Late-maturing hay, forage quality, and grassland birds: Conservation you can chew on

Harvesting of conventional hayfields is done to maximize forage quality for beef cattle but often results in high mortality of grassland birds. In fact the timing of cut is believed to be a major contributing factor in the decline of grassland birds across North America. A delayed cutting time has been shown to remedy high mortality rates but the nutritional value of such conventional forage is questionable. Here we examine if a late maturing hay cultivar can provide adequate forage for livestock under a delayed cutting regime. Three hayfields were planted with the late cultivar Comtal ^® timothy and winter seeded with Altaswede ^® red clover in Annapolis County, Nova Scotia, Canada. A delayed cut date of July 7^th was chosen as local grassland birds fledge the majority of their young by the first week of July. In 2005, forage samples were collected weekly from late cultivar hayfields and adjacent conventional hayfields from June 15^th to July 19^th. Crude protein (CP) levels from late maturing hayfields were higher then in conventional fields and were suitable for calves and pregnant females (>11%). No difference was found in acid detergent fibre (ADF) between field types. Calcium (Ca) levels in the late maturing cultivar were sufficient except for growing calves but phosphorus (P) levels were lower than recommended, although a sufficient Ca:P ratio was observed for the three July samples. The findings support the concept that a late maturing hay cultivar, with some minor phosphorus supplementation, can provide adequate forage for beef cattle, while improving habitat for grassland birds.