All About Grazing

Extending the grazing season backwards

By CHRIS PENROSE When we think of extending the grazing season, we usually think of how long we can go into the fall or winter without feeding stored feed. Another option often overlooked is how soon we can stop feeding as spring approaches. Several options There are several options to accomplish this. The first is [...]

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Mean temperatures keeping cows lean

Some cows I’ve seen lately look thinner than normal for this time of year. With more than a month of winter remaining, it could mean trouble for producers as calving time approaches. We’ve had colder than normal temperatures, combined with a longer than normal continuous cold spell in our part of the state and this [...]

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It’s time to evaluate your pastures

There is no time like the present to evaluate your pasture fields for damage from over grazing and weather related stress. While you are trying to warm up after feeding your livestock and checking on their water, it is a good time to evaluate your recent management successes and challenges. After dealing with a drier [...]

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Pasture measurement can improve management

When the management of grazing is discussed, what are the topics of that discussion? Typically, they involve forage growth, forage varieties, soils, animal nutrition, grazing behavior, and paddock layout and design. These are all valuable topics for a grazier to understand and use to effectively manage his system. Rarely do you hear discussions on the [...]

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Purchasing seed for new pastures

The days are getting longer, which means spring is just around the corner! Having grown up in a warmer climate than Ohio, I like to remind myself spring will come as we head into the coldest months of the winter. Reminding myself of spring also motivates me to prepare for its arrival. Some tasks need [...]

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Winter pasture management can also be mud management

Let me paint you a winter pasture management picture. Here sits our grazier, indoors next to a cozy wood stove fire while the farm’s livestock graze contentedly on stockpiled forages and… what? Oh yeah, that’s right, once again we had a dry fall period and instead of being able to stockpile forage growth, we actually [...]

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Plan now for your winter feeding

Winter is here, are you ready? The single largest expense of keeping livestock is winter feeding costs. Winter feed costs will be expensive this year considering forage and grain prices. Livestock owners can reduce and minimize the cost with a little planning. Reduce costs It sounds strange but feeding low quality hay now might be [...]

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Winter grazing may be right for you

The lack of adequate rainfall in our area this summer and fall left many producers with less forage than they would like, but that doesn’t mean they are all feeding hay yet. If you do not have forage left for livestock to graze at this time of year you may want to reconsider some of [...]

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Review resources available for livestock

As the lazy, hazy days of summer have been replaced by Jack Frost and thoughts of sugar plums dancing in our heads, our farm chores are also changing. Pasture growth has slowed down and may be stopped for all practical purposes, however our livestock still have daily needs to be met. Our efforts in managing [...]

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A few, not all, forages can be toxic after frost

Fall is in the air and Jack Frost will certainly arrive soon. Each year after the first hard frost, I usually answer phone calls from forage producers who are very concerned about the dangers of feeding frosted forages. A very few, but certainly not all, of our forages can be extremely toxic soon after a [...]

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Fall: It’s not the end of the grazing season, it’s the beginning

October signals the coming end to our pasture-growing season. In some cases the growing season equals the grazing season. When pasture growth ends, so does the grazing. However, for those graziers who have managed their pastures and watched over pasture health, the grazing season extends beyond the growing season.

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It’s time to add organic matter to soil

How has fertilizer prices impacted forage production on your farm? How do you think fertilizer prices will influence your production in the future? Can you afford to spread fertilizer on hay and pasture fields these days? Are you sure you can afford not to spread fertilizer on your fields? How are farmers going to be [...]

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Game of farming: Decisions, decisions

If you don’t make the management decisions for your farm, who will?

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Late summer a good time to think about pastures and hay crops

Late summer can be an excellent time to establish new forage stands. It is also a good time to seed in bare or thin spots in stands established this spring. While we can’t control the weather, there are several things we can control that will improve the chances for successful forage stand establishment. First, apply [...]

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Parasites pose a problem in pastures

Summer grazing management is generally about slowing paddock rotations and providing the grass plant with an adequate recovery period before another grazing pass is made. As if that were not enough of a management challenge, the pasture-based sheep and goat producer faces another twist on top of that. They must also manage summer grazing schedules [...]

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Rotational grazing just makes sense

The high cost of fuel and animal feed make it more important than ever to get all you can out of your pasture. How do you start to improve your pasture? Take a pasture assessment — what species of grass and legumes are growing? What we currently have growing in our pastures matches our soil [...]

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Grazing livestock? Please pass the salt

Salt is an item commonly used in livestock feed rations and because it’s used so regularly, it is easy to forget the importance of it in the diet. Salt is the best source of both sodium and chloride, which all farm animals need. Important nutrients Sodium constitutes a very high percentage of the basic mineral [...]

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Gripe, then adjust grazing tactics

Everyone seems to like to talk about the weather and farmers probably lead the pack in a lot of those discussions. It is either too dry like last summer, or too wet like this winter, or too cold to get the plants growing, or too hot to have the livestock out in the fields. In [...]

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Improve pasture yield with clipping

Many producers are looking for ways to improve their pasture yields. The good news is that there are several things that can be done. You can improve pasture fertility. You could plant improved forage varieties. You can manage the grazing of a pasture by removing the livestock before the grazed plants regrow. When you remove [...]

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Evaluate and manage hay field injuries

It was a rough winter for many hay fields in northern Ohio. Considering the stressful conditions last year, followed by a cold and wet winter, it is not surprising that many forage stands took a beating this winter. Alfalfa fields seem to be the hardest hit. The 2007 Easter freeze followed by very dry conditions [...]

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