BG-IM-03-1

U.C. COOPERATIVE EXTENSION

SAMPLE COST TO ESTABLISH AND PRODUCE

BERMUDAGRASS HAY

IMPERIAL COUNTY – 2003

Prepared by:
Keith S. Mayberry Farm Advisor, U.C. Cooperative Extension, Imperial County
Herman Meister Agronomy Advisor, U.C. Cooperative Extension, Imperial County

For an explanation of calculations used for the study refer to the attached General Assumptions or call the author, Keith S. Mayberry , at the
Imperial County Cooperative Extension office, (619)352-9474 or e-mail at ksmayberry@ucdavis.edu.

The University of California Cooperative Extension in compliance with the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Title IX of the Education Amendments of
1972, and the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 does not discriminate on the basis of race, creed, religion, color, national origins, or mental or physical
handicaps in any of its programs or activities, or with respect to any of its employment practices or procedures. The University of California does
not discriminate on the basis of age, ancestry, sexual orientation, marital status, citizenship, medical condition (as defined in section 12926 of the
California Government Code) or because the individuals are disabled or Vietnam era veterans. Inquiries regarding this policy may be directed to
the Personnel Studies and Affirmative Action Manager, Agriculture and Natural Resources, 2120 University Avenue, University of California,
Berkeley, California 94720, (510) 644-4270.

University of California and the United States Department of Agriculture cooperating.

 FOREWORD

We wish to thank growers, pest control advisors, chemical applicators and dealers, custom farm
operators, fertilizer dealers, seed companies, contract harvesters, equipment companies, and the
Imperial County Agricultural Commissioners office for providing us with the data necessary to
compile this circular. Without them we could not have achieved the accuracy needed for
evaluating the cost of production for the field crop industry in Imperial County.

The information presented herein allows one to get a "ballpark" idea of field crop production
costs and practices in the Imperial County. They do not reflect the exact values or practices of
any one grower, but are rather an average of countywide prevailing costs and practices. Exact
costs incurred by individual growers depend upon many variables such as weather, land rent,
seed, choice of agrichemicals, location, time of planting, etc. No exact comparison with
individual grower practice is possible or intended. The budgets do reflect, however, the
prevailing industry trends within the region.

Overhead usually includes secretarial and office expenses, general farm supplies,
communications, utilities, farm shop, transportation, moving farm equipment, accountants,
insurance, safety training, permits, etc. In most of the crop guidelines contained in this circular
we used 13 % of the total of land preparation, growing costs and land rent to estimate overhead.

Since all of the inputs used to figure production costs are impossible to document in a single
page, we have included extra expense in man-hours or overhead to account for such items as pipe
setting, motor grader, water truck, shovel work, bird and rodent control, etc. Whenever possible
we have given the costs of these operations per hour listed on the cultural operations page.

Not included in these production costs are expenses resulting from management fees, loans,
providing supervision, or return on investments. The crop budgets also do not contain expenses
encumbered for road and ditch maintenance, and perimeter weed control. If all the above items
were taken into account, the budget may need to be increased by 7-15%.

Where applicable we have used terminology that is commonly used in the agricultural industry.
These terms are compiled in a glossary at the end of the circular. We feel that an understanding
of these terms will be useful to entry-level growers, bankers, students and visitors.

Herman S Meister & Keith S. Mayberry Contributors: Eric T. Natwick

(Principal researchers and editors) Tom A. Turini
Vegetable Crops and Agronomy Advisors Jose L. Aguiar
Khaled M. Bali
Juan N Guerrero
 2002-2003 Field/Vegetable Prevailing Rate for Field Operations
IMPERIAL COUNTY

