Herbage Production from Hay Fields Grazed by Cattle in Fall and Spring

Grazing hay fields (meadows) by beef cattle (Bos taurus L.) during portions of the year when hay traditionally is fed to the beef herd in the northeastern USA as a partial alternative to harvested hay, was examined in regard to yield and quality of forage produced. Four management systems were compared: (i) early spring grazing, one hay cutting, and late fall grazing (GHG), (ii) two cuttings of hay (HH), (iii) early spring grazing and two cuttings of hay (GHH), and (iv) one hay cutting and late fall grazing (HG), applied to tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea Schreb.) (TF) and orchardgrass (Dactylis glomerata L.) (OG) meadows. Early spring grazing decreased and late fall grazing increased total annual herbage dry matter yield over that produced by HH. Spring yields did not differ between forage species; however, fall and total annual dry matter yields tended to be greater for TF than for OG (3150 vs. 2540 lb/acre for the fall and 7300 vs. 6540 for the total). Based on lower fiber and greater crude protein (CP) concentrations, and higher in vitro dry matter digestibility (IVDMD), the quality of the first cutting (spring) hay was greater from meadows grazed early in the spring than for meadows ungrazed in the spring. Management of meadows in the fall did not influence the chemical composition of spring‐grazed forage. Except for decreased CP levels, tall fescue consistently maintained higher quality than OG for both the aftermath hay harvest and forage accumulated for fall grazing. Metabolizable energy intake also was greater for the cattle grazing TF in the fall than for those grazing OG.