To Burn? Or Not To Burn?

Burning grasslands is a landscaping management tool used by many to burn off old, thatched grasses and forbes which are preventing new seedlings from growing thereby creating dead zones where nothing is growing. It’s not necessarily a ‘bad’ management tool, but i prefer not to use it because:

1. it releases carbon and smoke pollution into the atmosphere
2. completely eliminates all habitat for small wildlife
3. often burns up those small critters overtaken by fire and smoke
4. can be dangerous by getting away due to high winds and massive fuel (dry grasses)
5. for safety, burning requires multiple people and management equipment to prepare the site in advance as well as continued monitoring

These are reasons i choose not to burn -plus honestly, fire simply scares me. Brush piles, i’ll burn, but even those can get away.

Many articles will argue first that fire is nature’s way of managing grasslands. Hmmm – maybe, but unless the prairies and plains are mismanaged, there are very, very few situations in which fire is ‘natural.’

It is true, however, that if you have land enrolled in CRP (Conservation Reserve Program) and you receive payments from the government for letting land lay idle year after year, then mowing or in some situations fire or chemical is required to keep those payments coming.

My choice is let the livestock, and to a lesser extent, wildlife, manage the grasslands with far less danger to man and beast, less erosion, natural fertilization, increased forage diversity, no pollution or carbon release, and small creatures, like mice, turtles, voles, moles, and other ground nesting animals are completely unharmed.

I am talking about a managed grazing technique called ‘Total Grazing.” Total grazing is not over grazing, it’s not grubbing the plants into the ground, it’s not selective grazing. All plants are grazed AFTER they have been allowed to grow tall and even to full maturity if needed before being grazed. This results in a balanced diet for the animals, habitat for nearly all wildlife until grazed, and lets those plants develop deep roots which stabilize the soil and prepare for growth. Thatch is grazed along with the green portion of the plants opening up the space for more desirable plant species. Deep roots create humus, organic matter is not humus. Organic matter still needs to be broken down and incorporated into the soil profile before it can even think about becoming food for soil microbes. Roots are ready made snacks. Grow fat roots for fat plants for faster recovery, but don’t graze until the plants are at the proper stage and don’t allow that second bite. Total grazing spreads out the manure across the paddocks for even coverage of nutrients.

Total grazing requires a good amount of education, just like burning, before diving in. Animal adaptation, observation, mobbing and shifting stock at the appropriate time, not allowing that second bite,

OR

CREATE SOMETHING BEAUTIFUL TODAY!

Landscaping

Having been involved in total grazing protocol for only 2 1/2 years now and still being understocked for such a venture, I’m only starting to see some grazing pressure on tree sprouts and multiflora rose bushes. Therefore, i’m still full on with cutting sprouts and treating stumps with Tordon.

Granted, control would be much faster if the time spent moving the cows 4 times a day at the right time would be effective. However, distance, time, and weather simply won’t allow it. However, i bet i’m getting close to at once a day over the course of the year.

This morning, at long last, i’ve met with a couple men who are equipped to clean out the junk trees along my ditches and draws so that quality trees can be allowed to grow (if they are away from the ditch), the ditches will be cleared of shade, so mud will be greatly reduced, which should result in my losing fewer cows to getting stuck and dying each year. On top of that, without trees on ditch banks, deep rooted native grasses will be allowed to take hold and stop the erosion caused by rushing waters. Trees simply are not designed to hold soil in place. Managing trees and brush will much profit the land, wildlife, water quality, viewshed, and timber harvests of the future.

Using livestock and a few small tools early on is a good plan, but, in my case, i’m way behind the eight ball, so big equipment, strong backs, and expertise will be the most effective use of time and money to get my farm in good working order quickly.

On this tiny plot after total grazing, i lopped about 140 tree sprouts and 30 some multiflora roses! I was glad to find several sprouts had had the tops and buds chewed off, others were broken off. Both signs of cattle molesting the plants for nutrition and a bit of a scratch.

Sure, it’s not knocked back enough to kill it, but smaller ones could be decimated. In the meantime, i keep after them.

Shabbat Shalom

Create something beautiful today!

Cows Grazing Weeds

We know that goats and sheep are excellent for eating weeds and brush and cows – not as much.

However, with adapted, trained cattle in a nonselective grazing protocal really do a fabulous job with a whole lot less labor and infrastructure (ie – fence that will hold water)

Compare these two photos taken before and after mobbing with total grazing principles.

Before

After

Shabbat Shalom!

To Mow or Not to Mow

Basically this is a math problem. What is the cost of mowing (brush hogging) a pasture vs the benefit of doing so.