HEAVY TRACTOR WORK & LAND

PREPARATION Lilliston 40” beds with/herbicides 4 -row...........15.00
OPERATION $/ACRE Inject fertilizer & furrow out 30” beds 4-row ....15.00
Plow....................................................................30.50 Inject fertilizer & furrow out 40” beds 4-row ....13.00
Subsoil, 2nd gear..................................................39.00 Fertilize dry & furrow out 30” beds....................17.00
Landplane ...........................................................12.75 Fertilize dry & furrow out 40” beds....................15.00
Triplane ..............................................................11.25 Flat inject fertilizer NH3 .....................................15.00
Chisel 15” ..........................................................25.00 Broadcast dry fertilizer .........................................7.00
Wil-Rich chisel ...................................................16.00 Ground spray 40” 8-row .....................................12.00
Big Ox ................................................................24.00 Ground spray 30” 8-row .....................................14.00
Slip plow.............................................................41.00 Chop cotton stalks...............................................13.75
Pull/disc borders ...................................................6.75
Make cross checks (taps) ......................................6.25 HARVEST COSTS Field Crops
Break border .........................................................6.00 BY UNIT
Disc, stubble .......................................................21.00 Combine alfalfa seed .................................. 41.75/acre
Disc, regular........................................................12.50 Windrow alfalfa seed .................................. 17.50/acre
Corrugate ............................................................11.00 Rake bermudagrass ....................................... 5.00/acre
Disc, regular with ring roller...............................13.50 Swath bermudagrass .................................. 13.50/acre
List 30” beds 12-row ..........................................15.00 Swath sudangrass........................................ 11.25/acre
List 40” beds 8-row ...........................................15.00 Rake sudangrass............................................ 5.25/acre
Float....................................................................10.00 Swath alfalfa ................................................. 8.00/acre
Disc, borders.........................................................7.00 Rake alfalfa................................................... 4.50/acre
Dump (scraper) borders ......................................14.50 Bale (all types of hay- small bale) ................ 0.65/bale
Haul & stack hay – small bale ...................... 0.25/bale
LIGHT TRACTOR WORK Bale (large bale 4X4).................................. 10.00/bale
Power mulch dry.................................................25.00 Bale (large bale Jr. 3X4)............................... 9.00/bale
Power mulch with herbicide ...............................28.00 Stack & load large bale................................. 6.00/bale
Shape 30” 6 row .................................................10.75 Dig sugar beets ..................................... 2.60/clean ton
Shape 40” 4 row .................................................10.75 Haul sugar beets.................................... 2.45/clean ton
Plant 30” beds nonprecision ..............................20.00 Combine wheat ...... 15 per acre + 0.55 /cwt over 1 ton
Plant 40” beds nonprecision ..............................18.00 Haul wheat ......................................................5.50/ton
Precision plant 30” beds .....................................22.00 Combine bermudagrass seed 1st time......... 40.00/acre
Precision plant 40” beds .....................................20.00 Combine bermudagrass seed 2st time......... 25.00/acre
Mulch plant wheat ..............................................19.50 Haul bermudagrass seed (local) .....................175/load
Plant alfalfa (corrugated) ....................................17.50 Haul bermudagrass seed (Yuma) ...................300/load
Plant bermudagrass (flat) ....................................13.75
Plant sudangrass..................................................14.75 MISCELLANEOUS OPERATIONS BY THE HOUR
Cultivate 30” beds 4-row ....................................16.00 Motor grader.......................................................48.00
Cultivate 40” beds 4-row ....................................14.00 Backhoe ..............................................................45.00
Spike 30” beds 4-row..........................................13.25 Water truck .........................................................40.00
Spike 40” beds 4-row..........................................11.25 Wheel tractor ......................................................35.00
Spike and furrow out 30” 4-row ........................14.00 Scraper................................................................36.00
Spike and furrow out 40” 4-row ........................12.00 Versatile..............................................................56.00
Furrow out 30” beds 4-row.................................13.25 D-6......................................................................56.00
Furrow out 40” beds 4-row.................................11.25 D-8......................................................................70.00
Lilliston 30” beds 6-row .....................................13.00 Buck ends of field...............................................28.00
Lilliston 40” beds 4-row .....................................13.00 Pipe setting (2 men) ............................................37.00
Lilliston 30” beds with/herbicides 6-row............15.00 Laser ...................................................................88.00
Work ends (disc out rotobucks) ..........................35.00
ii
 IMPERIAL COUNTY BERMUDAGRASS CULTURE 2002-2003

