Wheat Pasture for Cattle: Stocking Rates, Bloat and Pull-Off

By the XES Netting team — bale net-wrap manufacturer · Updated October 18, 2026 · ~24 min read

Wheat pasture for cattle is the Southern Plains’ winter grazing engine: Oklahoma State University estimates that 40 to 60% of the roughly six million acres of wheat Oklahoma sows each year are grazed by cattle during the winter. The rules that make it pay are simple. Turn in only when there are 4 to 5 lb of forage dry matter for every pound of calf, about 2 acres per 500-lb steer when the wheat is 6 to 7 inches tall. Expect about 2 lb of gain a day. Manage bloat before it starts. And if you want a grain crop, pull the cattle at first hollow stem, because every day of grazing after it costs 1 to 5% of the wheat yield.

This fall the wheat is late. In the week ending October 11, Oklahoma’s winter wheat was 28% planted against a five-year average of 48% and 11% emerged against 25%, and Kansas was 44% planted against 56%, after a September drought that left all of Oklahoma dry or in drought and almost 89% of it in severe drought or worse, the worst since 2012. Two-thirds of Oklahoma’s pasture and range was still rated poor or very poor. Then the rain came. At Oklahoma National Stockyards on October 12, USDA’s market reporter noted that buyers “reported an increase in orders as wheat has emerged across the trading area,” with 465-lb steers averaging $459.78 per hundredweight. Oklahoma State’s Derrell Peel noted that 450-lb steer prices, the weight preferred for wheat grazing, had risen 6.3% in five weeks even though wheat stocker demand had so far been limited.

This guide is for stocker operators, cow-calf producers grazing cows or calves on wheat, rye or triticale, and wheat farmers who lease pasture or graze their own cattle on a dual-purpose crop. It covers when wheat is ready, stocking rates and gains, supplements, bloat, cows and grass tetany, first hollow stem, grazing out, leasing and the other small grains. It does not cover wheat agronomy beyond grazing, or treatment of sick cattle; that is your agronomist’s and veterinarian’s job.

XES makes bale net wrap, and every wheat-pasture operation needs hay for the days the wheat cannot carry the cattle, so we read these threads with the hay in mind. We read 424 posts from 124 archived AgTalk and HayTalk discussions that mention wheat pasture, grazing wheat, rye or triticale, or graze-outs (112 of the discussions started in 2022 or later), and extracted 193 producer reports on turnout, stocking, gains, bloat, health, leases and weather. Then we checked the grazing guidance against Oklahoma State University, the University of Nebraska–Lincoln and a peer-reviewed meta-analysis, and the crop and market figures against USDA.

When wheat pasture is ready to graze

The most common mistake is turning in too early. Oklahoma State University Extension beef nutrition specialist Paul Beck’s rule of thumb is to accumulate 4 to 5 lb of forage dry matter per pound of steer at turnout, which is 2,500 lb of forage for a 500-lb calf. At 2 acres per steer that means 1,200 to 1,300 lb of forage an acre, and at about 200 lb of forage per inch of height in a good, thick stand (measured at the main mass of tillers, not the tallest leaf), the wheat should be 6 to 7 inches deep across the field. In an earlier column he put the floor plainly: forage intake and animal performance are limited when pastures carry less than 850 to 1,000 lb of forage an acre, and starting too early cuts both calf gains and the total production of the pasture.

Producers add a test of their own. Answering a southwest Ohio cattleman who had planted extra wheat to stretch short hay in November 2025:

"If you can pull up any of the plants by hand cattle will do the same and destroy the stand."

— Joelt, Top of Texas, November 2025 · AgTalk thread 1219250

How fast a late field catches up depends on temperature. Beck estimates that wheat and other small grains grow about 3.3 lb of forage dry matter an acre for each growing degree day, counted as the average daily temperature minus 42°F for wheat and minus 38°F for rye and triticale. That four-degree difference is why rye and triticale keep growing in weather that stalls wheat:

Beck’s November 2024 column, written after a dry fall much like this one, worked an example: a southern Oklahoma wheat field with 200 to 300 lb of forage on November 10 was expected to add another 900 lb by the end of the month, putting turnout about 30 days behind the normal date of November 1. His advice: “Don’t turn cattle out on wheat pasture too early.” Producers say the same about the other small grains; a northwest Missouri producer who grazed triticale that spring said in May 2024 that he turned in at about 6 inches and found that letting it grow first was about right.

