I have a 28 acre pasture where the soil is primarily clay just outside of Rockdale, TX. I am thinkin about seeding klein grass and wanted to know the positives or negatives with regards to hay production and cattle grazing on klein. My other pasture is a mix of tifton and coastal, but the soil is much better there. Any suggestions or advice? I will only have cattle on the pasture I am planting the klein on.

Can't say on cattle grazing, but cattle positively love the hay. Bug I found out the hard way, don't try to get that last cutting of hay. It needs to be left standing to reseed, as it is an annual, I believe. Had a beautiful stand at dads place when i was a young buck. Made a last cutting of hay, beautiful stuff, but didn't have hardly a single stem next spring.

Oh, and it was blackland that we planted it in.

Kleingrass tends to do better in thinner soils than blackland clay, but it can be done with some of the newer varieties. Whatever the variety, it does not tolerate overgrazing. Cattle love it, so you need to make sure to get them off of it so they don't destroy the crown of the grass if the grass production slows down due to drought or cooler temperatures. So you'll need a winter pasture to put them on so they don't graze it to the ground. A plus is if the grass gets a little tough and rank, you can always supplement it with some protein tubs, and the cattle will be just fine.

Klein is an excellent choice, and it is NOT an annual, but a perennial. It's prolific seed production helps maintain itself year to year, but as has been mentioned, it is susceptible to overgrazing. Much moreso than Coastal/Tifton.

An added bonus is its good quail habitat.

I have it in several fields totaling about 50 acres. Typical cut only yields 100 or so 5' round bales (I sell it to someone who cuts it for me). We usually cut twice a year (early summer and late fall)

Have had it for about 10 years or so and it is still filling in from the initial seeding (bunch grass).

I have only fertilized / spayed for weeds every 3-5 years - so low maintenance.

I've been working with kleingrass on my own place and professionally for over 40 years. It is a "tri-purpose" grass, if there ever was one. With heavy management (fertilizer and weed control) it is very productive (not Tifton/coastal productive, but productive) for grazing or haying. I've seen cattle pass over Tifton hay for kleingrass hay. A 6 inch height is as low as you should ever go to maintain the stand. It can also work out in a "range" situation with no extra inputs, but the stand is more likely to thin. Letting it seed in the fall helps maintain stand thickness, even if it is a perennial, and it also means you've got growth for winter filler. It is a MUCH better standing crop in winter than any Bermudagrass variety. As far as wildlife habitat goes……..as a grass seed, it's like other grass seed for quail - better than nothing, but still not what quail really need. As a bunch grass, it's ok for nesting, but certainly no little bluestem. It does have the ability to keep green shoots underneath early in the spring, and I've seen many a deer grazing the tender growth. For soils, it does not like deep sandy ground, and likes good drainage in heavy soils.

Edit: Kleingrass has been known to cause "swell head" in sheep and goats, not sure about horse issues. I think it has to do with a fungus sometimes found in the seed heads.

We have 50 acres of Klein. We only cut a little over 23 acres each year. This year we made 125 round bales. The best we've done was a little over 9 bales per acre with one cutting, that year we made 225 bales on 23 acres.

Doc Hayworth said:

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We have 50 acres of Klein. We only cut a little over 23 acres each year. This year we made 125 round bales. The best we've done was a little over 9 bales per acre with one cutting, that year we made 225 bales on 23 acres.

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Wish mine would take hold like that!

Discing everything again on a rotation basis going forward should help - also need to avoid the droughts!

When we first planted, the second and third year, we let the grass go to seed then shredded the top half to drop seeds. Then went over the fields with a section harrow. You chance killing the grass using a one way or other disk.

I also question the efficacy of discing Kleingrass after it is established. In addition to uprooting (thus killing) a high percentage of your stand, it also encourages weeds to sprout instead. I don't recommend it. Be sure to apply adequate fertilizer when good moisture is reasonably expected.

We have about a 50 acre field of it that we usually cut and bale twice a year (with fertilize), and then graze the hell out of it all winter, mostly winter grass at that point, and it keeps coming back strong.

Great information! Thank you all for your expertise!