Hi,

I have a couple of questions. I recently purchased 56 acres South of Taylor Texas. The dirt is a black color (not the sandy soil found further south). Currently the land is being leased to a Farmer who is growing Cotton. His crop is coming off in October.

Question - After the Cotton is harvested in October, are there any suggestions on what I should do to start preparing the land for Hay (Tifton 85)? I am told the best time to put in the "tops" is April or May.

I just want to make sure I am doing what needs to be done with the land before April to ensure it stays in good condition. Some things pop into mind...should I Disc it? Round up? Lime? Soil test?

Thanks! Your help is much appreciated!

John,
Get a soil test done and fertilize and lime based on the results of that.

I would round up anything that comes up in the early spring but no later than that and you should have a good seed bed for planting sprigs or tops.

John, I'm on blackland soil in central Texas. Definitly soil test to see what you need to do for fertilizer & PH.
For ground prep & "a good seed bed" you'll need to plow more than once before actuall sprigging time or tops planting time.
As an example I sprigged 25 acres three weeks ago w/ Tifton-85. The wheat stubble had been deep plowed once & disked once before December. On Christmas weekend '05 I put fertilizer down & plowed it in with a disk, which helped further reduce clods & cut the wheat straw more. Three weeks later I ran the disk plow over it again, plowing at a different angle. Then, around the first or second week of March I went over it with a tooth harrow which smoothed the ground out further & pulled any short rooted grasses & weeds. About a 1 1/2 weeks before the sprigger would show up I sprayed the field w/ roundup & a broad leaf killer. The reason for the harrow in March & spraying in April is that I didn't want to deep plow or disk because I wanted to preserve soil mosture.
The sprigger works a bit as a plow too. If you plant tops you'll have to plow in as well. Immediately after sprigging or planting tops you should go over the field with a packer, roller, or cultipacker to firm up the ground further. You should also consider putting down 2-4-D after sprigging or planting to control the competition. Once you've planted or sprigged, keeping the competition at bay is your # 1 priority.
I've found the more land prep you put into it the greater the chance you'll have sucess. You can plow it once a couple of weeks before planting or sprigging, but you are not giving yourself the best opprotunity for sucess.

Thanks for the info guys!

Stephen, is 2-4-D a herbicide?

John, yes 2,4-D amine. Specifically used after sprigging as a Pre-Emergent herbicide. Other's that could be used for pre-emergent would include weedmaster & I believe Direx 4l or Diuron 4l.
This link will provide some additional info for you. http://www.cpes.peachnet.edu/fat/formanag.htm
Shoot me an email if you'd like, ousef0@yahoo.com. I'm no expert, but I've learned a lot over the last 6 years that I've had Tifton 85 & would be happy to share what I do know.

John -

To apply 2, 4-D you need an applicator's license. And, because you are in cotton country, you will need an additional spray permit between May 1 and October 31. Just something to take care of during the off season.

John,

I prefer to use Grazon P+D as the pre-emergent. It's 2-4-D but the picloram provides a longer kill period.

http://www.dowagro.com/range/products/grazonPD.htm

Keep in mind that for 56 acres at 4 pints per acre, you'll need a little over 11 of the 2 1/2 gallon jugs and a decent sized field sprayer.

2,4-D ester has NO residual effect. 2,4-D amine may last a couple of weeks