Consider the fuel (which is expensive now), wear and tear on machinery, depreciation, and man hours. Now, ideally, one would not own or operate the machinery and therefore would avoid the depreciation (although John Deere tractors actually seem to appreciate in value as the dollar recedes) and hire someone to mow it for you. However, my husband has a lot of tractors and equipment, so we might as well use them, though it still takes someone to sit in the tractor.

So, i don’t know the numbers to make a math decision, but there is absolutely no doubt that the Bowyer Farm, which was cropped for 4 years with soybeans, wil hugely benefit having those suffocating weeds (ragweed and cocklebur) removed as a thick canopy preventing desirable species of grasses and legumes to take hold.

This paddock was the last to be grazed on the Bowyer farm, and like a couple others the results are the abundance of ragweed. The second photo below shows what is left after grazing then brush hogging. For perspective, there are 160 cows, 7 mature bulls, and 90 spring born calves in this photo!

With two tractors going, one with a 15 foot brush hog, and the other with a 20 foot brush hog, it did not take long for Allen and my son, Dallas, to finish the job. It’s particularly a good job these days of intense ragweed pollinating for Dallas because he can sit in the air conditioned tractor cab and get along well. My husband has to do all the fueling and greasing, however.

These side by side photos are important in that they illustrate the difference between a paddock that was grazed in a more timely manner and the ragweed and cocklebur were removed by cows grazing, thereby opening the canopy and allowing an abundance of clover and lespedeza (poor man’s alfalfa) to flourish. The second photo shows that very little is able to grow under 4-6 foot tall thick ragweed. Even cocklebur and foxtail couldn’t get a toe hold in that mess.

About five days ago (21 Aug 22), i moved the cows/calves across the road to a paddock which had been previously grazed (13 Jun-23Jun 2022) via total grazing protocols. We’ve had more than plenty of rain, so regrowth was fantastic and the forages in this paddock are at the peak of grazing readiness to provide the cows a well balanced diet. I’m convinced they’ve gained 100 lbs in just those few days due to superior diet. Clearly, one can see i’m not mobbing them for best pasture results. This is due to my severe allergies and not being able to be outside. If not for a/c in my Gator, I would turn them out in large paddock and not see them for a week or more.

Oh, the ragweed pollen!!!

Shabbat Shalom!

Spring Grazing Observations

As blogged before, since changing to Real Wealth Ranching protocol which not only teaches a change in grazing management, but includes other changes which i believe will make my life easier as well as being more profitable all the while building soil, forage, and animal health.

One of the main precepts of any grazing management is observation of stock condition. If the livestock are suffering under your management, you must change something immediately. Daily or, at least often, observation of body condition, manure consistency, thriftiness, and overall general health including appropriate hair shedding, bright eyes, well hydrated, being alert, calm cud chewing, not bawling or wandering, and ears up demeanor are a few subtle clues to health.

For good reason, up until this year, i’ve set my calving season from 15 April to 31 May. For me, personally, that is not a good time because breeding season is 7 July to 20 Aug and 100% of the time, mid August to late September is high ragweed season which is debillitating to me making it nearly impossible to remove the bulls to keep defined dates for calving season.

However, this year (2022), i’m pushing that back to 15 May thru 30 June, With the change to total grazing and by default and plan i am offering a better balance protein/roughage diet to both cows and calves and hope to avoid the serious scours (calf losses about 30% for a couple years running!) encounter by earlier calving. However, calving that early in north central Missouri has its downsides in that it often can be extremely cold and muddy, plus cows will not be in best condition coming out of winter before calving.

Pushing it back a month means I avoid the beginning and ending of ragweed season. The animals need to be nearly set stocked during that time because i cannot be outside.

However, the final decision was to turn out the bulls on 22 July and will plan a 60 day breeding season. Most will likely breed in the first 35-40 days anyway, but the few which are later may allow me to grow my herd a bit. This is a calving season of 1 May to 1 July. However, the bigger benefit will be that removing the bulls will be after allergy season. By keeping my own replacements, there is a much greater chance of success by having adapted animals to my particular environment. Purchasing stock is a crapshoot at best.

As calving season has come along this spring (2022), I’ve really enjoyed noticing the HUGE difference in condition of cows which calved early/mid April and those few which have calved mid May. Any cow which calved early is very slow to recover from calving and has not shedded out well at all. Will that affect rebreeding? In the past, it has not, but the cows sure look better and are carrying much more weight.

One thing that has given me considerable concern is the number of open cows this spring that were pregnancy checked as being bred last fall. Young cows and really good 8 and 9 year olds have lost. In other words, it’s not been any particular age group or any specific bloodlines. Still pouring over records to see what might have caused this. It was about 5% abortion/fetal loss last year which the vets say is on the upper limits of normal. This year’s percentage is hovering around 7% abortion/fetal loss. This despite giving my cows a Lepto shot last fall, which is not what i usually do. However, a couple of those are purchased cows/heifers which are often not adapted to my environment.

