AbstractSubirrigated and mesic meadow ecosystems are an important forage resource for livestock operations, being used for hay production, grazing, or a combination of both. Our study evaluated how timing and intensity of grazing meadow regrowth following a summer hay harvest influenced subsequent‐year plant production and forage nutritive value. Cattle grazed within established meadow paddocks during prefreeze (fall) or postfreeze (late‐fall/early‐winter) time periods at two utilization rates, moderate (53.0% ± 4.9%) or heavy (66.1% ± 4.9%), from 2018 to 2020 in four randomized compete blocks. Meadow regrowth available for grazing was 24% less between the prefreeze and postfreeze grazing periods, and forage crude protein (CP) decreased from 136 to 84 g kg−1 over the same period (p < 0.01). Prefreeze grazing reduced (p = 0.03) subsequent‐year graminoid production by 11.2% compared to grazing occurring during the postfreeze period and 10.5% (p = 0.08) compared to a non‐graze control; however, subsequent‐year total live plant production (graminoids and forb/legumes) did not differ among the grazing time and intensity treatments. Subsequent‐year forage nutritive value was variable by year and grazing treatment, but tended to follow the amount of forb/legumes present in total plant biomass (CP, R2 = 0.72; p < 0.01). Grazing meadow regrowth during the prefreeze period provides opportunities to better utilize greater forage quantity at a higher nutritive value, but periodically rotating grazing timing from prefreeze to postfreeze could limit negative effects of grazing during the prefreeze period on subsequent‐year graminoid biomass.