Abstract
Photo: Lee Rinehart, NCAT |
In a time of high-cost inputs, pasture-based livestock production systems can naturally maintain soil and
plant integrity while growing healthy ruminants. This publication profiles the general types of pasture
and rangeland and offers information about management and expected yields. Weed management
strategies are also discussed and tips are offered to rehabilitate depleted land. Issues in grazing management,
such as paddock development, plant selection, drought, and plant toxicosis are also discussed.
Resources and references are also presented.
Table of Contents
Introduction
Pasture is the basis of any livestock operation
that purports to be truly sustainable. It
is especially important as the livestock sector
continues to experience extraordinarily
high fuel and other input costs. Pasture-based
production systems offer farmers and
ranchers the ability to let the ruminants’ environment and immune system work
together. An acceptable level of production
can be attained as the ecological connections
between ruminants, the soil, and the
pasture plants is naturally maintained.
Ruminants on pasture experience fewer
health problems, due partially to reduced
stress. Ruminants under confinement, on
the other hand, are subject to high-grain
rations that keep their digestive physiology running at top speed. Grain-fed ruminants
typically require treatment for maladies such as acidosis, mastitis, and respiratory disease
because their immune systems have become
seriously compromised. A singular focus
on productivity often causes more problems
than a broader, systems approach. Given a
well-conceived marketing plan, an up-to-date
pasture-based operation can maintain
reasonable production, reduce input costs,
and achieve a positive economic return.
Much of the livestock grazing land in the
U.S. can be used more efficiently. For
instance, USDA-Agricultural Research
Service (ARS) scientists have conducted
stocking rate tests on wheat pasture and
old world bluestem perennial grass pastures,
such as those that occupy large sections
in the Southern Great Plains. The pastures were stocked with double the normal
number of cattle using intensively-managed
grazing techniques. Even in the arid
West, increased stock density coupled with
decreased time on a pasture has proven
a successful strategy to increase livestock
enterprise productivity while improving the
condition of the rangeland.
The ecological processes that occur on temperate
pastures are basically the same as
those on arid rangelands. But the processes
occur much slower on drier rangelands due
mainly to temperature and moisture differences.
The following section is a primer on
the nature of both types of pasture ecology.
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Temperate Pasture
Temperate pastures are typically very productive.
They are characterized by well-developed
soils, medium to high precipitation,
and moderate to rapid nutrient cycling.
They can be dominated by warm or cool
season plants, and occupy niches from
Maine to Florida, from Texas to Minnesota,
and from Southern California to the
Pacific Northwest coastal regions of Washington
and Oregon. Many irrigated riverine
pastures in the intermountain and desert
West also resemble temperate pastures due
to deep soils, adequate moisture from irrigation
or high water tables, and the presence
of high-yielding plant species such as
bromegrass and alfalfa. Temperate pastures
will on average yield anywhere from 2,000
pounds of dry matter per acre per year to
well over 12,000 pounds per acre, depending
on plant species, soil type, growing season,
grazing management, and other environmental
factors.
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Rangeland
According to the Society for Range Management,
rangelands contain natural
vegetation dominated by grasses, forbs
and shrubs and the land is managed as
a natural ecosystem (SRM, No date). In
North America, rangelands include the
grasslands of the Great Plains stretching
from Texas to Canada, from the prairie
states of the Dakotas and Nebraska to the
annual grasslands of California, and forestlands
and wetlands throughout North
America. Included in this definition are
arid shrublands throughout the western
United States, the arctic tundra and mountain
meadows, and deserts throughout the
southwest. Rangeland can also embrace
pastures of introduced grasses, such as
crested wheatgrass, that are managed as
rangelands. Arid rangelands, which typify
much of Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado,
Wyoming, Utah, Nevada, Idaho, Montana,
Oregon, California, and Washington, can
yield anywhere from 200 to 1,500 pounds
or more of dry matter per acre per year.
Rangelands are typically characterized by
low precipitation, shallow soils, and slow
nutrient cycling. They are usually dominated
by grasses, forbs, and shrubs efficient
at water and nutrient utilization. Consequently,
practices appropriate to temperate
pastures, such as fertilization and plowing,
are often inappropriate on rangelands.
Regardless, rangelands can be very productive,
providing sustainable income for ranch
communities while protecting valuable natural
resources through appropriate grazing
strategies. Specific strategies for sustainable
rangeland management are covered below
in the sections Prescribed Grazing and Developing a Grazing Management Plan on Rangeland.
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Managing Soil and Forage Resources
Fertile soil is the foundation of sustainable
production. “Soil macro- and micro-organisms
are the external digestive system that
processes organic matter, delivering a smorgasbord
of minerals, vitamins, and other
nutrients to the crop at a metered pace. This
is in contrast to the conventional approach
where crops are flooded with a limited number
of soluble fertilizer nutrients, leading to‘luxury consumption,’ imbalanced plant
nutrition, and a susceptibility to disease
and attack by insect pests” (NCAT, 2004).
Pasture systems are maintained through
grazing and animal impact on the land,
which accomplish the following:
- nutrient cycling through feces and urine
- timely defoliation and removal of plant material that encourages regrowth
- root death through leaf removal, which results in accumulation of underground organic matter and nutrient cycling
- increased water holding capacity through accumulation of organic matter in the soil
- hoof action, which breaks compacted soil near the surface, thereby allowing greater germination of seeds and encouraging regeneration of pasture swards.
Livestock should be turned onto cool-season
grass pastures (orchardgrass, wheatgrasses,
timothy, fescues, etc.) when the
grass is 8 to 12 inches tall, and removed
when the stubble height is 3 to 4 inches
tall. Cool-season grasses have the ability
to regrow relatively quickly after grazing,
given proper conditions and soil moisture.
Cool-season grasses can regrow
through tillering (new shoot growth from
the crown) or by sprouting new plants by
way of underground rhizomes, depending
on the species.
Native warm-season grasses (big bluestem,
switchgrass, Indiangrass) should not be
grazed too short, as heavy defoliation can
seriously reduce its ability to persist over
time. Native warm-season grasses just will
not withstand the kind of defoliation that
cool-season grasses can without causing
harm to the pasture. It is also advisable to
leave 6 to 8 inches of stubble after grazing
(during the growing season) for native
warm-season grasses. The extra leaf area
is needed to photosynthesize plant sugars
and prepare for later winter dormancy. A
grazing system that leaves a 12-inch stubble
at frost is appropriate for these grasses
(Conservation Commission of the State of
Missouri, 1984).
Graze warm-season annual grasses such
as sorghum-sudan just before heading,
when the plants are two feet tall. Livestock
should be removed when these grasses are
reduced to 4 to 6 inches of stubble. Take
care when grazing sorghum-sudan and
related grasses, as prussic acid poisoning
can be a problem if grazed too early. See
the section on Plant Toxicity below for
more detailed information.
Grazing can begin when grass is shorter on
warm-season bermudagrass, bahaigrass,
and buffalograss pastures because these
grasses have a more prostrate growing pattern
and can generally handle heavier defoliation.
Two to three inches of stubble on
these grasses is not too short.
