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Grazing cereal rye covers can boost cattle nutrition and soil health
Grady Gullickson, U of I grad student, at 2026 Dudley Smith Farm Winter Meeting (Brownfield Photo)
A graduate student at the University of Illinois says ongoing research shows utilizing a cereal rye cover crop to supplement cattle feeding is paying off.
Grady Gullickson says grazing appears to offer the biggest benefits.
“The forage quality was great.” He says, “I mean, it was 20% protein, mid-70s for TDNs (Total Digestible Nutrients), so a lot of energy. And the one thing with it, it’s a cycle, right? These cattle are eating the forage, but they’re also excreting manure. So, you’re getting that back into the soil and getting it for that future crop.”
However, he tells Brownfield that baling the cover crop provides added flexibility for producers at a slight impact to quality.
“We dropped about 15 to 20 percentage points in TDN, so it’s a lower energy than what we were working with when we were grazing.” He says, “You can save some money that way. We saw about $1.50 to $2.00 less if you bailed it up and limit fed it compared to grazing.”
Gullickson says as cover crops become more popular on row crop operations, they offer the potential for new, economical feed sources for cattle producers.
Brownfield spoke with Gullickson at the 2026 Dudley Smith Farm Winter Meeting in Taylorville.
AUDIO: Grady Gullickson – U of I graduate student
Tags: ag research, cattle feed, cattle feeding, cattle grazing, Cattle/Beef, cereal rye, Commodities, Corn, cover crops, Crops, Dudley Smith Research Farm, Forage, grazing cover crops, Livestock, nutrients, soil health, Soybeans, University of Illinois
