If you have any questions don't hesitate to contact me. He called me and told me that a few weeks later he noticed every one of his cattle were grazing only on the side he sprayed. One person in South Carolina purchased several drums, but only sprayed half his pasture because he didn't know if it would work. The reduction of sage grass by Agri-Gro's Calcium has been a major selling factor for us. Many of our customers knew about our calcium for years, but being cautious they waited to purchase some only after talking to someone who used it and found out it was working well on their fields. I also spoke to the owners of Agri-Gro who confirmed the reports of their calcium and sage grass reduction. In fact, this is the reason why he said he purchased the calcium from me. In the spring of 2020, I received a call from a person in Charloettesville, Virginia who said he talked to a rancher who had a 50% reduction of sage after using Agri-Gro Liquid Calcium. Virtually every single person who had sage grass reported a reduction after the first year. So a couple years ago (around 2018) we started asking our customers about what effect it has had on their Sage Grass. However, we have been hearing for many years about how Agri-Gro Calcium was reducing sage grass. However, if this is all you do, the conditions that allowed for the sage grass to appear is still there. You can use the rope method on well-grazed pastures when the sage is actively growing. However, this is not advisable because it kills everything, both good grass and bad. One way is to spray it with vegetation killer, such as Round-Up. Burning it or mowing is not an effective treatment. Sage grass has virtually no pests or disease problems. In a case that was followed in Missouri, it took 5 years to see the preferred grass finally winning the battle. It can take many years to finally rid your pastures of sage. In this way it makes the soil less suitable for sage grass and more preferable to your grass type. One key solution is to fix all nutrient problems thus rebuilding the soil to the specifications of your grass type, followed by rotational grazing. I have heard this from many people who walked me through their efforts to get rid of sage grass. It has been often reported that adding lime didn't actually hinder the growth of sage. Due to the variations that can affect P availability, it is recommended that a soil test be performed to determine what is actually lacking. The phosphorus problem can be either from low phosphorus levels in the soil or because the low pH has bound up the P in the soil, making it unavailable to plants. This is generally low pH and low phosphorus conditions. Soil Conditions that Sage Grass PreferĪs mentioned, sage grass prefers over-grazed and poorly maintained fields. As the grass matures, it becomes unpalatable so cattle avoid it. The problem is that sage grass is low in nutrients. It is generally not their first choice and will often only graze it when better grass is in short supply. The first year is basically the only growth stage of sage grass that cattle will graze on it since the grass is more tender and palatable at this stage. However, in pastures it is generally ignored by cattle except in the first year's growth. It requires no maintenance once it is established. It is drought resistant and has a well-developed root system that helps keep soil in place on hillsides and seasonal creek banks. Sage grass can also be used for erosion control in difficult sites. In cool season grass pastures, as in the photo, the sage stands a few feet above the pasture grass. If you want to see sage grass in its natural environment, the winter months are the best times. When used in flower gardens and sitting gardens that get plenty of sunlight, people say they love the color the grass provides. The tan color often is used to offset the green vegetation of landscape plants. It is grown and used as a landscape plant and sold in commercial nurseries. Sage Grass UsesĪlthough it is an undesirable grass in pastures, it does have some uses elsewhere. Due to landscape uses and planted grass that escaped cultivation, it can now be found from California to the east coast. It has been hard to pinpoint the exact range of sage grass, but I know from my customers and website visitors that it exists from Virginia and down. Its natural range is in the far south from Texas to Florida and upwards to at least Maryland. In this case, it is an indicator of poorly maintained, low nutrient fields. The definition of a signal grass means its presence indicates that much greater problems exist in the soil. It is also referred to as a type of signal or indicator grass. Often referred to simply as "Sage Grass" or "Sage", it is a native grass to the U.S. Broomsedge Bluestem grass is no stranger to the fields in the south and Mid-West.
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