Stocking rate and expected gains

Forage allowance at turnout, the pounds of forage dry matter per pound of calf, drives gains through the fall and winter. Beck used ten years of Oklahoma State steer experiments to put numbers on it: the maximum gain of 2.7 lb a day came at 5.0 lb of forage per pound of initial body weight, a gain of 2 lb a day at about 2.4 lb, and below 2 lb of forage per pound of steer, supplementation should be considered. That turns a forage measurement into a stocking rate (XES arithmetic for a 500-lb calf at 200 lb of forage per inch):

The right-hand column trades individual gain for more pounds per acre, so it only works if the wheat keeps growing; a dry or cold spell leaves a heavily stocked field short. Producers on good wheat stock in the same range and budget on 2 lb:

"If good wheat and weather ours always above 2. Have a few perfect years they can do 3+. Stock 1\2 acre per calf."

— TJS, Central Kansas, October 2023 · AgTalk thread 1134143

"Usually stock a 4wt 1acre / 1 calf in good conditions."

— SamT, October 2023 · AgTalk thread 1134143

"Good weather, no mud, with good pasture, and good cattle, we've had them gain 3lbs a day, but it's usually around 2 once they get used to it. Best if you can get good green 4wts and run them till March, then get another set and finish grazing it out."

— versatile875, Western OK, November 2023 · AgTalk thread 1138920

Over a season that adds up. A Texas Panhandle producer said in February 2024 that a 500-lb calf grazing wheat all winter should weigh 800 to 900 lb by March and be ready for sale, and a west Texas grazier described in October 2023 grazing a 500-lb steer from late November through mid-June to a “rangy 1,075 lb steer that is ready for grain.” Oklahoma State’s stocker budget in CR-212 uses the conservative version: 2 lb a day for 120 days, November 1 to March 1, with 3% shrink and 2% death loss.

Weather moves gains more than anything else. The west Texas grazier set 3 lb a day as the goal on the southern plains in mild weather with no snow or mud, with a caveat:

"On the southern plains with mild temps and no snow cover or mud: 3 pounds per day is the goal, but there is a caveat: until first hard frost, wheat is too "washy" and they won't perform well."

— jimsonweed, W Texas, October 2023 · AgTalk thread 1134143

Mud is the other thief. Several producers pull gain cattle off wet wheat:

"When I have gain cattle out I usually fence them into grass and feed them when it rains. Better for the wheat and better for the cows and better for the land."

— Notofthisworld, November 2024 · AgTalk thread 1180854

Fence and water are usually temporary. A Texas Panhandle producer estimated in March 2026 that about 90% of stocker calves on high-plains wheat pasture are behind a single hot wire with water hauled to them, and that the key is having enough tanks to last the cattle several days and hauling plenty ahead of bad weather. A southeast Colorado producer described in August 2023 moving about 100 pairs between wheat pasture and crop residue behind one wire on corner posts, with rebar posts and plastic insulators about every 100 feet.

Mineral, ionophores and hay

Lush wheat is high in protein and water and low in fiber, and it is unbalanced in minerals. In a 2023 Oklahoma State presentation, Beck compared Dairy One Forage Laboratory analyses of fresh wheat forage from 2004 to 2022 with the National Academies (NASEM) requirements he listed: calcium averaged 0.38% of dry matter against 0.73%, phosphorus 0.31% against 0.35%, magnesium 0.17% against 0.10%, and potassium 2.54% against 0.60%. A mineral built for wheat pasture, supplying calcium in particular, is the starting point; your nutritionist can match it to your forage test.

