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The authors are

Melvin R. George, agronomist, Cooperative Extension, UC Davis;


Thomas E. Kearney, farm advisor, and

Carl A. Schoner, Jr., county director, Cooperative Extension, Yolo County.


Formerly Circular 481


Oats are grown in almost every county in California

to provide hay or silage for cattle, sheep and horses.

The growing pleasure horse industry offers a ready

market for high quality, pure oat hay, while dairies

use oats alone for silage or in mixtures with other

winter cereals. Oats are frequently grown with vetch

or Austrian winter peas to increase the resulting

forage’s protein content. Winter forage or silage

blends may include almost any combination of oats,

barley, wheat, rye, triticale, ryegrass and vetch.


The exact amount of oat forage produced annually

in California varies, but in 1978 and 1979 between

280,000 and acres of grain hay produced 290,000

560,000 to 575,000 tons. In 1974, Sonoma, Stanis-

laus, Merced and San Luis Obispo counties were

the leading producers of small grain hay, according

to the Agricultural Census, In the same year 45,000

acres of grass silage and haylage produced 464,500

tons of green material. Leading counties in grass

silage and haylage production were Stanislaus,

Tulare, San Joaquin and Fresno; each has a large dairy

industry.


Varieties

California oat varieties are classified as red oats be-

cause the husks vary from light to dark red. This is

in contrast to white or yellow oats grown in humid

areas of the United States. Red oat types evolved in

the warmer, drier climate of the Mediterranean area

and are more adaptable to the climatic conditions

of California and the Southwest than are the white-

yellow types.


California Red


History: A strain of Red Rustproof, once a dominant

variety in the south central states. Numerous intro-

ductions, particularly of “Texas Red,” were made.

Not all present-day stocks are identical. The majori-

ty, however, can be traced to a mass purified stock

first released as Foundation seed in 1937 by the

University of California.


Description: Tall, fine stemmed, leafy, liberally

pigmented with purple; late maturing, with a rather

strong winter habit. Although moderately resistant

to stem and crown rusts, California Red is the most

susceptible, of any California oat variety, to barley

yellow dwarf virus (BYDV).


Recommendation: Better suited for hay than for

grain. Seed shatters if strong winds occur at maturity.

Windrowing is suggested when harvesting for grain.

It should never be sown in late winter because of

the yellow dwarf virus hazard or where heat and

drought are severe. California Red’s fine stem and

leafiness make it desirable for either dryland or

irrigated hay.


Montezuma


History: Selected in 1965 from a group of 88 lines

derived from oat Composite Cross II which involved

crosses of cultivated oats with wild oats (Avena

fatua). It was developed by C. A. Suneson, of USDA

and U.C.


Description: Medium height, medium to fine

stemmed, leafy, and earliest maturing of the Califor-

nia oat varieties. Susceptible to rusts when condi-

tions are favorable for these diseases, Montezuma

has been rated relatively tolerant of BYDV.


Recommendation: A dual purpose oat variety

suited for both hay and grain. High grain yield and

shatter resistance make it an especially desirable oat

grain. Leafiness, medium stem and high grain yield

make it a desirable hay. Early maturity makes it

desirable for double cropping on irrigated lands.

Montezuma is suitable for either dryland or irri-

gated hay and grain.


Sierra


History: Developed from a special cross of Kanota

(A. byzantina L.) and a rust resistant wild selection

of wild oats (A. fatua L.) by C. A. Suneson, USDA

and U.C. It was released in 1962.


3


Description: Medium height, coarse stemmed, leafy

with broad leaves and early maturing (a week later

than Montezuma). Susceptible to rusts when condi-

tions favor these diseases, Sierra has been rated

relatively tolerant of BYDV.


Recommendation: A dual purpose oat variety,

suited for both hay and grain. Its relatively high

grain yield and shatter resistance make it an es-

pecially desirable oat grain. Leafiness and high grain

yield make it a desirable hay, although some hay

buyers may object to its relatively coarse stem. Sierra

is suitable for either dryland or irrigated hay and

grain.


