Developing Rainfed Annual Forage Rotations.

Producers lack proven annual forage crop rotations like those for grain crops. Forages are an important crop in the central Great Plains for the cow-calf, stocker, feeder, and dairy industries. The objective of this research was to evaluate different crop rotations of winter triticale, forage sorghum, and either spring oat or spring triticale. Both experiments were a randomized complete block with four replications, with all crop phases present each year. Treatments in the first experiment were 1) continuous winter triticale (T-T), 2) continuous forage sorghum (FS-FS), 3) continuous winter triticale/forage sorghum (T/FS-T/FS), and 4) winter triticale/forage sorghum-spring oat (T/FS-O). In the first experiment, spring oat or spring triticale was found to be a good crop for transitioning between forage sorghum and winter triticale. Diversifying the rotation to include all three crop types reduced the risk of crop failure and improved weed control. In the second experiment treatments were 1) continuous forage sorghum (FS-FS), 2) winter triticale/double crop forage sorghum-forage sorghum-spring oat (T/S-S-O), 3) same as treatment 2 (T/S-S-O), but tilled after spring oat, 4) winter triticale/double crop forage sorghum-forage sorghum-forage sorghum-spring oat (T/S-S-S-O), 5) same as treatment 4, but tilled after spring oat, and 6) winter triticale-forage sorghum-spring oat (T-S-O). Forage sorghum produced twice the biomass as winter triticale, which produced twice the biomass of spring oat or spring triticale. Forage quality of triticale and oat was greater than forage sorghum. During drought years double cropping forage sorghum after winter triticale was not successful and T-S-O was the best treatment. In normal to wet years either T/S-S-O or T/S-S-S-O was the best treatment. In years with dry spring conditions not planting spring oats should be considered.