Red Top Cane?

[hudson_004]

I'm a custom baler and want to condition some of our own land for personal harvest. Along time ago when I was about 5yrs old my grandfather used to plant Red Top Cane. Anyone know the pros and cons of this type of crop? You don't see it around much anymore and I was wondering why farmers stopped planting it. The nutrition and yield rates look pretty good from what I have read so far on the net.

[hay wilson in TX]

It has lost favor for hybrid sorghum sudan hay's like Haygrazer. In the 1950's we planted Red Top Cane, Three Little Indians, and others.
On this farm summer annuals lost favor because they are annuals and have the cost of mostly because they have that annual cost of seed and land preparation.
That plus about the time the sorghums are optimal, it start is raining and by the time it is dry enough to get in and harvest the sorghums. By that time they are 10 feet tall gone to seed, the stalks are over an inch in diameter and you have to cut in first gear. Get it on the ground and it took 10 days to cure enough to bale. With a disk conditioner a lot of that is taken care of but it still is a lot of hay. Bale in creeper gear was not unheard of. A round baler takes care of that problem.
Where it works well, here, is notilled into wheat stubble. Some here plant milo and if all goes well it is a good grain crop, otherwise it is a hay crop with a lower cost for seed.