An ionophore is the second piece. A 2022 meta-analysis in Translational Animal Science (Shane Gadberry, David Lalman, Paul Beck and two Elanco employees; Elanco, which sells monensin, sponsored the research) pooled 38 stocker experiments and found monensin added about 0.17 lb a day, roughly 10%, over an average 112-day trial, and reduced both the incidence and the severity of bloat on bloat-prone pastures. Many producers use a monensin wheat-pasture mineral; some skip it.

Hay is the third, and it is worth being clear about what it does. In the Oklahoma State presentation, Beck summarized a study in which calves on wheat offered wheat straw ate only 0.15 to 0.4 lb a day, and calves offered sorghum-sudan hay 0.35 to 0.9 lb, with no effect on forage intake, digestibility, passage rate or weight gain. Producers say the same: with plenty of wheat, hay does not add gain. Hay earns its place when there is not enough wheat: when the forage allowance falls below 2 lb per pound of calf, when snow or ice covers the field, when mud forces cattle off, and in a late, dry fall like 2026’s. That is why a bale or two set out at the gate, or a stack of round bales near the water, is part of most wheat-pasture plans. During a January 2025 cold snap with 5°F and snow, a Texas Panhandle producer said his bulls on wheat had a bale of hay and a windbreak; our guides to windbreaks for cattle and stretching a short hay supply cover those days.

Bloat on wheat pasture

Rapidly growing wheat and other small grains can cause frothy bloat, and it can kill fast. Writing in March 2022, Beck noted that bloat can occur as soon as 1 to 3 hours after cattle are put on wheat pasture, that death losses on bloat-provocative pastures have been reported as high as 15 to 20% of the cattle on a pasture, and that lost production from subclinical bloat may be greater than producers realize. His 2023 presentation showed why: wheat forage from bloat pastures averaged 31.8% crude protein against 25.4% on non-bloat pastures, with more soluble protein. The risk peaks when growth surges, in early spring and after rain on short wheat.

The prevention options Oklahoma State specialists describe:

• No hungry cattle at turnout. “As a practical matter, try not to turn out hungry cattle onto wheat as they are likely to gorge on it,” Oklahoma State beef cattle nutritionist Ryan Reuter said in November 2020; his advice is to feed hay in the morning and turn cattle onto the wheat in the afternoon.
• Grazing management. Beck lists stocking heavily enough to limit how much each animal can eat at once, or, where pastures are rotated, putting cattle on forage that has grown older and higher in fiber.
• Monensin. Oklahoma and New Mexico research found it decreased the incidence and severity of wheat-pasture bloat by 40 to 60%, reducing deaths and buying time to respond; it does not eliminate bloat.
• Poloxalene. A surfactant that breaks up the froth. Beck writes that it has proven more effective against frothy bloat than monensin but lacks monensin’s performance benefit, and that if it is fed only during the most bloat-provocative period, its total cost can be covered by preventing the loss of a single animal.

Which of these to use, and when, is a plan to make with your veterinarian before the spring flush rather than after the first case: bloat can kill within hours, and treating a bloated animal is the veterinarian’s job. Either way, Beck’s advice is to keep an eye on the cattle and be ready to react quickly.

Delivery is the practical catch. In a November 2024 discussion of bloat on a Montana cover crop, a producer explained why self-fed products fall short on lush green forage in the spring:

"Problem with blocks in the spring is inconsistent intake so it doesn’t work, same with rough hay intake. Cattle get everything from what they are eating that’s green and will quit blocks/mineral/hay."

— Macttle, November 2024 · AgTalk thread 1181026

That limit applies to any self-fed preventive: it protects only the cattle that eat their share. Some producers in that discussion turned to additives in the water tank that are not labeled for cattle; we do not repeat them here. Use only products labeled for bloat in cattle, at the label rate, and work out delivery with your veterinarian. Checking cattle hard for the first days on new or fast-growing wheat costs nothing.

