Double C Cattle Company is a fifth-generation commercial cow-calf operation in southern Oklahoma owned and operated by Chuck and Ruth Coffey and their three children – Seth, Aaron and Sarah – and their spouses.

Rain has abandoned us during a vital forage-growing period. In tall fescue pastures, two-thirds of forage growth comes in the spring, and one-third grows in the fall. 

It’s no secret drought has been raging through many western and southern states for some time now.

The calls I typically get in the fall about forage options have started early this year. With drought persisting through much of the U.S., many producers are already seeing stunted growth in first and second hay cuttings on dryland.

The National Integrated Drought Information System (NIDIS), a multifederal government agency partnership that coordinates drought monitoring, forecasting, planning and information at national, state and local levels across the U.S., defines an “agricultural drought” as a phenomenon in which weather conditions lead to adverse plant responses, leading to outcomes that range from reduced crop and forage yields to complete crop and forage failure. 

 In case you haven’t heard, there’s a pretty significant drought on across a big chunk of the U.S. Texas has been hit particularly hard, so much so that drought felt like the unofficial theme of the Texas A&M Beef Cattle Short Course, which took place on the campus in College Station, Texas, Aug. 1-3