Bermudagrass Seed
Annual acreage, yield, and value of bermudagrass seed in
Imperial County, CA for five consecutive years
Year Acres Yield/Acre Value/Acre
(lbs. hulled)
2001 27,153 347 520
2000 29,383 424 628
1999 23,488 457 591
1998 21,865 688 963
1997 18,710 589 954
(Source: I.C. Agricultural Commissioner's Reports).
*Check with local mills for current yield and value updates. Historic data reported to be
high due to accounting differences as to thrasher run, unhulled and hulled seed yield and value.

STAND ESTABLISHMENT: A uniform seedbed is prerequisite to obtaining a good stand.

High spots in the field may cause uneven irrigation, resulting in poor stands. Lasers leveling the
field before planting will ensure more uniform irrigation and help prevent scalding. The cost of
laser leveling varies from field to field based upon an hourly rate for equipment. The hourly rate
normally translates to $45-50 per acre. If laser leveling is not used, then land plane and dump
borders are often used to make a flat seed bed.

PLANTING DATE: Late May to early June is the preferred time for establishing new plantings.
However, bermudagrass will germinate anytime during the summer.

SEEDING RATES: Plant 15-20 pounds of seed per acre on corrugations or on flat ground.
Higher seed rates are needed on saline soils. Corrugation adds approximately $17.50 to the cost.

VARIETIES: Roughly 90% of the bermudagrass acreage is planted with the variety "Common."
Limited acreage of other varieties such as "Sahara" is grown, including some on contract.

IRRIGATION: Sprinkler irrigation is used by many growers for stand establishment

(approximate cost per acre is $125-160). Other growers prefer flood irrigation. It may take 5 to
7 surface irrigations to establish a stand. During the season, 14 to16 irrigations may be needed to
produce the crop. Three irrigations will generally produce a crop between cuttings; four
irrigations will increase yield but decrease quality.

UC Cooperative Extension-Imperial County Field Crops Guidelines Sept 2002

FERTILIZATION: The amount of fertilizer needed depends upon the intended use of the
bermudagrass crop. Fields producing hay exclusively may receive as much as 600 pounds of
nitrogen per acre for the growing season. Fields used for a seed/hay combination will require
150-200 lbs less N for the season. Urea and anhydrous ammonia are commonly applied. Some
growers have added phosphorus to their fertilizer program if soil test show that levels of soluble
phosphorus are lower than 10 parts per million.

PEST CONTROL: Bermudagrass grown for seed occasionally has pest problems. Cutworm,
spider mites, thrips and mealy bugs should be monitored as they may cause damage to spring and
fall seed crops. Grass whiteflies and the fulgorid (Toya propingua) can cause extensive damage
in the fall by contaminating seed heads with honeydew. The plant bug (Trigenotylus tenuis) can
cause stunting, delayed flowering, and reduced yield.

Rust (Puccinia cynodontis) is common and is sometimes severe enough to merit control with
fungicides following periods of high humidity and heavy dews. The needle nematode
(Longidorus africanus) and the root knot nematode (Meloidogyne spp.) are occasional pests, but
control is not economically feasible.

WEED CONTROL: Most weed control efforts are aimed at the stand establishment phase.
Once the bermudagrass is established, weeds are seldom a problem due to the competitive nature
of a healthy stand except in the wintertime. Some broadleaf weeds and wild oats are problems in
the wintertime. Various materials are available for control. Consult your PCA or your local
Weed Science Farm Advisor for suggestions.

HARVESTING: Bermudagrass seed is harvested once during the late spring or early summer.
The field may be harvested again for seed as a late fall crop. However, some fields may be used
as pasture or harvested for summer hay depending on market demand and prices. Some hay can
be harvested between seed crops.

The spring seed crop is cut with a rotary mower, combine-harvested once, and re-thrashed to
maximize seed production. The soil should not be allowed to dry extensively while making the
spring seed crop or it will be difficult to get the stand to grow out of a dormant condition caused
by water stress.

