Late summer and early fall is one of my favorite times of the year. You can feel a literal change in the air with warm, sunny days and cool, crisp nights. I love watching the harvest in the fields and seeing the changing colors of the leaves.

Late fall cuttings
Poor fall harvest timing can negatively affect stored root food reserves, which can lead to poor winter survival. Given the cooler temperatures that are typical during the fall, it generally takes about six weeks for alfalfa to regrow and store adequate root reserves for winter survival.

The first frost of the autumn generally brings a flurry of forage- related questions. These questions usually center on three general topics:

Fall is a season for planting small grains, annual ryegrass, tall fescue, annual clovers, perennial clovers and alfalfa. This article will provide an overview of various fall forage species.