Cool season grass yields range from 4 to
6.5 tons per acre, and warm season pastures
can typically yield from 2.5 to 5 tons
per acre. In addition, pastures with grasses
and legumes grown together typically yield
10 to 15 percent more forage than monoculture
pastures. Producers should determine
the annual pasture productivity, as this will
provide a baseline of information with which
to make management decisions.
Determining Forage Yield
Photo: Lee Rinehart, NCAT. |
Forage yield can be practically determined
by either (1) a pasture ruler or (2) a rising
plate meter. (A more scientific, but more
difficult measure, involves clipping a sample plot, drying the vegetation, and weighing the dry matter. It is known as clip-and-weigh
and is discussed further in the box below).
A pasture ruler is just that: a ruler calibrated
in inches is placed on end at ground
level, with forage height measured in inches.
A rising plate meter measures density as
well as height. A 20 X 20-inch plate weighing
2.6 pounds is dropped on a rule from
waist height. For this measure in Iowa and
Missouri, each inch of forage height equals
263 lb/ac DM (pounds per acre of dry matter),
and has been verified by numerous
clip-and-weigh field studies. This measure
should be calibrated for local conditions by
clip-and-weigh method to obtain accuracy.
Clip-and-Weigh Method
Construct a two-square-foot quadrant frame
from PVC or copper pipe (17 inches by 17
inches). Randomly throw the frame on the
ground and clip all the plants inside the
hoop to ground level. Place the clipped forage
into a paper sack, and repeat procedure
at least nine more times, placing samples in
separate paper bags.
1. To determine percent dry matter, weigh
one sample in grams (453.6 grams per
pound, 28.47 grams per ounce), and
place in a microwave oven for two minutes
on high setting. Weigh the sample
in grams and repeat the oven prodedure
until no change in weight occurs. Place a
small dish of water in the oven to prevent
oven damage.
2. Calculate the dry matter percentage of
the sample. Percent dry matter = dry
weight / fresh weight X 100.
3. Multiply the percent dry matter by the
fresh weights of the remaining samples.
4. Average the weights of all samples, and
multiply the average dry matter weight in
grams by 50 to get pounds per acre.
5. Remember to adjust this figure for
allowable use. If you wish to use only
half the forage in the pasture, multiply
the result by 0.50 to get pounds per acre
for grazing. |
A good rough estimate is 300 pounds of
dry matter per acre per inch on a ruler.
Jim Gerrish's values range from 150
pounds per acre per inch in a fair stand to
600 pounds per acre per inch in an excellent
stand as determined by clipping and
weighing numerous quadrants and comparing
them to sward heights (Gerrish, 2004).
The vast differences in the above estimates
reflect differences in pasture types.
For example, bermudagrass will most
likely be different from bromegrass when
measuring stand density with a ruler or
rising plate meter.
Consideration must be given to forage
quality and the species of livestock grazing
the pasture. The higher the forage quality
(vegetative, growing grass, and clover),
the greater the intake. For information
on animal intake by species, please refer
to the chart below. Understanding
how much an animal will eat each
day can assist producers in estimating
forage demand.
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Intake, Sward Density, and
Grazing Period
An animal’s
intake
decreases
the longer it remains
in a given paddock. |
Forage intake is directly related to the
density of the pasture sward. Ruminants
can take only a limited number of bites per
minute while grazing, and cattle in particular
will only graze for about eight hours
per day. It is important then to ensure
that each bite taken by the grazing animal
is the largest bite she can get. Cattle
graze by wrapping their tongue around
and ripping up forage. Large bites of forage
are therefore ensured by maintaining
dense pastures.
Dense pastures are pastures with actively
growing and tillering forage plants. Tillering
occurs in grasses that are grazed or
mowed while vegetative, which results in
the activation of basal growing points and
the initiation and growth of new stems and
leaves. Tillering results in a plant covering
more basal area, therefore helping to make
a pasture denser.
The length of the grazing period (time in
a paddock) also has a direct effect on pasture
intake. An animal’s intake decreases
the longer it remains in a given paddock.
This is due to (1) the effect of plant disappearance
(as plants are grazed) and subsequent
searching by cattle for the next bite,
and (2) the decrease in crude protein content
beginning roughly two days after the
animals have been turned in to the paddock.
Jim Gerrish has shown that as an
animal remains in a paddock, intake and
liveweight gains decrease. (Gerrish, 2004)
It is for this reason that most dairy graziers
move high-producing animals to new
paddocks after each milking.
Animal Intake By Species |
Species |
Intake (% of body weight) per day |
Intake in pounds per day |
Mature cattle |
2 to 3 |
20 to 30 |
Sheep |
2.5 to 3.5 |
5 to 10 |
Goats |
4 to 5 |
3 to 5 |
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Legumes and Soil Fertility
Legumes like clover, alfalfa, birdsfoot trefoil,
sainfoin, and vetch have the ability to
convert atmospheric nitrogen to the plant-available
form of nitrogen through the symbiotic
work of rhizobium bacteria, which
occur naturally in a healthy soil. “Nitrogen
fixation by legumes can be in the range of
25-75 pounds of nitrogen per acre per year
in a natural ecosystem, and several hundred
pounds in a cropping system.” (Lindemann
and Glover, 2003) For well-managed
diverse pastures, supplemental nitrogen fertilization
can be eliminated altogether. For
pastures under high density grazing systems,
70 to 85 percent of the nitrogen taken
in by the animals is returned and cycled
back to the soil in the form of feces and
urine. Thus a diverse pasture with a significant legume component, which is managed
intensively with heavy stocking and frequent
moves, has the potential to become a stable,
closed system.
Stocking Rate
Determining the initial stocking rate for a
given pasture is relatively simple, but not
necessarily easy. It is simple because the
calculations are relatively straightforward.
It is not easy because you familiarize yourself
with basic forage growth principles and
apply those principles to what you observe
on your own pasture.
Several key issues must be considered to
determine the optimal number of animals
a pasture will support. Consideration must
be given to forage production potential, utilization
patterns by livestock, the nutrient
content of the forage and forage growth patterns,
the plant species that compose the
pasture, species diversity of the pasture
plant community, and seasonal variations
in temperature and moisture.
A simplified method for determining the
initial stocking rate for a pasture of known
acreage is to (1) estimate average yield per
acre (see Determining Forage Yield above), (2) determine average animal
weight, and (3) estimate the length of the
grazing season in days. These figures can
be used to determine the number of animals
that can be grazed in the pasture for
the season by using the following formula:
Number of animals = |
total acreage × yield per acre
0.04 × (avg. animal weight) × (total days) |
Example: Determine number of 1,000 pound
cows a 50-acre pasture will support for 100 days
given 3,000 pounds of dry matter per acre…
Number of animals = |
50 acres × 3,000 per acre
0.04 × (1,000 lbs.) × (100 days) |
= 37.5 or 37 cows
More information on stocking rate is
addressed below in the section entitled Rotational Grazing and Paddock Size.
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Ecological Weed Management in Pastures
Agricultural systems are very complex biological
systems that operate in a particular
ecological balance. Each region of thecountry, indeed each watershed and field,
might behave in very different ways because
of differences in soil type and depth, indigenous
or local plant cover, cropping systems,
temperature, and water availability,
not to mention field cropping history. By
developing a cropping system or perennial
pasture that utilizes nature’s own defenses
and achieves ecological balance, a sustainable,
pest-limited crop can be grown.
