| About |
| If a field is not managed for hay or to provide high-quality forage in a wildlife food plot, it often makes sense to mow the field only once per year. |
| Typical Plant Species |
- Goldenrod
- Milkweed
- Red clover
- White clover
- Timothy grass
- Orchard grass
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| Typical Wildlife |
- Bobolinks
- Meadowlarks
- Grasshopper sparrow
- Savannah sparrow
- Smooth green snakes
- Meadow voles
- Jumping mice
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| Benefits of Mowing Once Per Year |
- Prevents woody plants from invading the field
- Maintains a good mixture of wildflowers, hay grasses and clover
- Tall hay grasses provide preferred nesting habitat for bobolinks and meadowlarks
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| Negatives of Mowing Once Per Year |
- Difficult (and expensive) to find someone who is willing to mow the field
- Haywill be too poor of quality to feed most livestock, though some farmers will use grass from late-cut fields as bedding hay.
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| Management Recommendations for Annual Mowing |
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