Forage Focus Fuels Cars-to-Cattle Conversion

Whether being among the first to move pasture weed control to DuraCor^® herbicide or implementing the latest fencing innovations, Blake and Janet Crow embrace technology.

“We like to try new things,” Janet Crow says. As their son, Dakota, built Monarch Drone Solutions, his business in Springfield, Missouri, the Crows learned how drones could bring greater efficiency to their operation — from dropping crabgrass or white clover seed to targeting weed patches to monitoring calving.

“My favorite drone is the small thermal model that helps us find baby calves when mama tries to hide them or where the grass is too tall,” Janet says. “You can do head counts and even zoom in to check tag numbers. It’s a time-saver for sure.”

Then there’s the thistles.

“I don’t like thistles,” Janet says. “They’re my nemesis. I’ve cut thistles. I’ve filled a truck bed with blooms to keep them from going to seed. But spraying with a drone does a very good job.”

They rely on drone applications in open areas, but as Blake notes, “Thistle seeds basically grow wings and fly away, usually landing under tree or other inaccessible spots.” They target those spots with hand sprayers that are never far from reach.

“This is Missouri,” Janet explains. “There’s always some type of weed growing constantly. Staying ahead of them is a full-time job.”

Building Success, One Acre at a Time

Attaining lofty goals requires taking a leap of faith. In the cattle business, that often means building fences — and that’s exactly how it started for Crow Land and Cattle.

“I just wanted cows,” Janet recalls. “I had that growing up, and I missed it. I missed the farm. I missed the cattle.”

Janet met Blake Crow in high school. They married 40 years ago and transitioned to working for Blake’s family-owned Dodge car dealership in West Plains, Missouri. Eventually, they saved enough money to buy a bit of land where Blake could hunt and fish. Janet saw a place where she could realize her dream.

“You’d never know it today, but back then, the land was a disaster,” Janets explains. “The whole place was nothing but sapling trees, briars and other brush.” Blake got to work cutting trees and cleaning up the open areas. Soon, that land morphed into pasture ground.

“I said, ‘Well, now, we have to get some cows, because cows are my thing,’” Janet says. “That’s how Crow Land and Cattle got its start.”

Broadleaf Weed Control Critical to Success

Those early sweat equity days became the blueprint that helped the Crows grow their enterprise and, ultimately, move from the car business into the cattle business full time. They found success by gradually adding acres — often run down land — they later restored to high-quality grazing.

“That approach allowed us to add more cattle,” Janet says. “We’re always trying to make the land better than it was when we started. Leaving the Dodge dealership freed us to prioritize our land and cattle.”

Range & Pasture products from Corteva Agriscience play a vital role in their renovation projects. The Crows target broadleaf weeds, including ragweed, pigweed and thistles, and buckbrush with DuraCor^® herbicide. They go with PastureGard^® HL herbicide on greenbriar, along with Remedy^® herbicide for brush and Chaparral^™ or Surmount^® herbicide for other unique challenges. Hand sprayers are nearly always closeby. Thanks to their son, Dakota, and his burgeoning drone spraying business, the Crows are becoming even more efficient.

“Over the last 30 years, we’ve grown quite fond of products from Corteva,” Blake says. “We have goals for our pastures. Herbicides help us get there easier and faster, without taking the land out of production for two or three years.”

“It’s easy to see how much thicker and how much better the undergrowth is where we’ve sprayed,” Janet says. “The additional tonnage off that ground — whether you’re cutting hay or grazing it — compared with what you lose if you let the weeds grow is clear.”

The Crows work closely with Brant Mettler, their local Corteva Agriscience Range & Pasture Specialist, to develop their renovation plans. Typically, Mettler recommends they start with a soil test and fertilize accordingly, especially to get the soil pH right.

That’s helped them make great progress on 80 acres in West Plains. The parcel had previously been in row crops, but it mostly produced a bumper crop of marestail.

“Some of the marestail grew 7 feet tall, but that field had every kind of weed imaginable,” Blake says. “Brant recommended DuraCor, which took the weeds right down to the ground. We no-till seeded a mix of timothy grass, orchardgrass, and endophyte-free fescue. It’s already looking really good.”

“With Brant’s expertise, we know we’re getting the best recommendation for the weed spectrum in any given pasture,” Janet adds. “With the right product or combination — instead of spraying twice — we get the job done in one application.”

Diversifying the Forage Mix

Striving for a variety of forage grasses isn’t a new strategy for the Crows. Tall fescue provides outstanding grazing but not without challenges. Then there’s Missouri’s wild climatic swings in moisture and seasonal changes.

“Establishing more warm-season grasses, like big and little bluestem and Indian grass, and even bermudagrass, helps us mitigate fescue toxicosis by giving our cattle a better grazing option during the heat of summer,” Blake says. “Just when the fescue starts to go dormant, we can move to warm-season pastures. Those hardy native grasses have saved us during drought years too.”

Introducing white clover in their fescue pastures has become a stronger strategy to combat fescue toxicosis, especially with the advent of NovaGraz^™ herbicide.

“Adding white clover makes really good forage,” Blake explains. “Plus, it helps dilute the effects of toxic fescue. It’s high-quality grazing.”

Equally important, the Crows say, is their managed grazing program, which ensures the best forage quality while protecting the land.

“There are no better stewards than those of us in agriculture,” Janet says. “It’s our living.” The Crows utilize a strip-grazing system to keep cattle moving and to prevent overgrazing. Significant infrastructure investments, including in wells and water distribution, support their grazing program. They aim to graze no lower than 6 to 8 inches.

“If you let a cow graze to the ground, you’ll get nothing but weeds. That’s why it’s so important to rotationally graze; keep ’em moving and let the grass grow back,” Blake says.

Whether it’s seeing their reputation cattle sell at the sale barn, marketing virtually weed-free hay or simply taking in the beauty of a well-managed pasture, pride continues to drive the Crows.

“I love it when people drive by the farm and say, ‘Wow! That looks so good,’” Janet says.

Surmount^® is a Restricted Use Pesticide. Under normal field conditions, DuraCor^® is nonvolatile. Chaparral^™ and DuraCor have no grazing or haying restrictions for any class of livestock, including lactating dairy cows, horses (including lactating mares) and meat animals prior to slaughter. Label precautions apply to forage treated with Chaparral or DuraCor and to manure from animals that have consumed treated forage within the last three days. Consult the label for full details. White clover and annual lespedeza exhibit some initial injury (such as lodging and loss of vigor) with NovaGraz but recover. Not all products are registered for sale or use in all states. Contact your state pesticide regulatory agency to determine if a product is registered for sale or use in your state. State restrictions on the sale and use of Remedy^® apply. Consult the label before purchase or use for full details. Always read and follow label directions.