Curt


History: Derived from crosses involving Victoria-

Richland, Red Rustproof, Palestine and Kanota. De-

veloped by C. A. Suneson at U.C. Davis, it was cer-

tified by the California Crop Improvement Associa-

tion in 1958.


Description: A short, fine stemmed, leafy oat. Early

maturing, similar to Montezuma, it is rated relatively

tolerant to BYDV and is susceptible to rusts when

conditions favor these diseases.


Recommendation: A dual purpose oat variety

suited for both hay and grain. Curt has shatter

resistance with grain yields slightly less than Mon-

tezuma and Sierra. Its fine stem, leafiness and mod-

erately high grain yield make it a desirable hay,

although yields have been somewhat less than Mon-

tezuma, Sierra and California Red. Curt is suitable

for either dryland or irrigated hay and grain. Curt’s

early maturity makes it a desirable oat for double

cropping on irrigated lands.


Kanota


History: A selected strain of Fulghum released by

the Kansas Agricultural Experiment Station. Certi-

fied seed of Kanota was released in 1928 in California

where it soon became a leading variety.


Description: Tall, medium stemmed, sparsely

leafed. Seeds tend to shatter. Relatively early head-

ing, being three to four days later than Montezuma,


4


Kanota is as tolerant of BYDV as any variety grown

in California.


Recommendation: Better suited for hay than for

grain. Seed shatters if strong winds occur at ma-

turity. Windrowing is suggested when harvesting

for grain. Kanota’s maturity range and relatively stiff

straw base make it very satisfactory for sowing with

vetch. Its hay yields have been similar to those of

Montezuma, and it is suitable for either dryland or

irrigated hay.


Cayuse


History: A spring oat with light yellow grain from

the 1952 cross of the varieties Craig and Alamo

made by N. F. Jensen, Cornell University.


Description: A tall, moderately late maturing oat

when grown in California. Panicles are open and

spreading and the straw is strong and resistant to

lodging. Resistant to helminthisporium blight, it is

also highly resistant to New York smut races and is

tolerant to rust in California. Its yellow dwarf tol-

erance is expressed mainly as its yielding ability in

spite of moderate discoloration after severe attack

by viriliferous aphids. A weakness is the relatively

low weight of its seed. The grain averages about 35

pounds per bushel.


Recommendation: Best suited for irrigated hay.

It is not usually recommended as a dryland variety

in the Sacramento Valley because of its late ma-

turity. With adequate moisture and high fertility,

Cayuse is a high yielding hay or silage oat. Growers

may wish to consider harvesting it in the flower

stage (shortly after heading) to increase protein and

green color, decrease plant height and increase

stem pliability. This variety has been the highest

yielding oat in forage trials at U.C. Davis. When

cut at the flower stage, it yields more total tonnage

than most varieties harvested in soft dough.


Swan


History: Released by the Western Australia Depart-

ment of Agriculture in 1967; a sister line to the va-

riety Irwin. It was bred from a cross of the varieties

Kent and Ballidu.


Description: Tall, medium diameter stem, leafy,

early in maturity (a week later than Montezuma).

Swan is moderately susceptible to rust when condi-

tions favor these disease organisms; it has been rated

relatively tolerant to BYDV Grain yields have been

slightly less than Montezuma and Sierra in southern

California tests. The lightly awned grain has excel-

lent bushel weights.


Recommendation: A dual purpose oat variety

suited for both hay and grain. Swan has produced

high hay yields, irrigated and dryland. It is leafy,

medium stemmed and demonstrates greater resist-

ance to lodging than other varieties tested. This

new variety was released in 1981 by the Depart-

ment of Agronomy and Range Science at U.C. Davis.

Swan is a good choice for planting with vetch

because of its maturity range and resistance to

lodging.


