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Calving season is my favorite time of year.  We calve starting in October, so the days are cooling off, the cattle are feeling better, and the days are still long.  Seeing those new calves hit the ground is the start of our annual cycle for the cow herd.  So far, we have had good luck,Continue reading “Triple Creek Journal.  October, 2026.  Here come the calves!”

Recommended planting dates for Tall Fescue are September 1 to September 30 in northern (colder) regions of the tall fescue belt, and September 15 to October 15 in central and southern regions.  These dates are ideal and give seedlings plenty of time to establish before freezing weather sets in.  In recent years there have beenContinue reading “Timely Tips for Tall Fescue Pasture Renovation. October 2026”

The following article is used with permission and is a preview of the Amazing Grazing Column in the Carolina Cattle Connection, November 2026 edition. Recently I had a message from my old friend Steve Washburn (whom I worked with for 30 years at NC State) asking me to remind him about how we started buryingContinue reading “What Do Men’s Underwear Have to Do with Soil Health?”

Why Stockpile Forage? Livestock producers should continually look for ways to reduce costs and improve the feed value of materials used in their operations. With high fuel prices, rising equipment costs, and increased maintenance expenses, making hay can quickly cut into profitability. North Carolina State University enterprise budgets estimate that cutting, tedding, raking, and roundContinue reading “Extending the Grazing Season”

We all know that developing a robust pasture-based livestock production system requires appropriate forage species that fit the environmental limitations and specific management conditions on your farm.  Keeping those target forages performing well over time means that you’ll have to focus more intently on the underlying soil that supports their growth.  But what does itContinue reading “How much do you know about your soil?”

Sometimes it seems that no matter what you do you just can’t win!  Our drought continues in earnest, keeping us in D3 for another month.  While we did have some rain in early August, we went the rest of the month without and only grew a little bit of grass.  We had an inch onContinue reading “Triple Creek Journal, September 2026”

September is a critical time for Tall Fescue Pasture Renovation. If you don’t have your critical dates set, make decisions and put the dates on your calendar.  Specific establishment calendars are available for most states on the Alliance website, or from your local extension agent.   For new stands to be planted this fall it isContinue reading “September Tall Fescue Pasture Renovation Tips.  Matt Poore for  the Alliance for Grassland Renewal.”

Is the nutritional composition of beef better or worse when cattle are raised and fed on pasture versus those fed grain in a feedlot?  Could a difference in beef composition be connected with soil health and the diversity of plants they eat?  These were questions posed by a research team at Duke University, NC StateContinue reading “Grass-fed vs feedlot beef – connections start from the ground up”

This is a preview of an article written for the Amazing Grazing column in the September 2026 Carolina Cattle Connection. Stockpiling late summer and autumn growth for winter grazing has been a practice used by beef producers all across the nation as a foundation for brood cow wintering programs.  In our region, producers can haveContinue reading “Consider stockpiling forage for winter grazing”

This year has been really tough for us, dominated by serious drought punctuated with brief periods of hope.  The drought started last September, and we had month after month of very dry weather.  Spring came, but was short lived with virtually no rain in April or May to grow grass.  We have never fed hayContinue reading “Triple Creek Journal, August, 2026: It’s been a roller coaster ride!”