Cows, bred heifers and grass tetany

Wheat pasture is not only for stockers. Producers reported running bulls on wheat all winter because they keep condition without supplement (Texas Panhandle, May 2025), buying old, thin bred cows at the sale when they have extra wheat because they “bulk up pretty quick” (Western Oklahoma, February 2025), and planning to move cow-calf pairs from cornstalks onto wheat in early March (Kansas, October 2024). Two cautions come with cows.

The first is grass tetany, a magnesium deficiency that is a particular concern in lactating cows. University of Nebraska–Lincoln Extension’s mineral guide (G2340) explains that lush cool-season grasses are high in nitrogen and potassium, which impair magnesium absorption in the rumen, so forage that tests adequate in magnesium can still leave cows short, and that a cow’s magnesium requirement rises from 0.12% of the diet when pregnant to 0.20% in lactation. Oklahoma State’s wheat data above (0.17% magnesium, 2.54% potassium) show why wheat fits that description. Producers who graze cows on small grains start a high-magnesium mineral before turnout, keep hay available and build grazing time gradually:

"I feel like access to junk hay, and 2 hours of rye grazing is great nutrition. I've never had any nutritional issues with rye, except grass tetany."

— puff33m, N FLA, March 2024 · AgTalk thread 1152014

He added that he lost one cow before learning to act immediately when an animal looks off. A Florida Panhandle producer in the same March 2024 discussion feeds a high-magnesium mineral before turn-in, fills cows with hay first and limits grazing to about an hour at first, building over a week. Our winter mineral guide covers the high-magnesium switch.

The second is bred heifers. Producers disagree about putting them on wheat before calving, mostly for fear of large calves. A Western Oklahoma producer said in November 2023 that old cows have calved on wheat with no problem and big, fast-growing calves, but he would not try it with heifers; a Colorado producer said in November 2022 that every day is too much for bred heifers, that every third day or otherwise limited access is safer, and that he would not graze his own heifers on wheat until they calve. There is no research consensus in what we read, so make it a decision with your veterinarian.

First hollow stem: when to pull cattle

If the wheat is to be harvested for grain, the date cattle come off decides much of the grain yield. Oklahoma State’s Amanda de Oliveira Silva explains in fact sheet PSS-2147 (May 2023) that OSU research identified first hollow stem, the start of stem elongation just before jointing, as the best stage to remove cattle from dual-purpose wheat. Grazing past it has cut grain yield by as little as 1% and as much as 5% a day in OSU studies, so two extra weeks can cost 14 to 58% of the yield potential, and in most circumstances the extra calf gain does not offset it.

How to check, from the same fact sheet:

1. Go to an ungrazed area of the same field and variety, such as a field corner or just outside the electric fence; grazing delays stem elongation, so grazed plants mislead.
2. Dig up four or five plants; much of the hollow stem is still below the soil surface.
3. Pick the largest tillers and split them lengthwise from the base with a sharp blade.
4. If there is 1.5 cm (5/8 inch) of hollow stem below the developing head, about the diameter of a dime, the wheat is at first hollow stem. Pull the cattle.

Varieties differ by as much as three weeks in when they reach first hollow stem, early-sown wheat gets there sooner, and mild, wet winters speed it up, so check every field, often. Oklahoma’s Mesonet First Hollow Stem Advisor uses soil temperature to estimate the probability that it has occurred; OSU recommends starting to scout at the 5% probability level and, for producers who do not scout, removing cattle at 50%. Leave enough leaf to regrow: PSS-2147 suggests at least 60% canopy cover. Producers describe the same timing in their own words; a Western Oklahoma producer explained the dual-purpose system in December 2023:

"I don't know the percentage, but in oklahoma a lot of wheat is sown for what is called "dual purpose " wheat, sown early enough to get good fall growth, upto and before a month before our fly free date, then the cattle are removed in the first of March before hollow stem."

— versatile875, Western OK, December 2023 · AgTalk thread 1138920

He added that with good spring rains and extra nitrogen, a hard-grazed field can still make a respectable yield. First of March is a habit, not a measurement, though, and in a mild winter or with an early variety first hollow stem can come sooner; split stems.