Do You Really Have a Weed
Problem?
Many plants considered pasture weeds
are highly palatable and nutritious during
the vegetative stage. Take, for instance,
dandelion and plantain. Both are numerous
in many pastures, and producers can
spend thousands of dollars spraying them
with herbicides. They are, however, valuable
plants that occupy different root zones,
and so deliver nutrients from different soil
depths. They are also very nutritious and
palatable when young. These and many
other “weeds” can be a valuable contribution
to sustainable pastures. Even our so-called “noxious weeds,” like knapweed and
kochia, can be grazed by sheep, goats, or
cattle with skilled management.
Weeds are often a result of soil disturbance
and human interference in nature. Weeds
are plants that occupy spaces that humans
do not want them to occupy, and farmers
have many very good reasons for not wanting
them to occupy certain spaces. Some are
non-native, invasive plants with the capacity
to crowd out or compromise the health of
other plants and animals. Those types of
weeds may need concerted control strategies.
In agriculture we have become very
accustomed to taking reactive measures—whether pesticide application or mechanical
approaches like cultivation—in order
to eliminate unwanted plants and establish
a favorable environment for the kinds
of plants we choose to be there. But if we
can look at crop production and pasture as “systems,” and begin to understand how plants and animals and humans interact on
a given landscape, weeds will become much
less of a problem. By managing croplands and pastures according to natural principles
we can significantly reduce weed problems.
For more information see ATTRA’s Principles of Sustainable Weed Management
for Croplands.
Techniques for Dealing with
Problem Weeds in Pastures
Keeping weeds out of a pasture is much easier
than trying to get rid of a bad infestation.
Some management practices to consider for
keeping pastures weed-free include:
- terminate low producing, weedy fields
- rotate perennial pastures with annuals
- integrate a high-density rotational grazing system
- know your pastures
- consider multi-species grazing
These methods, used alone or in combination,
can easily be incorporated into a
pasture management system, setting up
a situation in which weeds find it hard to
get ground. When pasture stands such
as alfalfa get too old, they often begin to
decline and allow other plants to take
over. Many times the grass component of
the field will increase as alfalfa decreases,
but in instances of low fertility or drought,
weeds can take advantage of the open niche
and become established. Terminating and
reseeding the field is sometimes recommended.
Some producers refer to this as “farming” the pasture. For some pastures
that are terminated, consider planting to
winter wheat, or oats and winter peas for
a season. These are in themselves valuable
forage crops, and they help to break pest
cycles while building soil all the while.
High density grazing systems also diminish
weed invasion by reducing grazing selectivity.
As an animal is forced to consume
all the plants in a given area, no one plant
is favored. This gives grass an advantage.
Grass, because of the lowered position of its
growing point when vegetative, tolerates leaf
removal better than broadleaf plants, which often elevate their growing points much earlier
in the season. Very intensive systems
can even favor grass over legume growth, so
pay careful attention to the legume component
of intensively grazed paddocks. Reseed
annual legumes by frost-seeding, feeding
seed to cattle, broadcasting in the fall, or
allowing legumes to go to seed to maintain
legumes in these systems. See the section Pasture Renovation and Establishment for more information.
Most of all, know your pastures. Make it a
point to understand the soil types and how
they change with the aspect and slope of the
land. Obtain some reference guides to assist
in identifying the plants on your farm or
ranch (the local Cooperative Extension Service
is a great place to find these). The more
you know about what your pastures will produce,
the better position you will be in to
make appropriate management decisions.
Remember—the principle concern in managing
unwanted pasture plants is to:
- encourage forage growth over weed growth through selection of appropriate livestock species and proper timing of grazing
- ensure adequate soil fertility through nutrient cycling, species diversity, and inclusion of legumes
- rotate non-erodible fields, especially
monoculture perennial fields,
to break weed cycles.
Perennial pastures on non-erodible land
can be rotated with cereals, summer annuals,
or even vegetables to interrupt weeds,
diseases, and problem insects.
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Multi-Species Grazing
Multi-species grazing refers to the practice
of utilizing different livestock species to:
- diversify farm income
- utilize pastures of different ecological
types on the farm
- manipulate the plant community
to meet the production goals of
the farm
- interrupt parasite life cycles
Cattle, sheep, and goats evolved eating different
plant types. Cattle typically consume,
in order of preference, grasses, forbs, and
shrubs; whereas sheep will consume forbs,
grasses, and shrubs and goats will seek
shrubs, forbs, and grasses.
Sheep have been effectively used on western
native ranges to control invasive species
such as spotted knapweed, leafy spurge,
and yellow starthistle. Cattle grazing in
conventional rotations often remain on western
ranges for weeks at a time during the
summer, and are moved when a set stubble
height of key grass species like bluebunch
wheatgrass or rough fescue is attained.
When cattle, being primarily grass-eaters,
remain in a pasture for long periods of
time, they tend to exhibit grazing selectivity
and choose vegetative grasses and young
forbs over knapweed and other noxious
weeds. Ranchers who have allowed bands
of 800 or more sheep to graze for several
days before or immediately after the cattle
have seen significant knapweed usage by
the sheep, with moderate grass utilization.
Applying pressure with diversified livestock
to knapweed, other forbs, and grasses in
equal amounts will increase range biodiversity
significantly over time. Sheep can
be used as an alternative enterprise by taking
value from wool, lambs, or by contract
grazing on other parcels to control noxious
weeds. Goats have a similar utility in areas
with shrub infestation, and have been successfully
used to control kudzu, English ivy,
scotchbroom, Chinese tallowtree, juniper,
and mesquite in many parts of the country.
Small ruminants can also add value to a
farm by providing meat and milk products
to growing ethnic groups that seek these
traditional foods. Refer to the ATTRA publication Multispecies Grazing for more information.
Using small ruminants on cattle operations
will necessitate a change in farm and ranch
infrastructure. Fencing, lambing sheds,
and secure paddocks in areas with predators
(wolf, coyote, or bear country) are often
necessary, but costs can add up and drain
profitability.
Other methods of maintaining small ruminants
on ranches are:
- employing a competent herder who
will ensure the sheep or goats graze
the necessary places, and
- running the animals with guard
dogs, donkeys, or llamas as a predator
deterrent
For more information see ATTRA’s Predator
Control for Sustainable & Organic Livestock
Production. Small ruminants are excellent
additions to diversified farms and ranches
because they have the ability to remove
weed problems by shifting plant succession
towards a more complex, balanced stage.
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Pasture Renovation and Establishment
When is it appropriate to renovate pastures?
Most times renovation isn’t necessary.
Many farmers and ranchers have noticed
increased productivity and decreased weed
problems merely by working out a high-density
rotational grazing system. Pastures are
very resilient and, when maintained in the
vegetative stage for most of the grazing season,
ecologically appropriate grasses and
forbs often begin to dominate where weeds
and other unpalatable plants once proliferated.
This happens due to the ecological
principle called succession (see box below).