This crop budget is based upon one seed crop and a summer hay crops. The harvesting costs
presented here need to be adjusted for seed/seed, seed/hay/seed, seed/pasture, or other possible
harvest regimes. See "bermudagrass hay production" section for hay production alone.

The values presented in the crop budget are based upon thrasher run seed. This seed is then
cleaned to produce unhulled seed or further processed to hulled seed to meet market demands.
While there is a wide variation in clean out (high purity seed), a "ball park" average may be 50
percent clean, unhulled seed from thrasher run (field run).

UC Cooperative Extension-Imperial County Field Crops Guidelines Sept 2002

 If a fall seed crop is made, the crop is often thrashed only once while the seed crop is standing.
Frost normally takes care of desiccation of the stand for harvest. There is no re-run thrashing of
the field, as it is not economical.

BERMUDAGRASS HAY PRODUCTION ONLY: Most of the cultural practices for

producing hay only are similar to those for seed/hay production. However, for hay production,
the crop should be maintained in a lush, vegetative growing condition by applying ample
nitrogen and maintaining regular irrigations. Bermudagrass for export should not be allowed to
grow too rank or the lower stems will have more bleach due to lack of sunlight.

The early season hay crop commands a $10-20 per ton premium over late season cuttings.
__________

UC Cooperative Extension-Imperial County Field Crops Guidelines Sept 2002

 IMPERIAL COUNTY BERMUDAGRASS HAY PRODUCTION COSTS 2002-2003
80 acre field
Mechanical operations at prevailing rates. Hand labor at $9.25 /hr.($6.75 plus SS, unemployment,
workman's compensation and fringe benefits)
Yield--10 tons hay (no seed production, hay only) 80 Acre Field
Prevailing MATERIALS HAND LABOR COST
OPERATION Rate Type/Amount Cost Hours Dollars Per Acre

LAND PREPARATION
Stubble disc 21.00 21.00
Big ox 24.00 24.00
Disc, regular 1x 12.50 12.50
Fertilize 7.00 11-52-0 200lbs 24 31.00
Disc, Regular 1x 12.50 12.50
Triplane 2x 11.25 22.50
Dump borders 14.50 14.50
Shape borders 6.00 6.00
TOTAL LAND PREPARATION COSTS 144.00

COST OF ESTABLISHMENT
Plant (flat) 13.75 Seed 15 lb@ $1.50/lb 22.50 36.25
Irrigate 5x Water 2.5 ac-ft 40.00 1.5 13.88 53.88
Weed Control 2x ground 12.50 Herbicides 32.00 44.50
COST OF ESTABLISHMENT 134.63
TOTAL COST OF STAND ESTABLISHMENT 278.63

COSTS OF HAY PRODUCTION (5-year life)

Irrigate 16x Water 6.25 ac-ft 100.00 5 48.56 148.56
Fertilizer, dry 3x 7.00 350 lb N (urea) 77.00 98.00
Fertilize (water-run) 200 lb N (anhydrous) 36.00 36.00

TOTAL ANNUAL COSTS 282.56

Land rent (net acres) 100.00

Amortization 20 % of total cost of stand establishment 55.73
Cost overhead 13 % of annual costs, land rent and amortization 56.98
TOTAL PREHARVEST COSTS 495.26

HARVEST COSTS
Swather 5x 13.50 40.50
Rake 12x 5.00 40.00
Bale 10 tons 0.65 /bale 18 bales/ton 117.00
Haul & Stack 10 tons 0.25 /bale 18 bales/ton 45.00
TOTAL HARVEST COST 242.50
TOTAL ALL COSTS 737.76

PROJECTED NET GAIN (PER ACRE)

Yield Price/ton ($) Breakeven
(tons/acre) 70 80 90 100 110 ($/ton)

8 -145 -65 15 95 175 88.17

9 -92 -2 88 178 268 80.17
10 -38 62 162 262 362 73.78
11 16 126 236 346 456 68.54
12 70 190 310 430 550 64.18

Univ.of Calif.-Imperial County Guidelines Cir.104-F Sept 2002