Coker 227


History: Developed and patented by Coker Pedi-

greed Seed Company in South Carolina. It can only

be sold as Certified seed.


Description: Medium in height, medium stemmed,

leafy. It matures 10 days later than Montezuma.

Coker 227 tolerates rust and is very tolerant of

BYDV.


Recommendation: On the basis of two years test-

ing in Yolo County appears to be equal to Monte-


Harvest Year


Variety 1970 1975 1976 1977 1979 1980 1981


Cayuse - 9.17 7.88 7.39 8.70 9.44 5.62

Cayuse (flower stage) - - - - 7.33 8.31 -

Swan - 8.28 7.55 6.34 7.79 7.60 6.30

Sierra 8.61 7.51 7.26 7.47 6.92 7.22 9.24

California Red 6.87 7.59 - 6.38 5.81 6.60 4.84

Kanota - 6.68 7.10 6.45 - - -

Montezuma 7.03 6.26 7.01 5.71 5.45 6.52 7.44

Curt 5.14 5.66 - - 5.56 6.22 7.39


zuma in hay yielding ability, equal to Montezuma in

tolerance to BYDV and more tolerant of rust dis-

eases than Montezuma. When harvested at the soft

dough stage, Coker 227 will be a week to 10 days

later than Montezuma but earlier than California

Red.


Hay Quality

Although the direct relationship to hay quality is

not known, fine stems and leafiness are often con-

sidered quality factors in oat hay. California Red

has fineness of stem and leafiness superior to Curt,

Montezuma, Swan, Cayuse and Sierra. Curt is next

to California Red oats in fineness of stem and is

only slightly less leafy. Montezuma oat stems are

slightly larger in diameter and the variety appears

slightly less leafy. Swan and Cayuse stems are some-

what coarser than Montezuma, but they are equally

l e e . Sierra stems can be very coarse when grown

in high yielding environments, but Sierra has many

large, broad leaves. All six varieties are palatable

to livestock when cut at the proper stage of

maturity.


Tables 1 and 2 present hay yields for several oat

varieties used in California. Irrigated trials were

conducted at U.C. Davis and dryland trials were

conducted in western Yolo County. Table 3 com-

pares six oat hay varieties grown for hay in the

Sacramento Valley.


Average


Tons % Montezuma


8.03 125

7.82 131

7.31 114

7.75 119

6.35 99

6.74 107

6.49 100

5.99 92


Harvest Year


Variety 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1972 1974 1975 1977 1978 1980 1981


Cayuse - - - - - - - 1.77 5.08 1.72 4.09 5.00 6.64

Swan - - - - - - 3.15 1.81 4.75 1.58 4.21 3.84 5.54

Avon

California Red 4.75 2.24 4.58 4.29 3.91 2.58 3.30 .99 4.81 1.63 3.63 4.12 6.06

Montezuma - - - 4.14 3.06 1.63 3.41 1.82 5.18 1.76 3.51 3.63 4.78

Sierra 4.15 1.72 3.36 3.82 3.16 2.04 3.08 1.59 4.68 1.82 3.99 - -


- - - - - 3.69 4.75 Coker 227

Curt 3.72 2.09 3.57 3.69 2.92 1.53 3.37 1.43 4.84 - 3.51 - -


- 1.61 - - -


- - 4.24 - - - - - - - - - -


- - - - - -


- - Kanota 4.02 1.74 3.68 - 3.90 -


TABLE 3. A Comparison of Six Oat Varieties Grown for Hay in the Sacramento Valley.