Ecological Succession and Grazing
Management
In nature, ecosystems evolve from simplicity
to complexity. Consider a field that is plowed
and abandoned. Usually the first plants to
show up are annual grasses and forbs, followed
by perennial forbs and grasses. As the
years progress, the grasses begin to occupy
more of the space, and some shrubs will
become established. If left alone, and provided
adequate precipitation, the shrubs will
dominate. In many ecosystems, trees will
show up next, and woodland will appear at
the height of succession. Managed grazing
can hold succession to perennial forbs and
grasses by maintaining the pasture in the
vegetative (growing) stage. |
Nature tends toward the stability that comes
with species complexity. Complex pasture
systems occupy all available space both
above and below ground, and therefore utilize nutrients and water more efficiently.
Complex Pasture systems are more resilient
from year to year, as some species will
thrive during wet times, and others will proliferate
during drier times. Simple systems,
on the other hand, are less resilient and are
prone to disease and insect attack due to the
absence of diversity. In simple systems, one
or two species prevail, and there are fewer
niches for beneficial organisms to occupy.
Simple systems also exploit only a single
soil layer, and therefore many soil nutrients
will remain isolated from the system.
For those fields that have been cropped with
annuals for the past several decades, renovation
and reseeding might be appropriate,
especially if high-yielding dairy cattle
or growing lambs are to be grazing them.
What follows is a short discussion on pasture
establishment. For more information
on field renovation and reseeding, including
budgets for pasture establishment on
a per-acre basis, see ATTRA’s Converting
Cropland to Perennial Grassland.
Pasture Establishment
Photo: USDA NRCS. |
Establishing a new pasture is a time-consuming
and expensive process. Careful
attention should be paid to proper plant
material selection, soil tilth and seedbed
preparation, soil fertility and the addition
of compost or manures, green manure
plow-down, and amendments with rock
powders. Plant materials should be adapted to the native soil pH and water holding characteristics,
annual precipitation, temperature,
seasonality, and grazing system. Seed
bed preparation is a good time to incorporate
rock phosphate and adjust the soil
pH by adding lime according to soil test
recommendations.
Proper seedbed preparation is very important
for establishing a productive pasture.
There are essentially three ways to plant
pasture grasses and legumes:
- planting into a prepared seedbed
- no-till planting into the stubble of a prior crop
- or interseeding into an existing stand.
Seed to soil contact is of extreme importance
when planting by any method. The
seed must remain in contact with moist
soil for the first month after germination
or the seedling will wither. There are various
methods to achieve seed to soil contact
while planting. Drilling with a grass drill
is the most effective, as it allows for better
control of seed placement. Many times
packer wheels follow the drill to firm the
seedbed and ensure seed to soil contact.
Broadcast seeding can be effective for some
species, especially if the soil is packed after
planting. Pulling a roller or dragging a harrow
behind a tractor or four-wheeler is an
effective tool to increase the germination of
broadcast plantings, especially for ryegrass
and clover seeds. Other grass seeds such as
timothy, orchardgrass, and most warm season native grasses do not establish well
by broadcasting and should be drilled. Be
careful not to plant too deep or the seeds
might not germinate. Follow local Cooperative
Extension recommendations on seeding
rate and depth.
Another method of planting new pastures
is frost seeding. Frost seeding works well
in areas that experience a freeze-thaw pattern
in the spring before green-up. Broadcast
seeds after snowmelt and allow the
natural freeze-thaw action that occurs each
day to work the seed into the ground. If
the timing is right, this can be an effective
way to incorporate legumes into a grass
pasture. For the humid areas of the south
or drier areas of the west, fall-seeding
of legumes is more appropriate so that
they can get established during the winter
rainy season.
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Rotational Grazing and Paddock Size
Photo: Linda Coffey, NCAT |
If given a choice, livestock will only eat the
highest quality, most palatable plants in a
pasture. In order to ensure that plant biodiversity
is maintained in the pasture, a grazing
management system may need to be set
up to better control livestock grazing. The
grazing elements to control are timing and
intensity of grazing. This means controlling
the number of animals and length of time
they remain in a pasture.
Rotational grazing systems take full advantage
of the benefits of nutrient cycling as
well as the ecological balance that comes
from the relationships between pastures
and grazing animals. High density stocking
for short periods helps to build soil organic
matter and develops highly productive,
dense, resilient pastures. For more information
see ATTRA’s Rotational Grazing and Paddock Design, Fencing, and Water Systems for Controlled Grazing.
A rotational grazing management plan
need not be complex. The plan merely has
to direct the grazing animals to eat when
and where you want them to and to keep
the plants in a growing (vegetative) stage.
Rotational grazing allows for more effective
forage utilization by increasing herd
size on smaller paddocks for a shorter time,
thereby decreasing grazing selectivity and
giving the farmer more control on what and
when the livestock eat. The basic principles
of rotational grazing management include:
- proper timing of grazing (corresponding to plant physiological stage)
- proper intensity of grazing (duration on the pasture)
- residue or plant height after grazing
- duration of rest
Allow the pasture plants to get to sufficient
height prior to turning the cattle onto the
pasture. By waiting until the grass is 8 to
12 inches high, depending on species, the
roots will have become well developed and
the plants can handle defoliation. Grazing
intensity, or duration, can be taken care
of by designing a suitable rotational grazing
system. Rotational grazing, as the name
implies, involves moving the cattle periodically
from pasture or paddock to paddock.
For instance, a good rule of thumb is to
split a pasture into 10 or more paddocks
with electric wire or electric tape, and stock
each paddock heavily for a short amount of
time (see the accompanying box for determining
the number of paddocks and paddock
size). By doing this you are forcing
the animals to eat all that’s there, including
weedy plants they might otherwise not eat.
However, before the animals eat the plants to the ground, you move them to the next
paddock. This takes into account the third
principle. It’s important to leave several
inches of grass to allow adequate leaf area
for subsequent regrowth.
Depending on the species, you will need to
leave from 2 to 6 inches of plant stubble
at moving time. An 11-paddock rotational
grazing system that allows animals to graze
each pasture for 3 days will give each paddock
30 days of rest (These figures are for
planning purposes; it is recommended to
move according to forage height rather than
by the number of days on pasture).
Grasses need 15 to 50 days of rest between
grazing events to allow adequate regrowth,
depending on season, moisture, and plant
type. The accompanying chart shows typical
rest times for various pasture plants, realizing that water and moisture will have
a large effect on plant regrowth.
