(LEX 18) — An unusually dry summer and a smaller hay yield has farmers wondering if they have enough forage to last until the spring.
“We had a very good spring cutting of hay, and the forage was probably 25, 30 percent larger in the spring than it usually is,” said Randel Arnett, owner of Paris Stockyard, “but you’re seeing a 25, 50 percent reduction in forages during the fall”
Arnett shared the stockyard has seen an unexpected surge in cattle sales.
“We’re seeing a surge of cattle that we usually don’t see until later October, earlier November that we’re seeing now. People are selling a month to two months ahead of time.”
According to drought.gov, 65.5 percent of the state was experiencing moderate to severe drought conditions entering this week.
Dr. Jimmy Henning, extension forage specialist in the University of Kentucky Plant and Soil Sciences Department, shared the time these dry conditions became a concern.
“The drought, if you want to call it that, became apparent at different times for different people. For us in central Kentucky, it was the first or second week in June,” said Dr. Henning. “We get half of our yield after June 15, so a lot of producers are looking at not much hay from mid-summer on.”
According to Arnett, most farmers wait to feed hay until late October or early November, but a number of farmers have already started.
“I’ve talked to a lot of farmers around the surrounding counties that are already feeding hay, and that’s where you’re seeing the biggest problems,” he said. “They don’t know if they’re going to have enough forage for their cattle to last until spring.”
“Some of our producers are going to be feeding hay for almost half of the year, and maybe more,” Dr. Henning added. “It’s got a lot of people, most everybody has to deal with livestock that they’re going to carry over the winter, thinking about, ‘how’s my hay supply, have I got enough?’”
Dr. Henning also shared that the lack of forage is impacting hay prices.
“It’s not like gold right now, but people are reluctant, if they’ve got hay, they’re reluctant to part with it, but it also is forcing the prices up higher.”
A week with wet weather in the forecast brings some hope that farmers will see one final spurt of growth, which could potentially help reduce the strain farmers are starting to feel.