Disease Resistance Grain Production


Variety Dryland Irrigated Diameter Leafiness Width Lodging Dwarf Rust Montezuma1 Date2 Yield Shatter


Maturity Average

Stem Leaf Relative to Harvest Yellow


Height (Inches)


California Red 24-57 56-62 F VLF N S VS T + 13 days Late May L S

Montezuma 23-50 52-55 F to M LF M T T S 0 Early to mid-May H S

Sierra 23-50 56-62 C LF B T MT S + 6 d a y s Early to mid-May H R

Curt 21-48 43-48 F VLF N S MT S + 2 days Early to mid-May H R

Kanota 24-50 57-60 F to M LF M S VT S + 4 days Earlytomid-May L S

Cayuse 29-52 58-69 M to C VLF B T MT T + 2 0 d a y s Early June M to H R

Swan 20-53 57-62 M LF M VT T M S + 6 d a y s Earlytomid-May M to H M R


‘Number of days later than Montezuma when all harvested at soft dough stage of maturity.

2Average harvest period for soft dough stage hay in the Sacramento Valley.

B = broad; C = coarse; F = fine; H = high; L = low; LF = leafy; M = medium; N = narrow; R = resistant; S = susceptible; T = tolerant; M R = moderately resistant;

M S = moderately susceptible; MT = moderately tolerant; VLF = very leafy; VS = very susceptible; VT = very tolerant.


Average


Tons % Calif. Red


4.05 114

3.55 101

4.24 103

3.61 100

3.29 93

3.04 91

4.22 83

3.07 87

2.99 87


Cultural Practices


In California most oat hay is grown dryland. Dry-

farmed oat hay can be grown annually (in high

rainfall areas) or under a summer fallow system

(every other year) where annual rainfall is less than

14 inches. Yields of dryfarmed oat hay vary widely

from year to year depending on amount and distri-

bution of rainfall (Table 3). Oats will produce sub-

stantially greater hay yields with irrigation on highly

fertile soils than when dryfarmed on marginal soils.


In intensively farmed areas oats for hay can be a

good choice as the first crop in a double cropping

system because of the earliness of harvest. The oat

hay crop can be removed three weeks to a month

before barley or wheat are ready for grain harvest.

In addition, the hay crop leaves a minimum of resi-

due after harvest.


Oats are a good rotation crop in dryland barley and

wheat growing areas because they are not suscep-

tible to the same root and foliar diseases that affect

other cereals. A hay crop can reduce weeds that

often plague barley and wheat because the forage

is cut at an immature stage and weeds do not have

the opportunity to produce seeds. This is especially

true, if oats are harvested for hay in the flower

stage.


Seedbed Preparation


Summer fallow method. Seedbed preparation

with summer fallowing consists of spring plowing

or chiselling, followed by disking and harrowing.

Plowing starts after volunteer cereals and weeds

have made some growth but before weeds have made

seed and while there is ample soil moisture for

easy tilling. Summer fallowing allows seedbed prep-

aration well before the normal fall planting period.

This permits fall planting before significant rainfall

has occurred. Summer fallowing is highly desired

under dry farm conditions because it permits timely

planting, reduces weed problems, stores moisture

and increases soil fertility, thus reducing fertilizer

cost. The main disadvantage is that only one crop

is obtained every two years.


Annual dryland cropping. Seedbed preparation

begins with disking or chiselling dry soil in early


summer. However, it is usually necessary to wait

until after fall rains to prepare a satisfactory seedbed;

then, seedbed preparation is completed with shal-

low chiselling or disking and harrowing. Disadvan-

tages of annual cropping are: increased tillage and

fertilizer costs, increased risk of crop failure due

to inadequate moisture and buildup of weeds and

crop diseases due to more frequent cropping.


Irrigated cropping. In irrigated areas seedbed

preparation depends on the amount of crop residue

present and soil compaction. It may be necessary

to plow or chisel to bury previous crop residue and

alleviate soil compaction. Plowing or chiselling is

followed by disking and harrowing for final seedbed

preparation. At times floating or finish leveling may

facilitate irrigation. Following summer crops that

leave little residue, a seedbed can often be prepared

by disking several times and harrowing.