Rest Periods for Selected Plants |
|
Cool Weather |
Hot Weather |
Species |
(Days) |
Cool Season Grasses |
14 |
35-50 |
Warm Season Grasses |
35-40 |
21 |
Legumes |
21-28 |
21-28 |
From Blanchet et al. (2003) |
Calculating Paddock Size and Number
Two questions will immediately come up for anyone contemplating a rotational grazing system: (1) how many paddocks
should I have? and (2) how big should the paddocks be? Blanchet et al. (2003) give details for calculating paddock numbers
in their grazing systems planning guide (see the Resources section for more information). Essentially, answers to these
two questions can be easily acquired by utilizing the following formulas:
To calculate the number of paddocks needed, use the following formula:
Paddock Number = Rest Period (days) /Grazing Period (days) + number of animal groups
Example:
Paddock Number = 30 days / 2 days + 1 = 16 Paddocks
Then, to calculate the size of each paddock in acres, use this formula:
Paddock Size = Daily Herd Forage Requirement × Days in Grazing Period / Lbs. Available Forage per Acre
Example:
Considering that growing steers will generally consume around 2.5 percent of their body weight, estimate the intake of
one hundred 700-pound steers to be 17.5 pounds per animal per day, times 100 animals equals 1,750 pounds daily herd
forage requirement. If the animals will be in each paddock for two days, and the available forage in the paddock is 2,000
pounds per acre, then,
Paddock Size = 1,750 × 2 / 2,000 = 1.75 acres
Therefore, for a herd of one hundred 700-pound steers, and grass availability of 2,000 pounds per acre, you would need
16 paddocks of 1.75 acres each, allowing for two days of grazing in each paddock before moving them to the next paddock.
It is very important to realize, however, that 2,000 pounds per acre is not the total productivity of the paddock,
but reflects only the amount of forage the animals will be allowed to consume. A dense orchardgrass-timothy pasture in
good condition can produce approximately 400 pounds of forage for each inch of plant height. So if you plan to begin
grazing when the grass is 10 inches tall, and move the cattle when the grass is 5 inches tall, you should only calculate the
5-inch difference in height in your paddock size calculations. In our example, 400 pounds per acre/inch × 5 inches = 2,000
pounds per acre of available forage.
The figures and interpretations in this example are highly variable, and your situation will likely be different from this or
any other grazing plan. This example is intended to familiarize producers with only the basics of developing a rotational
grazing system. |
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Overgrazing
Overgrazing occurs when the grazing pressure
exceeds the carrying capacity of the
pasture. This condition is not really a function
of how many animals are on a pasture,
but how long they remain there. In grazing
management, time is the most important factor to consider in establishing a grazing
system for sustained forage production.
Continuous grazing allows livestock to selectively
graze the most palatable plants over
and over. The problem with this isn’t necessarily
in the selective grazing activity, but
in the fact that the grazed plant does not
get the time to regrow before it is grazed
again. New growth is more palatable and
contains more nutrients than older growth,
so animals will come back for a second and
third bite as long as they are in the pasture,
resulting in the most palatable forages
being killed out.
Divide pastures into enough paddocks to
ensure that all plants have ample time to regrow
after grazing. In addition, for pastures
with adequate water during the growing
season, a very high stock density encourages
animals to graze the pasture more
uniformly than if the pasture was lightly
stocked. In this situation the “weedy” species
are being grazed at the same intensity
as the “good” species.
Back to top
Plant Species and
Systems for Extending
the Grazing Season
Species used to extend the grazing season
include cool season annual grasses such as
ryegrass and cereal grains, forage brassicas
like kale, rape, and turnips, warm-season
annual grasses such as sorghum-sudan
hybrids, pearl millet, and corn, and
legumes like Austrian winter pea (cool-season)
and forage soybeans (warm-season).
These annual crops can be incorporated into
a perennial pasture by several methods.
Annual ryegrass and cereal grains (oats,
wheat, and rye) can be overseeded into
warm-season pastures in the fall. These
pastures will be ready to graze in December
to January in the Deep South, and early
spring for parts further north. Ryegrass
establishes well when broadcast into perennial
sod, but small grains typically establish
better when drilled into sod.
Brassicas can be spring or summer planted
into corn or other annual crops to provide late summer or fall forage for livestock.
These crops produce as much as 12,000
pounds per acre and are well suited to
strip-grazing.
Warm-season annuals like pearl millet,
corn, and sorghum-sudan are highly
nutritious and provide quality forage during
the summer when cool-season pastures
(orchardgrass, fescue, and bromegrass)
slow down. Summer annuals fit nicely in
rotational grazing systems. Careful attention
to drought-stressed plants is warranted
as these are susceptible to excessive nitrate
and/or prussic acid accumulation and subsequent
livestock poisoning. Contact your
local Cooperative Extension office for information
on testing for these compounds.
Other species that can be used successfully
to extend the grazing season are Austrian
winter pea and forage soybeans. Winter
pea, a cool-season legume, is often used
as a cover crop in cereal rotations. Spring
grazing of winter pea allows ranchers to
rest more sensitive pastures and graze them
when the soil is drier and the vegetation
better established. Forage soybeans likewise
have a place in summer cropping systems
where farmers are rotating crops such
as corn or grain sorghum with legumes to
build soil organic matter. Grazing these
crops for several months before plowing
down the green plants is an added bonus to
building soil organic matter and tilth.
Annual forage crops can be an excellent
addition to a farm by extending the grazing
season several weeks or even months.
However, annual cropping systems often
come with environmental costs such as erosion,
loss of organic matter, and destruction
of soil structure, most notably when soils
are heavily tilled. Consider rotating annual
crops to different fields each year to minimize
environmental impacts such as water
or wind erosion.
Stockpiling Forages
Stockpiling is defined as letting forage grow
during summer and deferring grazing to the
fall or winter. This is an effective way of providing
winter forage in some areas and can reduce the need for harvested forage. If it
reduces hay use at all, significant savings
can be realized. This system works well for
early winter when spring-calving cows are
in mid-pregnancy. Stockpiled grazing can
be followed with meadow feeding of high
quality alfalfa hay prior to calving.
Stockpiling has been shown to work well
given appropriate pasture management
and efficient allocation of dormant pasture
during the winter. Many grass species will
maintain a relatively high nutrient content
and palatability for several months after
dormancy begins. Two extra months of
grazing can significantly reduce the costs
associated with producing and feeding hay.
In some cases, producers have been able
to utilize stockpiled forage and eliminate
the need for hay feeding completely. This
usually works better in climates where
the dormant grass can be preserved longer
under adequate snow cover, and/or
because of reduced microbial decomposition
caused by low temperatures and limited
moisture.
Forage Species for Stockpiling |
In the North and West |
In the South and East |
Altai Wildrye |
Bermudagrass |
Orchardgrass |
Timothy |
Reed Canarygrass |
Alfalfa |
Tall Fescue |
Reed Canarygrass |
Stockpiled forages can either be limit-fed
(allowing only so many hours of grazing
per day), or by strip-grazing with a movable
electric wire or tape. Other options
for feeding stockpiled forages are to swath
them with a hay mower, and then rake them
into windrows. Cattle can graze directly
off the windrow during the winter by using
an electric wire or tape to ration hay on a
daily basis. This is similar to strip-grazing
in that the wire is moved each day to
expose a predetermined amount of forage
for grazing. This method, while still relying
on a tractor to cut and windrow the
hay, reduces the amount of fuel, materials,
and hay equipment needed for baling
and feeding hay by eliminating the baling process altogether. This method works best
in drier regions where weathering is less
likely to reduce the nutritional quality and
palatability of the hay.
For more information on grazing season
extension call ATTRA at 800-346-9140.
