defensible space  Aesthetics  Noxious weed management

95. Methods for removing forage  Mowing  Need equipment  Need grass species that grow upright  Be sure to maintain the growing points  Fertilize or add legumes  Leasing to livestock managers for grazing  Need to know your forage yield  Don’t assume management will be good

96. What about burning as a management tool?  Removes rank vegetation, duff, litter  Release mineralized nutrients  Manage some weeds  Regeneration of certain species  Control diseases and insects

97. Problems with burning  Smoke management  Unhappy neighbors  Requires a permit UNCE, Reno, Nev.

98. Problems with burning  Liability issues – wildfire, etc.  Melts plastic fences  Dust and ash issues  Short-term water quality issues UNCE, Reno, Nev.

99. Remember: love your grass as much as your animals and you’ll all be happy!  Identify what is growing in your pasture(s)  Determine which plant(s) to use as a “key species” for your pasture(s)  Determine the forage yield of your pasture(s)

100. Homework  Identify three of the most common grass and legume species in each of your pastures.  Select your key species.  Calculate forage yields.