When planted early, fall planted cereal rye can provide excellent cold-tolerant late fall grazing and more grazing again in the spring. Ideally, plant cereal rye as soon as possible after harvest and before two weeks after the 50% frost date.

For maximum fall grazing, the target is drilling prior to mid-September for 10-12 inches forage grazing height.

With that in mind, the question arises — is it too late to now plant rye this fall if row crops harvest prevented early drilling?

Based on UNL research, rye cover crops planted after corn in late October to late November and terminated in late April to early May will likely still produce at least 1,000 lbs./acre of dry matter.

Further, UNL Forage Specialist Jerry Volesky says that research plots drilled at North Platte during the fourth week of October will likely be successful establishing and producing good spring grazing and nitrogen (N) scavenging.

Since cereal rye is more winter-hardy than other small grains such as barley, wheat, and triticale, it can start growing when temperatures are as low as 32ºF and produce extensive, fibrous root systems. For later rye drilling, it is recommended to increase seeding rates 30% compared to the average seeding rates of 45-60 lbs./acre to compensate for less rye fall tillering and reduced fall growth.

The 2025 crop growing season has extended two weeks longer than average, but for adequate grazing next spring, the cereal rye fall drilling cutoff date is late November. Further, if fields are planted in late November, recommended spring termination dates will be after April 15.

More information regarding cover crops and cereal rye are available online at: https://cropswatch.unl.edu; https://beef.unl.edu or the free Midwest Cover Crop Selector Tool www.mccc.msu.edu/selector-tool/

By Todd Whitney

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