Do 2026 cattle prices change the answer? Oklahoma State’s AGEC-265 (Eric DeVuyst and co-authors, June 2023) worked the question at 2023 prices, with 3 lb of gain a day, 0.64 head an acre, a 35-bushel crop, nitrogen charged at 30 lb per 100 lb of gain and $0.64 per lb, and found that any yield loss over about 0.3 bu an acre a day lost money. We reran it with 2026 prices and OSU’s other assumptions unchanged, including its nitrogen charge of $0.64 a lb: a value of gain of about $1.57 a lb, implied by the October 12 Oklahoma City prices for 704-lb and 781-lb steers, and $6.64 wheat, the August 2026 Oklahoma price reported by USDA. An extra day then adds about $2.64 an acre in calf gain after the nitrogen charge, and the break-even rises to about 0.4 bu an acre a day, or 1.1% of a 35-bushel crop (XES arithmetic):

High cattle prices make the best-case data break even, barely, but AGEC-265 warns that the best-case study had large stockpiles of standing forage at first hollow stem and should not be generalized, and you cannot know in advance which case your field will be. On the combined data, pulling at first hollow stem still pays.

Graze out, bale or harvest grain

Oklahoma State’s CR-212 frames the choice as grain only, forage only (grazing the wheat out) or both (dual-purpose, with cattle off by first hollow stem), and notes that dual-purpose wheat costs more to grow because of higher seeding rates, more insect pressure, harder weed control and higher fertility costs. Grazing out adds gain:

"Around here, 2# and change if you pull off to cut wheat. If you graze to the bitter end you will be 2.5 or better."

— SamT, October 2023 · AgTalk thread 1134143

Some split the difference. A Greenwood County, Kansas, producer described in August 2023 a plan to move steers and heifers off grain wheat in late February or early March onto a separate wheat-and-crimson-clover planting to graze out until about May 1, then spray it and plant soybeans. OSU publishes a graze-out decision aid (AGEC-263) for running the numbers.

The third option is to take the wheat as hay or baleage once grazing is done. Our guide to baling wheat for cattle covers stage, moisture, nitrate and awns, and John Deere’s operator’s manuals for its 468/568 and 469/569 round balers call for at least three wraps of net on straw, wheat hay and cereal grains; check the manual for your own baler, and see how many wraps per bale. A producer weighing a self-propelled swather in March 2025 noted the limits: his summer graze-out wheat is often too poor to bale, a 16-ft disc cutter and rake gets about half a bale an acre, but they often need that hay.

Leasing wheat pasture

Most wheat pasture leases in the threads are priced per pound of gain, with the cattle weighed on and off. There is no current published survey, so these are producer reports with their dates and places:

"When fertilizer got high a decade or so ago and we were in a multi year drought, the .35-.45 a lb gain wasn't working, barely paying for the nitrogen removed, so we backed off to just grazing our own."

— versatile875, Western OK, November 2023 · AgTalk thread 1138920

"I’ve heard .80 this year. I heard it was 1.00 last year."

— notillmc, SW TX PANHANDLE, November 2023 · AgTalk thread 1138920

Both answered a Western Oklahoma producer who had leased places to neighbors at $0.75 on the gain in November 2023; in the same thread a southwest-central Texas producer said wheat pasture paid $0.90 there the year before, and a north-central Texas producer answered in December 2023 that it was 60 cents without care and 80 cents with care there. A southwest Kansas grazier added in August 2024 that he is paid a set number of cents per pound depending on the situation, and more if he does the fencing and care. Per-head-per-day deals can go wrong for the landowner:

"I took in some on wheat pasture for $1 a day this past fall."

— Notofthisworld, May 2023 · AgTalk thread 1114185

He regretted it from January on, he wrote in May 2023, because the check did not even pay for the extra fertilizer he applied for heavy grazing. The terms convert into each other (XES arithmetic):

At the October 12 Oklahoma City prices, a pound of gain between a 465-lb and a 704-lb steer was worth about $1.81 (XES arithmetic), so a $0.75 to $1.00 lease takes roughly 41 to 55% of the value of the gain before the cattle owner’s other costs. Oklahoma State’s AGEC-265 charges about 30 lb of nitrogen for every 100 lb of gain, a cost that falls on whoever fertilizes the wheat. Put in writing who supplies fence, water and daily checks, who carries death loss, how the cattle are weighed, and the removal date, whether first hollow stem or graze-out. Our guides to pasture rent rates and custom cattle feeding rates cover the rest of the agreement.