The typical death loss of 1% to 2% sadly hit that upper percentage point this year to some sort of chronic wasting disease, most likely anaplasmosis. Seems like it hits my 3-6 year old good doing cows. Unfortunately, this seems to be just a part of raising livestock.

I’m continuing the Real Wealth Ranching protocol and total grazing plan because it has been an amazing program. Coming up on my second full year of implementation here in a few months. I tell people all i’m doing is providing landscaping tools and my cows do the work (grazing). Well, they don’t run the chainsaw.

Mud, Mud, Mud

The past 5-6 years, the weather has quite deviated from the norm, but this year is more its irritating self. With frequent, yet light rains, drizzles, and cloudy weather resulting in constant mud, even on top of the ridges – there’s not a dry or even well drained spot on my farm. Pugging is everywhere, though thankfully, i don’t have large cows, so damage is mitigated by less animal weight per square inch.

This year is the first year in implementing the ‘no molestar’ (do not bother) concept of not shifting cows and calves to new paddocks during calving season. This has been a real blessing, however, given the mud and misery this year, the cows have trampled their large paddock and from the looks of it have wasted at least 50% of their forage mostly by walking around and trampling into the mud. This has forced me to move them to another paddock which is just as wet and muddy, but with thick forage. They will destroy it rapidly as well. Very thankful that through total grazing, there is plenty of reserve forage for the cows. The concept of not bothering the calving cows was interrupted and i had to find and pack and haul and drive a few calves – i think one has been abandoned – this is precisely why the pairs should be left alone during the important bonding time.

Gateways are becoming quite a mess with both cow foot traffic and Gator traffic

The continued cold, cloudy, and wet weather is taking its toll on the cows’ conditions and that of their calves, though it is most noticeable on those yearling first calf heifers and the really old cows.

Despite the rain, work continues as much as possible to avoid getting completely behind though there are many many jobs which must wait for warmer and much drier weather. Next week is supposed to warm up and not rain. Really looking forward to some warmth and especially sunshine.

Pugging is absolutely on every square inch of the paddock.

Forcing them to eat the brown and the green is keeping manure in pretty good shape, but the weather and ground conditions are taking the toll on animal condition. Plus they are very unhappy and unsatisfied – i’m not sure why except there’s been no sun and no place dry to lie down for a couple weeks. That would make me cranky, too.

Deer Are A Menace

Those of us in certain areas of the US are challenged daily by the abundance of White-tailed Deer. While beautiful and a necessary part of the ecosystem, they are very destructive. Not only do they eat a large portion of crops, graze massive amounts of stockpiled forage, run out in front of your vehicle (keeps the car repairmen in business), but they run through fences like they can’t even see them! Frustrating.

As i continue my journey through Real Wealth Ranching precepts by using Total Grazing protocols, there are issues come up that are not necessarily unforeseen, but brought to the fore as the year progresses.

One of those is the deer taking out interior hi-tensile paddock division fences. Although they do this year round and in any kind of managed grazing system, it is especially noticeable with total grazing because of the long rest period to grow fat roots. There is SO much forage and if the fence has been torn down, the tall grass grows over the wires making it very difficult to pull back up for repair.

This scenario was one of yesterday’s tasks for me on a 1/4 mile of 2 wire hi-tensile. About 2/3rds of the way pulling up both wires, i gave up and concentrated on getting the top wire pulled up and will leave the bottom wire for after the cows nonselectively graze over so it will be easier to pick it up. Nevertheless, I liken this activity to a similar exertion of shoveling 2-3 inches of heavy snow for 1/4 mile. Yes, it was difficult, but doable in the 4-6 tons/acre of laid over and heavy stockpile.

Whilst pulling up and preparing to repair the wire, I came across this kink. Don’t even risk tightening the wire with a kink in hi-tensile wire – it will break. Take the time to repair it now. Cut out the link and attach wires with a Gripple.

Pull ‘tails through and leave plenty of length for the next repair. If this is the regular pathway for deer, you will need to repair it over and over. Leaving plenty of lead wire make future repairs much easier.

Because i leave plenty of ‘tail,’ this wire can be easily reattached by sliding (using a Gripple Adjustment Key) the Gripple closer to the open bit of wire allowing the two wires to be pulled together and through the Gripple. Simple retighten with a Gripple Torque Tool at that point – done and done unless posts are also pulled out of the ground. Thankfully, i didn’t have that to do this time.

Fence is hot!