Back to top
Prescribed Grazing on Rangeland
Prescribed grazing can be thought of as a
process of developing a grazing system that
seeks to integrate the economic and ecological
realities that ranchers are faced with on
the western range. “The controlled harvest
of vegetation with grazing or browsing animals,
managed with the intent to achieve a
specified objective,” is referred to as prescribed
grazing. (USDA, 1997) Management
objectives addressed by prescribed
grazing include:
- Improve or maintain the health and vigor of selected plant(s) and to maintain a stable and desired plant community
- Provide or maintain food, cover,
and shelter for animals of concern
- Improve or maintain animal health and productivity
- Maintain or improve water quality and quantity
- Reduce accelerated soil erosion and maintain or improve soil condition for susceptibility of the resource (USDA, 1997)
A very crucial aspect of a prescribed grazing
regime is the development of a workable
and ecologically appropriate grazing
management plan.
Developing a Grazing
Management Plan on Rangeland
Designing an effective grazing plan isn’t
as daunting as it seems. Mostly it entails
applying observation to management, making
further observations, and then making
adjustments as needed. There are five steps
in developing a grazing plan. They are:
- Inventory
- Define Goals
- Determine Grazing Units
- Develop a Grazing Schedule
- Develop a Monitoring and Evaluation
Plan (Montana DNRC, 1999)
Inventory
Appropriate decisions about land and pasture
use entail gathering baseline information.
Obtain soil maps from your NRCS
office and mark appropriate land forms,
soil types, fences and paddocks. Find out
what plants are in each pasture, and evaluate
the pastures based upon a condition
score. Utilize features such as key species,
percent canopy cover, amount of bare
ground, presence of noxious weeds, annual
forage production in pounds per acre, and
amount of residue to determine pasture
condition and productivity.
Define Goals
Make a list of what you want to accomplish.
This will be a list of your expectations and
will guide you in making plans and decisions.
Do you want to improve the economic
value of the ranch? Maintain wildlife habitat?
Improve water quality and quantity?
Reduce noxious weeds? Also consider available
acreage and the amount of time you
have to put into this project.
Determine Grazing Units
Divide the pastures into units that you can
rotate animals through. This will allow you
to rest pastures and allow for regrowth following
grazing. It will also allow you to
rotate grazing on a seasonal basis as well. Determine how much forage is available in
each grazing unit and map it out. Note key
species, percent cover, water availability,
facilities, and other aspects important to you.
Remember that livestock should always be
within at most two hours walking distance
from water. This will help you to determine
grazing unit size (for large parcels).
Develop a Grazing Schedule
This will be a graphic illustration of your
plans for grazing each unit during the grazing
season. Develop the schedule based on
your total Animal Units (AUs) and available
Animal Unit Months (AUMs) in each unit. If
you have a 100-acre pasture with 2 AUMs
per acre, you have 200 animal unit months
of forage available. At 50 percent allowable
use, cut it in half to 100 AUMs. This
means you have enough forage available
to feed 100 animal units for one month.
Or, said another way, 50 animal units for
two months, 33 for three months, and so
on. For more detailed information on calculating
AUM’s see the Montana Grazingland
Animal Unit Month (AUM) Estimator
located at: www.mt.nrcs.usda.gov/technical/ecs/range/technotes/rangetechnoteMT32.html
Important concepts here are duration of
grazing and time for regrowth. Some range
ecologists and managers believe that grazing
intensity is also important, and it is. A
plant needs to have green leaves left after
grazing for photosynthesis and subsequent
regrowth. However, others feel that grazing
severity isn’t as important as regrowth
time. Whichever you choose, it is important
to remember to allow plenty of time for
adequate regrowth before the animal gets
to bite a plant a second time. Take a look at
the native plants on an upland range site if
you have the opportunity. Some, like bluebunch
wheatgrass and little bluestem, are
large-statured and can handle several bites
from an animal in one grazing event. Some,
like Sandburg bluegrass, Idaho fescue, and
black grama, are smaller, and one bite is
all it takes to reduce the plant to stubble.
Cattle, especially, tend to graze severely, so
don’t get too caught up in how much they
take off. Strive for 50 percent use, and allow for regrowth. For some sites on dry
ranges, this will mean one grazing event
per year. For areas with more moisture, you
might be able to return every 15 to 30 days
for another grazing event.
Monitoring
This is the most neglected part of range
management, and the most important.
A good monitoring system allows you to
check how your management decisions are
working on the ground. It will allow you
to determine, for instance, if a particular
grazing plan is having the desired effect
over time. A monitoring plan will often
involve a few important evaluation criteria,
such as plant species composition, percent
cover, and frequency of species. By
comparing these measurements over time,
you can start to see trends, and by comparing
them to your grazing system, you
can alter and adjust in order to arrive at
your goals.
Record keeping is a very important part of
pasture monitoring. In addition to recording
the aforementioned physical measurements,
keep track of when livestock enter
and leave a pasture, what if any materials
or chemicals are used, revegetation or weed
control treatments, and observations on cattle
health while in the pasture. This information
will be extremely useful in refining
your grazing plans.
To obtain more detailed information on
rangeland monitoring contact ATTRA at
800-346-9140.
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Managing for Drought
Drought is a natural ecosystem process.
The concept of an “average” or “normal” precipitation or temperature is a fabrication
that humans use to try to understand complex
systems and attempt to predict behaviors
and outcomes. Whether in a humid
zone or an arid environment, a producer
will experience relative wet and dry years.
Dealing with the dry years is a real challenge
to livestock operations that rely on
water to grow the plants and recharge the
aquifers and streams that feed the animals.Having a drought plan is a very important
component of a well-thought-out farm or
ranch management plan.
A drought-management option that deserves
serious consideration is one that maintains
livestock numbers at 75 percent of carrying
capacity for “normal” years, and utilizes
the extra forage in wet years for high value
animals such as stockers. (Ruechel, 2006)
In dry years the pastures will be better able
to accommodate current livestock numbers.
Another option is to slow down rotations
during dry years, thereby allowing more
paddock or pasture rest time. This option
can be effective especially when the herd is
split between different pastures to minimize
the impact on drought stressed plants.
If you must de-stock during drought, consider
which animals should be the first to
go. Do you have low producing females? Do
you have older calves that can be sold as
stockers? Whichever you do, be sure not
to de-stock too late. Pasture that is overstocked
and drought stressed is hard to
repair, whereas cattle can be bought when
rains return.
Back to top
Plant Toxicity
Graziers must pay careful attention to the
negative health effects that certain plants
can cause in livestock. Plant toxicosis occurs
either through the ingestion of (1) poisonous plants or (2) forage plants that contain toxic
substances due to environmental or physiological
conditions. Plant poisoning, as can
occur from water hemlock, nightshade, or
astragalus, can be significantly reduced by
proper grazing management. These poisonous
plants contain resins, alkaloids, and/or
organic acids that render them unpalatable.
If the pasture contains enough good forage,
there is little reason for the animals to
select bad-tasting plants. Contact your local
Cooperative Extension office for information
on poisonous plants in your area.
Your Local Cooperative Extension Office
Contact your local Cooperative Extension office for information on poisonous
plants, forage testing, and locally adapted forages. The USDA
maintains an online database of local Cooperative Extension offices on
its Web site at www.csrees.usda.gov/Extension/index.html. You will also find the phone number for your Cooperative Extension office in the county government section of your telephone directory. |
The following section illustrates some
of the more common and economically
important environmentally or physiologically
caused disorders.