Rye, triticale and oats

The same rules apply to the other small grains, with differences in timing. Rye and triticale grow at a lower base temperature than wheat (38°F against 42°F in Beck’s method), so they produce more forage in cold weather and green up earlier:

"Like the rye better than wheat because it seems to grow bigger in the fall and breaks dormancy quite a bit earlier than wheat. The rye also is easier to terminate in the spring, much easier. Usually graze stocker calves and gain the same as they do on wheat."

— notillmc, SW TX PANHANDLE, September 2023 · AgTalk thread 1129708

Farther north, small grains are mostly spring pasture for cow-calf pairs. Producers reported about 1 acre per spring pair on rye in northeast Iowa (“most years it gets ahead of the cows,” May 2024), about 1.5 acres per fall-calving pair for 50 days on triticale in northwest Missouri (May 2024), and spring gains of 1.5 to 2 lb a day on rye in Saronville, Nebraska (January 2026). Rye changes fast once it heads:

"The protein of rye in boot can be near 20% (enough to scour cows) and can fall to below ten in a matter of several days."

— Haleiwa, West Chazy, New York, March 2024 · AgTalk thread 1152014

Oats are the fall option where winters are hard: a Washington County, Kansas, producer said in January 2026 that he plants oats in August after wheat, grazes them until Thanksgiving or Christmas and lets them winter-kill, and on rye or oats sets out straw bales or brome bales too weedy to sell to give the cattle dry matter and stretch the grazing. Our guides to baling cereal rye, triticale baleage, oat hay and cover crops for forage cover harvesting the same crops.

Frequently asked questions

How many acres of wheat pasture does a calf need?

About 2 acres per 500-lb steer at turnout, when the wheat carries 1,200 to 1,300 lb of forage an acre (Oklahoma State). Around 1 acre per calf still gives about 2 lb a day if the wheat keeps growing. In October 2023, a central Kansas producer stocked half an acre per calf on good wheat; another, one acre.

When can you turn cattle out on wheat pasture?

When the wheat carries 4 to 5 lb of forage dry matter per pound of calf, about 6 to 7 inches in a good stand, and the plants are rooted too firmly to pull up. Oklahoma State says intake and gains suffer below 850 to 1,000 lb of forage an acre, so wait for a late field.

How much do calves gain on wheat pasture?

In October and November 2023, producers in central Kansas, Western Oklahoma and west Texas budgeted about 2 lb a day, 3 lb or more in mild, dry winters. Oklahoma State’s trials reached 2.7 lb at a generous forage allowance; its stocker budget uses 2 lb a day, November 1 to March 1. Mud, snow and washy pre-frost wheat cut gains.

How do you prevent bloat on wheat pasture?

Oklahoma State lists grazing management, monensin, which cut bloat incidence and severity 40 to 60% in Oklahoma and New Mexico research, and poloxalene. Fill cattle on hay before turnout, watch them when growth surges, use only labeled products and plan bloat control with your veterinarian before spring. Hay left out is no safeguard: calves on lush wheat eat little.

When should cattle come off wheat pasture?

If you want a grain crop, at first hollow stem: when ungrazed plants show 5/8 inch of hollow stem below the developing head, about the width of a dime. Oklahoma State found each day past it can cost 1 to 5% of grain yield. If you are grazing out, cattle stay until the wheat is gone.

