Rainfall and Texas Agriculture

Moisture a Concern for Forage Producers

Rains and the threat of rain have kept forage producers in hay-producing regions of Texas out of fields and behind schedule for the season, according to a Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service expert. The delays represent numerous problems and potential problems for hay producers. Just two months ago, drought was the main concern for Texas forage producers who cut and bale warm-season crops like Coastal Bermuda grass to feed their cattle during the winter or market to livestock operations near and far. But too much rain has been the chief concern among forage producers in the eastern half of the state for more than a month, said Vanessa Corriher-Olson, AgriLife Extension forage specialist, Overton. Hay meadows with fences and a water source were likely grazed out, but the majority of production acres don’t have those resources available. “The inability to access fields is the main concern,” Corriher-Olson said. “Fields are too saturated. You can get stuck in a regular truck in well-drained sandy soil, so it makes getting in with heavier equipment to cut and bale or apply fertilizer or herbicide very difficult.” Some producers were able to get a first cutting baled before the rains settled in, she said. Some were able to cut and rake their hay into windrows, but rains came before the cuttings could cure. Curing, the process in which cut hay dries down, is a critical balancing act that preserves the plant material and nutritive value and prevents potential losses. Too much moisture can promote two major problems in hay bales – mold, which spoils it as forage for livestock, and heat, which can make tightly wound bales extremely combustible. The haying process can take one to three days depending on weather conditions like temperature, cloudy or sunny skies, or wind and humidity levels. Hay in windrows can dry quickly on sunny, arid and breezy days but could take longer during cloudy, humid and still conditions. Corriher-Olson said forecasts have not provided good windows of opportunity for the process. “Access is the biggest problem, but even the producers who can get in their fields might be looking at a forecast with chances of rain for multiple days each week,” she said. “They either have to risk it or wait. But it’s hard to make decisions with rain in the forecast every day.”