Teff Hay?

[bdw593]

I've been reading up on this hay as a annual hay crop. Anyone on here had any experience with this type of hay? From what I've read this seems to be a high yeilding annual crop.
I have about 30+ acres that I'm thinking about replanting and just running some ideas through my head and would like some input.

 

[RobA]

Do you want an annual as a hay crop rather than a perenial?

 

[TwinWillows]

We went to the UK field day @ teh Princeton station last year & they had a demo plot of Teff hay. Even in the drought it looked good. You might want to try & contact someone there to find out more.

 

[jimg]

Plus its very drought tolerant. Seeing as its only popular in Africa getting seed could be difficult. Until your post Id never heard of it. If you do find seed Id be very interested in where and how much $. According to what I read it really yields well! If youre planning to sell it Im sure there will be some (perhaps significant) marketing work also involved. On the face of it though it sounds like it might work. I think Id consider using it on top of a warm season grass though. Otherwise, you be doing a lot of planting which means youll need a steady supply of seed.

I would really appreciate it if you could update this thread as you discover more info and decide what youre going to do.

Heres a source for seed....Hankins Seed :: Grass Seed

 

[bdw593]

I just found out that the local Southern States is having a representative on hand on the 25th of this month in regards to Teff hay. From what I've been reading, even though it is an annual, the yeilds are very high, and very drought resistant. Since the drought we had last year there has been several people interested in Teff.
From those I have talked to there were several test plots planted in Kentucky, Tennesee as well as throughout the midwest, and the outcomes were very favorable. I've heard that the Teff is as good as if not better than many of the traditional hays. I'm very interested in what the rep has to say,
I'll keep this thread updated, any other info would be appreciated.

 

[chh]

Let us know what you find out. I have read several articles that were very high on it.

 

[bdw593]

Tiffany Teff Grass is for high quality grass hay
Heres a website with some prices and basic info for anyone interested.

 

[jimg]

I just found out that the local Southern States is having a representative on hand on the 25th of this month in regards to Teff hay. From what I've been reading, even though it is an annual, the yeilds are very high, and very drought resistant. Since the drought we had last year there has been several people interested in Teff.
From those I have talked to there were several test plots planted in Kentucky, Tennesee as well as throughout the midwest, and the outcomes were very favorable. I've heard that the Teff is as good as if not better than many of the traditional hays. I'm very interested in what the rep has to say,
I'll keep this thread updated, any other info would be appreciated.

Thats interesting SS is going to handle the seed. Id be interested in what their rep has to say about it + pricing and availability.

I also read about the high yields and palatability and that part looks great. According to the guy at Hankin Seed it goes dormant during drought. So you need considerable rain or irrigation to get the high yield. Im not sure you would have been any better off growing Teff in a drought situation. This would be a good question to ask the SS rep. Id like to know if what he says agrees w/ what I was told.

ETA: One more thing...I was also told the seed rate was about 5lbs/ac. That seemed really small until he mentioned how small the seed is. I wished I would have asked about using it w/ a NT drill. This might also be good to ask you SS rep...seed rate and what challenges you might encounter NT planting.

 

[Eastinlet]

Sounds like it may be a winner. Sorghum, sudan, and millet are warm season annuals with high yields, but are coarse and said to be hard to dry down.

Anybody here grow switchgrass? I have no hay experience with it, but have grown it during mine reclamation on droughty soils. Supposedly high yields with the benefit of hanging on during drought. The stuff is tough and has roots that go down to China.

 

[jimg]

Alot of Sudan grass is grouwn around here for cattle. I dont think those are good (or at least preferred) for horses. Youre right they can be really high yield!

Switch grass is supposed to be grown around here as part of the alternative energy 'program' -- converted to ethanol. Otherwise, I dont think theres much interest in it as a food source.

The only problem I see w/ Teff is that youre dependent on a seed supplier.

 

[chh]

Many grasses are annual. Would the Teff ,if you skipped a late cutting, not go to seed and come back the next year? That is what is recommended for for some of the pasture type grasses and clovers. Or is its life cycle such that once mowed it won't head out and seed?

 

[jimg]

I dont know. Nothing Ive read talks about letting it self seed. The articles frame the discussion in term of best yield. I think self seeding works if the plant isnt a hybrid.

 

[jimg]

Got a good size pack of info about Teff from Hankins Seed Co last night. Bottom line, Teff is a warm season annual which can be used like any other (Sudan grass etc). Unlike most other warm season annuals Teff is suited to both horses and cattle.

 

[jimg]

Finally got a hold of someone at SS who knows about Teff! They currently sell the Dessie variety and will eventually carry Excaliber. I think I understood them to say when the Dessie was gone theyd only carry Excaliber....could be wrong about that though. At the moment Dessie is the only variety available and thats still in transit. My local SS dealer had no clue about Teff and I had to contact the corp office for info. In case thats your situation the SS item # for Dessie is 02142425 and Excaliber is 02142426. That info will aid your local dealer to quickly get price/availability. I also have a SS pdf blurb that gives some management guidelines. If youre interested I can email that. Its not a lot of info but does give a good summary.

Most trials (that Ive found) have been done somewhere other than the south so performance is hard to understand (if thats where youre located) but its supposed to tolerate drought well and adapted to that area. The SS corp guy mentioned VT had or was doing trials w/ Teff at Blacksburg. None of that data has been published? Im trying to find that out now.

To me Teff seems like a great deal. It establishes quickly, needs only moderate amts N to make a good crop, produces at a time of the year when nothing else does and seed is reasonably priced. The best part is it makes best use of my hay ground assuming an annual cool season grass for the first cut. I think it might be the only warm season annual thats suitable for horses and cattle. From what Ive read so far it doesnt have the bad qualities of some other warm season annuals (such as Prussic acid poisoning).

 

[jimg]

Looks like I dont have to mess w/ SS and can get seed from my coop. So, Im going to put in a couple small test plots this yr., small hay field & pasture, and see how they do. Ill report back on the results.....

 

[hayseed]

Target Seed Target Seed, LLC | Quality Alfalfa Seed Varieties for Growers has much information on teff grass on their website. They even have a Tiffany Teff forage management guide you can download. Tiffany Teff is by far the cadillac of teff grass. It was selected specifically for forage yield and quality. Target Seed has many distributors/ dealers througout the US. They are doing many cooperative research projects with teff grass with major universities. Hay and Forage magazine has had several articles on teff grass. Target Seed supplied much of the information and pictures for the article. Good luck.

 

[jimg]

Thanx hayseed...as for my reply to your PM...I was wrong, hadnt been to Targets site (confused it w/ another). Thanx for pointing it out! This year Im going to plant a small plot of Dessie. Its been on order w/ my coop for several weeks and due in next. If all goes well w/ my test field Im pretty sure Ill make a permanent planting the year after.

 

[ricefly]

Dear Sir;
Teff is a warm season annual. Don't plant it until ALL chance of frost is
gone. Frost will kill it!!! It is small seeded and needs a good seed to soil contact. If the soil is warm and moist, it can germinate and sprout in 5 -7 days. In about 50 days, one can take the first cutting. Leave a 3 -4 inch
stubble and in 30 days, take the second cutting. One should get 3 -4 cuttings per year. Seed at 8 -10 lbs / acre (there are 1.3 M/ seeds/ lb).
Cutting it before it heads too much can help push quality as high as 14%
protein. It is an annual and will be killed with the first frost in the fall. It tends to mellow the soil. It is NOT a crop to be "frost seeded" as the frost
WILL kill it!!!
Numerous seed folks will be handling it this spring.