| |
![NRCS This Week mast head](https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/eot2008/20090111095346im_/http://www.nrcs.usda.gov/news/thisweek/images/mastheaddshadow3.jpg)
SARE Grant, NRCS Know-How Create Unique Grazing, Watering System for Cattle
![Ray Meismer wanted ideas and assistance to convert to management-intensive grazing for his cow/calf herd, but in a way that would be sensitive to his steep slopes and protect a vigorous natural spring](https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/eot2008/20090111095346im_/http://www.nrcs.usda.gov/news/thisweek/images/Meismermed.jpg)
Ray Meismer wanted
ideas and assistance to convert to management-intensive grazing for his
cow/calf herd, but in a way that would be sensitive to his steep slopes
and protect a vigorous natural spring |
To improve profits and lessen the impact of his 300-acre central Illinois
crop and livestock farm on the Illinois River watershed, Ray Meismer sought help
from his local NRCS field office. Meismer wanted ideas and assistance to convert
to management-intensive grazing for his cow/calf herd, but in a way that would
be sensitive to his steep slopes and protect a vigorous natural spring.
Soil conservation technician Jim McQuilkin of the Henry Field Office suggested
applying for a producer grant from SARE as the first step.
Meismer’s SARE grant application was approved in 2000. With help from McQuilkin
and Extension specialist Jay Solomon, Meismer designed a new system reliant upon
nutritious forages for his cattle and a unique watering system that uses a “ram”
pump to power water to his pasture. The project became a three-way partnership,
with Solomon mapping out pastures and a fencing scheme and McQuilkin tackling
ways to manage – and protect – a natural spring on Meismer’s hillside. The
forceful spring spewed 10 to 15 gallons a minute.
“A lot of farmers would love to have that spring,” McQuilkin said, “but the
cattle coming to drink were trampling it.” He helped Meismer build a containment
dam, install a tank to collect water and filter sediment, and lay pipes to carry
water from the ram pump. The water-powered pump was strong enough to force water
uphill. Meismer now moves a storage tank on a wagon among three steep sites,
then, using gravity, moves water to another tank he rotates among paddocks as he
shifts his herd.
By covering the soil with vegetation, Meismer has reduced erosion on his farm.
Moreover, his watering system keeps cattle away from the spring, protecting
water quality.
Solomon worked with Meismer to create 16 paddocks and manage grasses in those
paddocks. Their rotation relies on a basic principle: move cattle into a paddock
when grasses are at an optimum size of 8 to 12 inches, then out when they graze
the forage back to 3 to 5 inches.
“From an environmental standpoint, the grazing rotation maintains a better
vegetation cover through active plants, which helps prevent erosion,” Solomon
said. “It’s a sustainable system that can easily provide continual food for
livestock 10 to 11 months out of the year, so less supplementary feed is
needed.”
Meismer converted some of his corn and soybean acreage to forages for cattle and
increased his stocking density. Because he had better pasture, those animals
gained more weight, bringing better returns. “The increased revenue from calf
sales more than offset the decrease in revenue from cash crops,” Meismer said
“Some of my ground was rougher and not as productive for cash cropping, but was
suitable for grazing.”
In 2002, Illinois Extension educators hosted a pasture walk for area farmers to
learn more about Meismer’s grazing and watering system.
About SARE
Since 1988, the Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) program
has helped advance farming systems that are profitable, environmentally sound
and good for communities through a nationwide grants program. The program,
administered by the Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension
Service, USDA, funds projects and conducts outreach designed to improve
agricultural systems and natural resources.
NRCS field office professionals frequently collaborate on SARE-funded projects
and are valuable partners to the SARE program. NRCS staff serve on SARE’s
national Operations Committee, on regional Administrative Councils, on State
committees and are actively engaged as technical advisers and collaborators on
SARE-funded research grants around the U.S.
For more information, visit
the SARE website or for more information about the regional SARE programs, click on the region
area of the map below.
![Map of the four SARE regions: North Central, Northeast, South, and West](https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/eot2008/20090111095346im_/http://www.nrcs.usda.gov/news/thisweek/images/SARE%20map.gif)
Your contact is Diana Friedman, SARE
research associate, at 301-504-6422.
| | |