Ames, Iowa — Heavy ice and snow that hit Iowa in December has affected the quality of cornstalks, so cattle producers likely will have to alter their winter feeding strategy.

And, in addition to a rough December, they now will have to cope with additional snowfall.

“December was a pretty tough month for people in Iowa,” said Daryl Strohbehn, a beef specialist with Iowa State University (ISU) Extension.

Cornstalks that were coated in ice and snow finally were able to thaw, thanks to warmer temperatures earlier this month. Some producers are now allowing their cattle to graze those cornstalks again, but they need to beware that their quality has been negatively affected. The damages caused by weather have been “fairly substantial,” Strohbehn said, causing the cornstalks’ nutrient level and palatability to decrease.

“We’d like to think that it’s like putting the cornstalks in a deep-freeze — that they don’t lose quality,” said Strohbehn, who is a member of the Iowa Beef Center at Iowa State University, of the ice and snow. “But that’s not the way it really works. Certainly, as we cover those stalks up with ice and snow, that tends to preserve them. But when we go through the thaw process and get rid of that ice and snow, we have a leaching effect that takes place, and as that moisture goes away, it takes some of the nutrients in those cornstalks with it.”

Also, as cornstalks thaw, they tend to get pressed into the wet, muddy soil by the cattle, contaminating their taste. Therefore, the cattle won’t eat as much as they typically would.

As a result, Strohbehn said producers likely will have to double the amount of land they usually allow their cattle to graze on per day. Typically, he said, producers can expect to utilize 1-2 acres of cornstalks per cow per month. But because of the reduced quality and palatability, they probably need to double that to 2-4 acres of cornstalks per cow per month. The exception to this is producers who are strip grazing their cornstalks.

Also, for spring-calving cows, they are in their last 60 days of gestation — a crucial time for meeting nutritional demands.

“Their energy demands are going up, as well as their protein demands, as part of that last gestational period,” Strohbehn said. “So producers need to understand that the nutrient demands are higher, and the cornstalk quality is lower, so they must make sure they are supplementing the cornstalks for protein, energy, vitamins and minerals according to the cow’s needs.”

The Iowa Beef Center will soon release more information specifically addressing the nutrition of spring-calving cows.

The Iowa Beef Center at Iowa State University was established in 1996. Its goal is to support the growth and vitality of the beef cattle industry in the state. As part of Iowa State University Extension, the Iowa Beef Center also serves as a central access point for all ISU programs and research related to the beef industry. For more information about the Iowa Beef Center: