Plan your land use each year
There are steps producers need to take in order to make maximum use of their resources and reduce the dependence on stored or bought feed. First, University of Arkansas Extension forage specialist John Jennings said, they need to take inventory. “Soil test all their pasture and hay fields so they know what the fertility issues are,” he said. “Make sure they get the right crop codes when they take their soil samples in, so they can get the proper fertilizer recommendations. Also, inventory their pasture types; do they have forages that will grow in the spring, summer, fall and something available for winter? How much cool season grasses do they have, how much warm season forages do they have?”
Every farm has different soils and different topography, and these conditions should be considered when deciding what type of farming is suited for different areas of land. Mark Green, district conservationist with the NRCS in Springfield, Mo., said many soils in the Ozarks are not suited for annual crops but are very well suited for growing grass. The NRCS provides assistance by looking over farm resources with producers, finding out what their goals are, and then giving them ideas to meet those goals. Green said producers should keep records of grazing management, pasture management, yields and herd management, and then make adjustments each year based on your results the previous year.
Test your soil
The soil test will indicate how much nitrogen, phosphate and potash is needed; farms with a history of poultry litter applications or good fertilization may not need much other than nitrogen for grasses. If the operator sows clover and other legumes, their pastures may need lime to bring up the soil pH.
“If people are interested in adding clovers and other legumes,” said Jennings, “now is the time to get their soil test because they need to plant those in February in a closely-grazed sod, and then keep the nitrogen fertilizer off those pastures in the spring to let the clovers come up and get established before the grass growth gets too excessive.”
Because soil nutrients and consistency can change, Green recommends producers test their soil about every four years. Local extension offices can provide detailed instructions for properly pulling soil samples, but Green said producers should mix a minimum of 20 subsamples in a non-galvanized bucket and try to keep samples from a 20-acre field or less.
Know What You’re Grazing
Jennings said during springtime, the cattle will graze cool season forages like fescue, orchardgrass, ryegrass and clovers; in the summertime, they’ll rely on warm season grasses like bermudagrass, bahiagrass, dallisgrass, crabgrass and lespedeza. Fall brings a mixture: “September through December will catch the last growth of the warm season grasses and then the fall growth of the cool season grasses, and so they’ll be using a mixture of those two.”
Stretching the grazing season
Many producers have achieved quite a feat in grazing: A 300-day grazing season. To achieve this, the producer has to think about managing those pastures to make sure there’s adequate forage on hand for each of three 100-day seasons, and planning ahead is crucial. “By the time they’re into the spring season, for instance, changing what they’re going to get for spring is too late by that point,” Jennings said. “They have to make plans before the spring season gets here to influence the season at all as far as the grazing management, the fertility management, fencing and so forth.”
To achieve a 300-day grazing season, the stocking rate has to match the productivity of the land, and Jennings said that can vary widely. Although the rule of thumb is 2-3 acres per animal unit (a cow and calf), a sustainable stocking rate can range from 1-2 acres/a.u. to 5-6. It’s also important to have a good mix of cool and warm season forages, and that, too, varies a lot by region.
Know the carrying capacity for your land
Carrying capacity is based on the stocking rate (the number of animals or animal liveweight assigned to a grazing unit on a seasonal basis) that provides a target level of performance while maintaining the integrity of the resource base. See the information above at right to calculate carrying capacity.
“With wise utilization of the pasture you have, you might be able to increase carrying capacity,” Green said. “However, you need to be careful with this statement. If you are already overstocked, you don’t want to assume you can increase carrying capacity. But maybe by improving utilization, you can feed less hay.” Resources abound to help you understand how to maximize your carrying capacity.