The bottom line on wheat pasture for cattle

Wheat pasture for cattle pays when the wheat is ready before the cattle arrive. Measure forage, not the calendar: 4 to 5 lb of dry matter per pound of calf at turnout, about 2 acres per 500-lb steer at 6 to 7 inches, and supplement when the allowance drops below 2. Budget 2 lb a day, settle a mineral and bloat-prevention plan with your veterinarian or nutritionist before the spring flush, and pull cattle at first hollow stem if the wheat is going to grain; 2026’s high cattle prices still do not pay for grazing past it on most fields. Price a lease per pound of gain and write down who does what.

Every wheat-pasture plan also needs a hay plan for the late fall, the mud and the ice, and round bales stored outside are only as good as their wrap. XES Extreme bale net wrap was tested by DLG (Report 7439), which rated its edge-to-edge bale coverage as good in practical use. For the stubble side of Southern Plains winter grazing, see our guide to milo stalks for cattle.

Research note: We read 424 posts from 124 archived AgTalk and HayTalk discussions that mention wheat pasture, grazing wheat, rye or triticale, first hollow stem or graze-outs (the matching posts and the posts on either side; 100 discussions had relevant material; 112 discussions started in 2022 or later; posts from 2008 to May 2026) and extracted 193 producer reports. We checked them in October 2026 against the sources linked below. Producer rates, gains and results are what individual producers reported at the time and, where stated, the place given; they are examples, not market data or recommendations. Figures marked as XES arithmetic use the assumptions stated with them; the value-of-gain figures use same-day cash prices and are not a forecast of spring prices. This page is general information, not nutritional or veterinary advice. Sources: Oklahoma State University Extension, PSS-2147, First Hollow Stem: A Critical Wheat Growth Stage for Dual-Purpose Producers (Amanda de Oliveira Silva, May 2023); OSU Wheat, Estimating the Optimal Time to Remove Cattle from Wheat Pasture (Amanda de Oliveira Silva, February 2, 2024); Oklahoma State University Extension, AGEC-265, The Effect of Extended Stocker Grazing on Wheat and Stocker Profits (Eric A. DeVuyst and co-authors, June 2023); Oklahoma State University Extension, CR-212, Should I Buy (or Retain) Stockers to Graze Wheat Pasture? (Roger Sahs, Amanda de Oliveira Silva, Eric DeVuyst, September 2024); Paul Beck, Oklahoma State University, When Can I Start Grazing Wheat Pasture? (Cow-Calf Corner, via Oklahoma Farm Report, November 27, 2024); Paul Beck, Setting Stocking Rate for Stockers on Small Grain Pasture This Fall (Cow-Calf Corner, via TSCRA, November 15, 2021); Paul Beck, Control and Prevention of Wheat Pasture Bloat (Cow-Calf Corner, via TSCRA, March 22, 2022); Paul Beck, Options for Dealing with Bloat (OSU Ranchers’ Thursday Lunchtime Series, March 16, 2023); Gadberry, Lalman, White, Linneen and Beck, Meta-analysis of the effects of monensin on growth and bloat of cattle on pasture, Translational Animal Science 6(2), 2022 (sponsored by Elanco Animal Health); Oklahoma State University, Wheat Pasture Valuable Forage Resource When Managed Properly (quoting Ryan Reuter, November 18, 2020); University of Nebraska–Lincoln Extension, G2340, Formulation Considerations for Mineral and Vitamin Supplements for Beef Cattle; Derrell S. Peel, Oklahoma State University, Cow-Calf Corner (October 12, 2026); USDA AMS, Oklahoma National Stockyards Feeder Cattle, Oklahoma City (October 12, 2026 sale, report of October 13); USDA NASS, Crop Progress (October 13, 2026); USDA NASS, Agricultural Prices (September 29, 2026); DTN, Oklahoma Drought Slows Wheat Planting and Fall Pasture Activity (Bryce Anderson, September 16, 2026).

Featured photograph: Irving Rusinow, Haskell County, Kansas, April 1941, U.S. National Archives (NARA 522121), public domain, via Wikimedia Commons. White-faced cattle on green wheat pasture. The original caption reads, in part: “In the Fall, when the wheat comes up and the fields are green, carloads of western cattle are brought in to graze right through until Spring.” Image unchanged apart from display resizing.