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The UGA Forages website is your window to information on a wide variety of forage management issues.

This information is extended to you by scientists from the University of Georgia, who continue to research all aspects of forage and livestock management. The recommendations found here are based on peer-reviewed research conducted in Georgia and throughout the world. The website provides accurate and up-to-date information about all forage management issues facing producers in Georgia and the Southeast.

Please check this website regularly for updates, upcoming events, and hot topics.


From the Blog

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UGA Forage Extension Team
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Fire Ant Control
To be so tiny, ants can cause lots of turmoil in our hayfields and pastures including equipment damage, employee harm (i.e. loading square bales), and just plain aggravation. Many times we as livestock or hay producers have what we consider more pressing things to attend to: fertilizing, armyworm control, or...
UGA Forage Extension Team
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Bale Grazing 101
The late Alan Nation, longtime editor of ‘The Stockman Grass Farmer’ was fond of encouraging readers to identify any “unfair advantage” they had and to use that advantage to the fullest. Those advantages may be very specific to a particular operation or they may be more regional. In the Southeast,...
UGA Forage Extension Team
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Minimizing Hay Storage and Feeding Losses
Hay is the most widely grown, mechanically-harvested agronomic crop in the United States. According to USDA, in 2019, the United States produced more than 57.7 million acres of forage crops harvested for hay. Annual production from this acreage is over 140 million tons of hay valued at more than 18...
UGA Forage Extension Team
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Minerals for Grazing Cattle
It is a generally accepted fact that mineral supplementation is an important part of ruminant nutrition. Proper mineral and vitamin nutrition contribute to strong immune systems, reproductive performance, and weight gain. A properly balanced mineral program requires consideration of animal nutritional needs, forage/feed intake and its mineral concentration, and mineral...

Georgia Forages Events Calendar

The GrassMasters program is a 7–week long series of seven educational workshops that focus on forage production. Workshops will be held virtually every Monday beginning November 2nd. This program is an INTRODUCTION to forage production systems and is highly recommended for those of you just getting your "feet wet" when it comes to planning or improving a forage system. Programs will be taught by the UGA Forage Team members as well as NRCS staff. Nov. 2 - IntroductionNov. 9 - Fertilization of Perennial GrassesNov. 16 - Pest Management StrategiesNov. 23 - Hay Production and ManagementNov. 30 - Understanding Forage QualityDec. 7 - Grazing Management and PlanningDec. 14 - Improving Soil Health and NRCS Programs $25.00 Register by October 21st
Nov 02
6:30PM - 7:30PM GrassMasters Virtual Series (1 educational workshop per week for 7 weeks) https://tinyurl.com/grassmastersvirtual
The GrassMasters program is a 7–week long series of seven educational workshops that focus on forage production. Workshops will be held virtually every Monday beginning November 2nd. This program is an INTRODUCTION to forage production systems and is highly recommended for those of you just getting your "feet wet" when it comes to planning or improving a forage system. Programs will be taught by the UGA Forage Team members as well as NRCS staff. Nov. 2 - IntroductionNov. 9 - Fertilization of Perennial GrassesNov. 16 - Pest Management StrategiesNov. 23 - Hay Production and ManagementNov. 30 - Understanding Forage QualityDec. 7 - Grazing Management and PlanningDec. 14 - Improving Soil Health and NRCS Programs $25.00 Register by October 21st
Nov 09
6:30PM - 7:30PM GrassMasters Virtual Series (1 educational workshop per week for 7 weeks) https://tinyurl.com/grassmastersvirtual
The GrassMasters program is a 7–week long series of seven educational workshops that focus on forage production. Workshops will be held virtually every Monday beginning November 2nd. This program is an INTRODUCTION to forage production systems and is highly recommended for those of you just getting your "feet wet" when it comes to planning or improving a forage system. Programs will be taught by the UGA Forage Team members as well as NRCS staff. Nov. 2 - IntroductionNov. 9 - Fertilization of Perennial GrassesNov. 16 - Pest Management StrategiesNov. 23 - Hay Production and ManagementNov. 30 - Understanding Forage QualityDec. 7 - Grazing Management and PlanningDec. 14 - Improving Soil Health and NRCS Programs $25.00 Register by October 21st
Nov 16
6:30PM - 7:30PM GrassMasters Virtual Series (1 educational workshop per week for 7 weeks) https://tinyurl.com/grassmastersvirtual
The GrassMasters program is a 7–week long series of seven educational workshops that focus on forage production. Workshops will be held virtually every Monday beginning November 2nd. This program is an INTRODUCTION to forage production systems and is highly recommended for those of you just getting your "feet wet" when it comes to planning or improving a forage system. Programs will be taught by the UGA Forage Team members as well as NRCS staff. Nov. 2 - IntroductionNov. 9 - Fertilization of Perennial GrassesNov. 16 - Pest Management StrategiesNov. 23 - Hay Production and ManagementNov. 30 - Understanding Forage QualityDec. 7 - Grazing Management and PlanningDec. 14 - Improving Soil Health and NRCS Programs $25.00 Register by October 21st
Nov 23
6:30PM - 7:30PM GrassMasters Virtual Series (1 educational workshop per week for 7 weeks) https://tinyurl.com/grassmastersvirtual
The GrassMasters program is a 7–week long series of seven educational workshops that focus on forage production. Workshops will be held virtually every Monday beginning November 2nd. This program is an INTRODUCTION to forage production systems and is highly recommended for those of you just getting your "feet wet" when it comes to planning or improving a forage system. Programs will be taught by the UGA Forage Team members as well as NRCS staff. Nov. 2 - IntroductionNov. 9 - Fertilization of Perennial GrassesNov. 16 - Pest Management StrategiesNov. 23 - Hay Production and ManagementNov. 30 - Understanding Forage QualityDec. 7 - Grazing Management and PlanningDec. 14 - Improving Soil Health and NRCS Programs $25.00 Register by October 21st
Nov 30
6:30PM - 7:30PM GrassMasters Virtual Series (1 educational workshop per week for 7 weeks) https://tinyurl.com/grassmastersvirtual
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Keep checking this space for upcoming events!