Bloat
Livestock can bloat when they consume vegetative
legume pastures such as clovers and
alfalfa. Bloat is a condition manifested by
the distention of the rumen, noticed as a
severe protrusion on the animal’s left side
caused by fermentation gasses that are not
able to escape. Legumes are high in protein,
and the more immature the plant,
the higher the concentration of proteins it
contains. These proteins are very rapidly
digestible and produce gas very quickly,
faster than the animal can expel. Control is
accomplished one of four ways:
- ensure the legume component is less than 50 percent of the pasture stand composition,
- feed one-third of the daily dry matter
requirement as long-stem grass
hay before grazing lush pastures
that contain greater than 50 percent
alfalfa or clovers,
- plant a non-bloating legume like
Cicer milkvetch, sainfoin, and birdsfoot
trefoil
- feed an anti-foaming agent. Antifoaming
agents are usually fats,
oils, or synthetic surfactants.
Organic producers must make sure to not
feed prohibited materials. Any treatments
they use or plan to use must be listed in the
organic system plan and approved by the
organic certifier.
Grass Tetany
Grass tetany is caused by low blood levels of
magnesium (Mg). When succulent cool-season
grasses are grazed early in the spring,
the condition can occur quickly (have rapid
onset). Symptoms include lack of coordination,
staggering, and eventual death. Grass
tetany is prevented by:
- delaying spring grazing,
- feeding a legume hay with spring
grass pastures (legumes are higher
in Mg than grasses),
- providing a mineral supplement,
- grazing early spring pastures with
less-tetany prone animal such as
steers, heifers, and cows with older
calves. Pre- and post-partum cows
are most susceptible to grass tetany.
Prussic Acid
Prussic acid, or hydrocyanic acid, is a toxin
that occurs in annual grasses such as Johnsongrass,
sorghum, and sorghum-sudan
hybrids. When these grasses are stressed
due to drought or frost, prussic acid levels
accumulate and, if grazed by livestock,
will cause salivation, labored breathing,
and muscle spasms. Death can occur very
quickly after consumption. Prussic acid
does not persist as do nitrates. Forage that
has been ensiled or harvested as hay and
dried to less than 20 percent moisture is
safe for consumption. Prussic acid poisoning
can be prevented by:
- testing for prussic acid if conditions
are right
- avoiding grazing for a week after the
end of a drought. Young plant tissue
after a drought-ending rain will be
high in prussic acid
- avoiding grazing for a week after a
killing frost
- considering using pearl millet as
a warm-season annual forage
(pearl millet does not produce
prussic acid)
- avoiding turning hungry livestock
into a suspect pasture
Testing for prussic acid requires timely
delivery to the lab, as cyanide levels decline
after the plant is harvested. Refrigerate but
do not freeze samples if you cannot get them
to the lab right away. If mailing samples to
the lab, mail them on a Monday to reduce
the chances that the sample sits in a post
office over the weekend.
Contact your local Cooperative Extension
office for information on forage prussic
acid testing.
Nitrates
All plants contain nitrates, which are
the precursor to plant proteins. Excess
nitrates will accumulate in the lower stems
of some plants when they are stressed,
such as can occur during a drought, heavy
rain, or long period of cloudy weather. In
effect, nitrate accumulation occurs when
photosynthesis slows down. During this
time the plant may not be metabolizing
nitrates, but it will still be taking nitrates
from the soil. The result is a “back-log” of poisonous nitrate in the plant stems.
Concentrations of 1.5 percent or more in
plant tissue can be toxic to livestock, and
concentrations of less than 0.25 percent
are considered safe. Excess nitrates can
be deadly to livestock and the most commonly
affected plants are annual grasses
such as the cereal grains (oats, wheat, and
barley), warm season annual grasses (sorghum,
pearl millet, and corn), and broadleaf
plants like pigweed, thistles, goldenrod,
and lambsquarters. In contrast to
prussic acid, nitrate toxicity in forage does not decrease with time. Nitrate poisoning
can be prevented by:
- testing of suspected plant tissue
prior to feeding
- harvesting or grazing suspected forages
several days to a week after the
end of a drought
- beginning harvest or grazing of suspected
forages in the afternoon after
the plants have had several hours
of sunlight (this helps the plants
metabolize nitrates)
- chopping of forage and dilution with
clean hay
- minimizing nitrogen fertilization.
Contact your local Cooperative Extension office
for information on forage nitrate testing.
Fescue Toxicosis
Another important condition to consider in
the South and Midwest is fescue toxicosis,
which is caused by fungi growing symbiotically
with the plant. Three distinct ailments
can occur when livestock consume infected
tall fescue. Fescue foot results in fever,
loss of weight, rough hair coat, and loss
of hooves or tail switch. Bovine fat necrosis
is a syndrome characterized by hard fat
deposits in the abdominal cavity. Summer
slump is evidenced by fever, reduced weight
gain, intolerance to heat, nervousness, and
reduced conception. Fescue toxicosis can
be reduced by:
- seeding of legumes to dilute fescue
intake
- early close grazing of fescue to
reduce seed development
- restricting nitrogen fertilization
to the summer when warm-season
grasses are actively growing
- replanting with endophyte-free seed
or another grass specie such as
orchardgrass
Southern Forages (see Resources section)
has an excellent entry on fescue
toxicity in its Common Forage-Livestock
Disorders chapter.
Back to top
Final Thoughts
When a livestock farmer relies on pasture or
rangeland to supply the protein and energy
requirements of livestock, it benefits the
farm, the watershed, and the community
in significant ways. Pasture-based animal
agriculture promotes environmental stewardship
and community development owing
to the following management practices:
- Use of off-farm inputs, such as diesel,
fertilizer, and purchased feed,
are minimized.
- Use of toxic substances, such as
herbicides and soluble fertilizers, is
minimized or sometimes eliminated.
- Limited tillage and use of perennial
pastures, which store carbon in the
soil while building soil organic matter,
conserves soil.
- Water and energy resources
are conserved through monitoring
and appropriate technologies,
such as irrigation monitoring,
solar and wind technologies,
and biofuel development and use,
where applicable.
- Proper plant and animal genetics,
such as locally-adapted pasture
grasses and low-maintenance
animals, are selected.
- Planned grazing systems that favor
grass growth contribute to biological
diversity.
- Marketing food to local communities,
reducing the distance food
travels from farm to plate, provisions
the community with better,
fresher food.
- The development of local processing
plants is fostered, which adds value
to local animal products while providing
employment and economic
development.
- A management philosophy is developed
that values health in people,
animals, plants, and soil.
Back to top
References
Conservation Commission of the State of Missouri.
1984. Native Warm-Season Grasses for Missouri
Stockmen. www.mdc.missouri.gov/documents/landown/1_040C.PDF (PDF / 104K)
Gerrish, J. 2004. Management-intensive Grazing: The
Grassroots of Grass Farming. Ridgeland, MS: Green
Park Press.
