Native and Improved Pasture Seminar Set

The Extension Livestock and Range Committee in Williamson County has planned an excellent seminar for native range and improved grass producers in the area. There is not a single livestock producer that doesn’t want to be able to graze more animal units on their pastures without hurting long term forage growth. Knowing how to properly manage native rangeland or better utilizing improved pasture grasses is the goal of every livestock producer and this seminar will answer many the questions producers have. The goal of the committee is to answer producers questions like, should I plant range grasses or bermudagrass?, should I rotate my pastures and when?, what is the best grass to plant?, should I fertilize?, and more.

The Native and Improved Pasture Seminar is to be held Thursday, February 18 at the St. Cyril & Methodious Hall in Granger. Registration and Meal will start at 5:30 PM and the program at 6:00 PM. There will be two (2) General Pesticide CEU's offered. Speakers will include Dr. Bob Lyons on Native Pasture Management, Dr. Larry Redmon on Improved Pasture Management and Ron Leps on Pasture Management in Williamson County. Cost is $5 at the door and participants must preregister by email rwhitney@ag.tamu.edu or by phone 512/943-3300.

The program will begin with Dr. Robert Lyons, Extension Range Specialist - Uvalde, an expert in native range grasses and grazing systems. Dr. Lyons will discuss rangeland grazing systems, determining your forage base, protecting your forages from overgrazing, and newer selections of range grasses for seeding. Dr. Lyons will focus on properly managing the fragile ecosystem we have on our native ranges while increasing their productivity with livestock and wildlife management.

Following Dr. Lyons will be Dr. Larry Redmon, State Extension Forage Specialist - College Station. Dr. Redmon is an expert in improved forage production, specifically bermudagrasses. Dr. Redmon was formally at the Overton Research and Extension Center where he did work in bermudagrass variety evaluation, grazing management of improved forages, overseeding bermudagrass, and fertility and weed control of improved pastures. Dr. Redmon will focus on improved pasture programs that will help livestock producers improve quality and quantity to maximize livestock return. He will also discuss some brand new weed control options with preemerge chemicals.

Last on the program is Ron Leps, Retired Williamson County Extension Agent. Mr. Leps has extensive experience with managing pastures in this area and he will relate some of his experiences to producers. Ron will help producers know what works in the area but more importantly what doesn’t work.

Make plans to attend the Native and Improved Pasture Seminar, Thursday, February 18 at the Hall in Granger. Sponsors are Williamson County Grain Inc. in Taylor, Dow AgroSciences, BASF Crop Protection, and Capital Farm Credit in Taylor.