Planting Date


The growth cycle of oats, a winter annual, should

correspond to the rainy season. With dry farming

early fall plantings allow oats to benefit from natural

rainfall and cool temperature, particularly in dryland

areas with shallow soils. Early planting is less ini-

portant on deep soils with adequate moisture stor-

age or on land that can be irrigated. Late planted

oats may complete their growth cycle so rapidly

that the plants do not have time to obtain optimum

size for maximum production. A general statement

is: The earlier oats are planted, the greater height

they will attain. November is the month recom-

mended for planting in the Sacramento Valley how-

ever, planting dates range from October through

January.


Planting Rates


Oats contain from 11,700 to 15,400 seeds per

pound, depending on the variety and bushel weight.

(See Table 4.) Recommended seeding rates range

from 70 to 100 pounds per acre. Drilling is pre-

ferred over broadcast plantings because it saves seed.

ensures better germination and produces more uni-

form stands. Planting depth is not as critical for

oats as it is with barley and wheat because oat

seedlings can emerge from greater soil depths.

Recommended planting depth ranges from 1/2 inch

to 2 inches.


7


If vetch is planted with oats, 60 to 75 pounds of

oats should be seeded with enough vetch to total

100 pounds of seed per acre. Vetch production

success fluctuates, depending on climatic condi-

tions; therefore, enough oats should be planted to

give a hay crop even if the vetch fails to establish

or be productive.


Oats may also be interseeded into sparse alfalfa

stands to increase hay production of the first cut-

ting in the last year of the stand. An early maturing

oat variety seeded at 60 lb/A is recommended for

this purpose. Traditionally the seed is broadcast

after springtooth harrowing the alfalfa stand. The

seed is covered by light harrowing. The number

of trips over the field can be reduced if the seed

is drilled with one of the grassland drills or inter-

seeders introduced to California by various seed

companies and agricultural equipment companies.


TABLE 4. Seed Weights for Seven Oat Varieties

Commonly Grown in California.


Variety S e e d s per Ib


Curt 11,705

Montezuma 11,859

California Red 13,244

Swan 10,611

Cayuse 15,376

Kanota 14,871

Sierra 11,311


Fertilization


Nitrogen. The fertilizer element most needed by

oats in California. Suggested application rates are as

follows:


Annual dryland cropping: 30 to 80 pounds of


Summer fallow dryland: 20 to 60 pounds of


Irrigated area: 20 to 80 pounds of nitrogen.


nitrogen per acre.


nitrogen.


Up to 25 pounds of nitrogen can be drilled with

oat seed at planting. The balance of nitrogen fer-

tilizer should be soil incorporated before planting.


plants develop deficiency symptoms early in spring, If

additional nitrogen can be applied as topdressing.


Phosphorus. The second most important fertilizer

element for oat production. Most phosphorus de-


ficiencies occur on upland and terrace soils. These

soils occur on the edges of valleys and are usually

farmed without irrigation; most are shallow with

claypan or hardpan development. The sodium bi-

carbonate soil test is reliable for determining phos-

phorus requirements. A soil with a reading of less

than 6 ppm is highly responsive (deficient); 6 to 12

ppm is probably responsive (probably deficient);

and above 12 ppm is usually not responsive (not

deficient). Deep alluvial soils which occupy most

of the irrigated areas are adequate in phosphorus.


When phosphorus is needed, it should be drilled

with the seed at planting. Broadcast phosphorus is

less efficient. Where phosphorus cannot be drilled,

it should be disked or harrowed into the soil at

the time the seed is covered. The recommended

rate for phosphorus is 20 to 40 pounds of P2O5 per

acre. When drilling nitrogen-phosphorus fertilizer

with the seed at planting, it is considered hazard-

ous to use more than 150 pounds of total material

per acre. High rates of fertilizer placed directly with

the seed can burn seed. Phosphorus is relatively

safe, whereas nitrogen and potassi

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