Lindemann, W.C. and C.R. Glover. 2003. Nitrogen
Fixation by Legumes, Guide A-129. Las Cruces, NM:
New Mexico State University Extension.
Montana DNRC. 1999. Best Management Practices for
Grazing in Montana. Helena, MT: Montana Department
of Natural Resources.
NCAT. 2004. Organic Livestock Workbook: A Guide
to Sustainable and Allowed Practices. Butte, MT:
National Center for Appropriate Technology.
Ruechel, J. 2006. Grass-Fed Cattle: How to Produce
and Market Natural Beef. North Adams, Mass.: Storey
Publishing.
SRM. No date. Rangeland Resources of North America.
Lakewood, CO: Society for Range Management.
Article accessed at www.rangelands.org/publications_brochures.shtml
USDA. 1997. Conservation Practice Standard, Prescribed
Grazing, Code 528A. USDA Natural Resources
Conservation Service. www.aces.edu/department/aawm/al528a.pdf
(PDF / 94K)
Back to top
Resources
ATTRA Publications
Assessing the Pasture Soil Resource
Dairy Resource List
Managed Grazing in Riparian Areas
Multispecies Grazing
Nutrient Cycling in Pastures
Pastures: Sustainable Management
Pastures: Going Organic
Paddock Design, Fencing, and Water Systems
for Controlled Grazing
Rotational Grazing
Cattle Production: Considerations for Pasture-Based Beef and Dairy Producers
Fertility Pastures.
Newman Turner. Faber and Faber,
24 Russell Square, London.
Classic text on herbal lays, soil health, and profitable
livestock production on pasture. Out of print.
Used bookstores and interlibrary loan might yield good
results obtaining this worthwhile book.
Foraging Behavior: Managing to Survive in a World of
Change; Behavioral Principles for Human,
Animal, Vegetation, and Ecosystem Management.
Fred Provenza, PhD, Utah State University. www.behave.net/products/booklet.html
Forage Information System
http://forages.oregonstate.edu/index.cfm
A comprehensive Web site for forage-related topics,
including publications, educational opportunities,
and professional resources. Maintained by Oregon
State University.
Grazing management: an ecological perspective
by Rodney K. Heitschmidt and Jerry W. Stuth.
Published by Timber Press, Portland, OR.
Available on the web at http://cnrit.tamu.edu/rlem/
textbook/textbook-fr.html
This book was written “to help resource managers
broaden their perspective relative to management of
grazing animals and heighten awareness of the role they play in maintaining the integrity of ecological
systems.” (from the Foreword)
Grazing Systems Planning Guide.
Kevin Blanchet,
University of Minnesota Extension Service. Howard
Moechnig, Natural Resources Conservation Service.
Minnesota Board of Water & Soil Resources, Jodi
DeJong-Hughes, University of Minnesota Extension
Service. University of Minnesota Extension Service
Distribution Center, 405 Coffey Hall, 1420 Eckles
Avenue, St. Paul, MN 55108-6068 order@extension.umn.edu. You can also download it at www.extension.umn.edu/distribution/livestocksystems/DI7606.html.
Delineates the components of a grazing system by
taking the farmer through the grazing management
planning process.
Holistic Management International. 1010 Tijeras Ave.
NW, Albuquerque, NM 87102, 505-842-5252,
e-mail: hmi@holisticmanagement.org, Web site: www.holisticmanagement.org
HMI is a goal-oriented decision-making system for ecological
management of resources, people, and capital.
Intermountain Planting Guide.
USDA Agricultural
Research Service, Utah State University, Logan, UT.
Order from USU Extension Publications, 435-797-2251, http://extension.usu.edu/cooperative/publications
Management-intensive Grazing: The Grassroots of
Grassfarming.
Jim Gerrish, Green Park Publishing
This book can be obtained through The Stockman
Grassfarmer’s Bookshelf at 800-748-9808.
The industry standard for growing and managing
pastures for sustained livestock production.
Pastures for profit: A guide to rotational grazing.
Cooperative Extension Publications, 45 N. Charter St.,
Madison, WI 53715, www1.uwex.edu/ces/pubs
Grazing ecology, and setting up a rotational
grazing system.
Pasture for Dairy Cattle: Challenges and Opportunities.
Donna M. Amaral-Phillips, Roger W. Hemken, Jimmy
C. Henning, and Larry W. Turner. University of
Kentucky Cooperative Extension. www.ca.uky.edu/agc/pubs/asc/asc151/asc151.pdf (PDF / 179K)
Rangelands West. Western Rangelands Partnership,
Agriculture Network Information Center, University
of Arizona, http://rangelandswest.org
Web-based educational tools and information to assist
resource managers improve rangelands and maintain
sustainability.
Southern Forages.
Donald M Ball; C S Hoveland;
Garry Lacefield, Altanta, GA: Potash & Phosphate
Institute: Foundation for Agronomic Research, ©1991.
Third Edition 2002.
Stockmanship: Improving rangeland health through
appropriate livestock handling.
Steve Cote. P.O. Box
819, 125 So. Water St., Arco, ID 83213, 208-527-8557. Order from the Natural Resources Conservation
Service, and the Butte Soil and Water Conservation
District or available on the web at: www.mt.nrcs.usda.gov/technical/ecs/range/stockmanship.html
Quivira Coalition. 1413 Second Street, Suite 1,
Santa Fe, NM 87505, 505-820-2544, www.quiviracoalition.org/index.html
Publications on ecological resource management
including range management, grazing, road
construction, monitoring, and managing resources
at the urban-rural interface.
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Further Resources
Ball, D., C. Hoveland, and G. Lacefield. 1991.
Southern Forages. Norcross, GA: Potash and
Phosphate Institute.
Bellows, B. 2001. Nutrient Cycling in Pastures. Butte,
MT: NCAT.
Blanchet, K., H. Moechnig, and J. DeJong-Hughes.
2003. Grazing Systems Planning Guide. St. Paul:
University of Minnesota Extension Service.
Coffey, L. 2006. Meat Goats: Sustainable Production.
Fayetteville, AR: ATTRA.
Klopfenstein, Terry. 1996. Need for escape protein by
grazing cattle. Animal Feed Science Technology 60:
191-199 (no. 3-4, August).
Lacey, J., E. Williams, J. Rolleri, and C. Marlow.
1994. A Guide for Planning, Analyzing, and
Balancing Forage Supplies with Livestock Demand.
Bozeman, MT: Montana State University Extension.
Minson, Dennis J. 1990. Forage in Ruminant
Nutrition. New York: Academic Press, Inc.
Sheley, R.L., T.J. Svejcar, B.D. Maxwell, and J.S.
Jacobs. 1999. Healthy Plant Communities, MT199909
AG. Bozeman, MT: Montana State University Extension.
Undersander, D., B. Albert, D. Cosgrove, D. Johnson,
and P. Peterson. 2002. Pastures for Profit: A Guide to
Rotational Grazing. Cooperative Extension Publishing,
University of Wisconsin-Extension.
Pasture, Rangeland, and Grazing Management
By Lee Rinehart
NCAT Agriculture Specialist
Paul Driscoll, Editor
Tracy Mumma, HTML Production
IP306
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