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Forage News

UGA Animal and Dairy Science Department Head Francis L. Fluharty (right) and Dengpan Bu, professor of animal nutrition in the Institute of Animal Science of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, met to discuss ideas for collaboration and sign an MOU two years ago. The departments hope to expand the relationship to include undergraduate and graduate student exchanges. (file photo) CAES News
UGA Animal and Dairy Science Department Head Francis L. Fluharty (right) and Dengpan Bu, professor of animal nutrition in the Institute of Animal Science of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, met to discuss ideas for collaboration and sign an MOU two years ago. The departments hope to expand the relationship to include undergraduate and graduate student exchanges. (file photo)
UGA animal and dairy science class collaborates with counterparts in China
An animal and dairy science class at the University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences (CAES) is gaining international experience by establishing a virtual collaboration with the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences in the Institute of Animal Science (CAAS-IAS) in Beijing, China. This intercultural partnership allows students and faculty to sustain a joint scientific effort while travel is largely suspended due to COVID-19.
Fescue contains an endophyte — a fungus that lives within the plant — that gives the grass desirable attributes but produces alkaloids that are toxic to animals who graze on it, a defense mechanism meant to prevent overgrazing. Pictured are the slender tubes of the endophytic fungus (Neotyphodium coendophialum) in the intercellular spaces of tall fescue. CAES News
Fescue contains an endophyte — a fungus that lives within the plant — that gives the grass desirable attributes but produces alkaloids that are toxic to animals who graze on it, a defense mechanism meant to prevent overgrazing. Pictured are the slender tubes of the endophytic fungus (Neotyphodium coendophialum) in the intercellular spaces of tall fescue.
UGA researchers seek targets to mitigate fescue toxicity in cattle
A $500,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture will allow researchers at the University of Georgia to examine the minutiae of cattle and fescue microbiome interaction to find targets that will help mitigate the effects of fescue toxicosis, a forage-related condition that costs the U.S. beef industry more than $1 billion each year.
Cottonseed is not only more readily available to Georgia farmers, it is also less expensive. Pictured is cotton seed and cotton cake. CAES News
Cottonseed is not only more readily available to Georgia farmers, it is also less expensive. Pictured is cotton seed and cotton cake.
UGA researcher uses 'cotton cake' as protein supplement in dairy cattle diets
John Bernard, a professor and dairy scientist at the University of Georgia Tifton campus, has found that a type of cottonseed meal is an effective protein supplement for dairy cattle.
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