Extension agents help Virginia cattle producers navigate historic drought
The commonwealth remains in a multiyear drought that is reshaping cattle and pasture management decisions across the mid-Atlantic.
Most years when Tim Service ’79 travels the roads near his cattle farm in Patrick County, he sees vibrant green pastures full of grazing cows and picturesque green hayfields covered in long rows of cut grass, drying before being turned into bales and stored for winter feed.
“This year, everything is dry and brown,” Service said. “Everyone is worried about selling cattle and buying hay this fall.”
Along with most of Virginia, Service and his neighbors are experiencing a historic drought that is hitting cattle farmers particularly hard. Drought in the spring affected the critical growth period for the cool-season grasses that supply both grazing and winter hay to livestock, and farmers are reporting hay yields dropping by as much as 70 percent.
As producers weigh difficult decisions about feeding their herds, Virginia Cooperative Extension agents provide guidance on management decisions while collecting disaster assessment data to help paint a clearer picture of the drought's impact. They also recommend research-based grazing practices to help farmers improve drought resilience for the future.
“This is our third consecutive year of drought, and it’s the worst we’ve seen,” said Tim Mize, Extension agent in Fauquier County. “Our farmers are harvesting only a fraction of their normal hay yields, and many of them have been considering supplemental food — something we don’t normally need to worry about until late summer or fall.”
With less forage for their herds, producers are weighing the rising costs of supplemental feed against historically high cattle prices. Many are choosing to market calves sooner or sell older cows to protect the long-term productivity of their operations.
Secretarial drought disaster designations have been issued for 72 Virginia counties and cities, allowing eligible farmers in those areas to receive compensation for drought-related losses. In his role as an Extension agent, Mize is helping farmers navigate this process and encouraging them to begin planning for future droughts.
Why is this drought so bad?
Extension forage specialist John Fike, professor in the School of Plant of Environmental Sciences, estimates that producers are putting up only 25 to 33 percent of their normal hay yield, with even high yields being only about 50 percent of normal.
“If that’s your hayfield, you can imagine production in the pasture is going to be in the same ballpark,” Fike said. “We’re looking at one third of the production we would normally have in spring.”
Managing a farm under these conditions is extremely difficult. Producers desperate to feed their animals can end up overgrazing their pastures, allowing animals to consume more grass than is healthy for the plant without giving it time to recover.
“Any time a pasture is stressed and begins to die back, gaps open,” Fike said. “That leads to more opportunities for weed invasion and more vulnerability to soil erosion if we get a hard rain.”
Research-based grazing practices offer solutions
Seven years ago, Service began using a variety of forage management strategies based on the research and advice of Virginia Cooperative Extension and Virginia Tech’s Agriculture Research and Extension Centers. Those practices include incorporating native warm-season grasses, adding summer annuals, and adopting rotational grazing, which means moving his cattle through different sections of pasture and allowing grazed pastures time to rest and fully recover.
“Even though this year things have grown more slowly, my fields are still green and I can move my cattle through,” Service said. “So far, I’m not concerned about selling cattle or buying hay.”
He added, “These strategies have made a tremendous difference on our operation. My soil organic matter has increased, and my rainwater retention has increased.”
Extension also promotes summer stockpiling, a practice developed at the Shenandoah Valley Agricultural Research and Extension Center that involves setting aside a portion of cool-season pasture during spring and allowing it to accumulate standing forage for late-summer grazing.
Still, adopting new practices can be a difficult decision when producers must balance long-term benefits against short-term costs and risk. That's where Extension specialists like Fike and Mize play a critical role — working alongside agencies like the U.S. Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service to help producers make informed decisions for their operations.
For producers weighing questions such as whether to invest in summer annuals for their pastures and hope for rain or to delay cutting hay as diesel fuel costs continue to rise, Mize's advice is simple.
“These are questions where you want to put pen to paper and figure it out for your farm,” he said. “Reach out to your local Extension agent. We’re happy to help.”
For help navigating the drought, farmers can view a suite of drought-related resources on the Virginia Cooperative Extension website, including a recent webinar series that covers strategies for feeding cattle and dealing with drought, including recommendations for supplemental feeding and associated nutrition considerations.
