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Forage

All Forage Content
Plastic bag containing numerous green larvae.

Let SDSU Extension know how alfalfa insects are affecting you

January 29, 2026

South Dakota State University Extension is encouraging forage producers to participate in a survey about managing alfalfa insects.

A sprawling sorghum field ready for harvest

Sorghum Trial Results

In 2025, sorghum trials were conducted in 2 locations in South Dakota.

Yellow wheat field with green weeds throughout.

Weed Control Field Test Data

Data books to use as a reference to select appropriate herbicide(s) for row crops

oats

Cover Crops

The benefits of planting cover crops are numerous. 

Plastic bag containing numerous green larvae.

Learn about alfalfa weevil at Northern Plains Forage Association annual meeting

November 17, 2025

South Dakota State University Extension encourages producers to attend the Northern Plains Forage Association annual meeting and seminars, which will feature forage-related education and research.

Yellow toadflax plants flowering in a grassy area beside a field.

Yellow Toadflax Has Begun Producing Seeds: Scout before treating infested areas

Yellow toadflax is a perennial weed that infests pasture and rangeland across South Dakota. This year, with an abundance of heat and moisture, plants flowered in early August and now have started to produce seeds.

Cow grazing on sudangrass.

SDSU Extension welcomes new crop and livestock field specialist

September 12, 2025

South Dakota State University Extension is pleased to welcome Parker Witt as a new Crop and Livestock Field Specialist.

A group of brown cattle foraging in a green field.

Prussic Acid Poisoning

As the first frost date approaches, producers often have concerns about the risk of prussic acid poisoning in livestock. Certain forage plants, especially sorghums and related species are associated with an increased risk of death loss because of prussic acid poisoning.

Multiple grasshoppers feeding on a corn ear.

Grasshopper Populations Continue to Cause Issues in South Dakota

Recent reports of crop loss along field edges indicate that grasshopper populations in some areas of South Dakota are well above threshold. Unfortunately, crops are often the target of these moving populations.

True armyworm caterpillar on a corn leaf.

Reports of Pyrethroid Failures for True Armyworm Caterpillar Management

True armyworm caterpillars reached thresholds in oats and wheat in many areas of South Dakota recently. Management efforts to reduce populations had varying levels of success, with SDSU Extension receiving numerous reports of pyrethroid insecticide failures.