Virginia Forage and Grassland Council

Native Warm Season Grass Tour

 

Farm and Tour Description:

 

The 2013 Shenandoah Valley Summer Forage Tour will visit two local farms in Augusta

County and highlight how they successfully established and managed native warm season grasses

to benefit their overall farming operations.

Buck Hill Farm is located in Augusta County in the Mt. Solon community. Buck Hill Farm is

a family owned beef cattle operation operated by Mr. David Horn. In addition to farming, Mr.

Horn’s passion for hunting and quail led him to plant 6 acres of Big Bluestem in 1998. The success

of this stand and its value to the farm and recreation led him to plant 10 more acres this

spring.

This tour will also visit Mr. Charlie Drumheller’s Bellevue Farm in Swoope, VA. Bellevue

Farm has been in the Drumheller family since 1942. Mr. Drumheller is currently developing a

Red Angus herd with his son Bobby while custom grazing a larger herd for 2 other farmers. The

Drumhellers planted switchgrass in 2008 on approximately 11 acres for the primary purpose of

hay and grazing with a secondary purpose for wildlife. Based on the success and benefits to the

Drumhellers farm system, they planted another 18 acres in 2010.

Tour will feature the following topics:

 Multiple purposes for plan􀆟ng warm season grasses

 Planning for successful establishment of NWSG’s

 Controlling weeds and competition during establishment

 Managing NWSG’s in a grazing system

 Managing NWSG’s for biodiversity and wildlife

 Does NWSG hay have a place in the farm operation?

 Potential use of NWSG’s in the biofuels industry.

 Managing phosphorus in a grazing beef cattle system

9:00 AM -3:00 PM, registration at 9:00 AM, tour starts at 9:30 AM

VFGC Contact For more information about this tour contact Matt Booher at 540‐245‐5750 or mrbooher@vt.edu. Registration fee required