Profitable Pastures

A guide to grass, grazing, and good management

Think Through Your Grazing System

It may seem like extra bother or an unnecessary exercise, but sitting down to plan out what you want from a pasture program and what you’ll do to get there may be time well spent.

The NRCS offers technical assistance for pasture improvements. NRCS can also help you through the following planning process that serves as a roadmap for achieving pasture and livestock goals.

1          Identify your problems.

Are your pastures overgrazed or is there too much pasture for the livestock you have? Should you be getting more production from the acres you have? Do you need better quality in your forages?

Is erosion a problem? Are weeds, brush or thistles a problem? Is your ratio of pasture to hay in balance? Are pastures too big?

Is there a gap in pasture growth or production during the summer? Do you lack good water?

2          Set your goals.

Do you want to have more livestock on the same amount of land? Are you planning to raise primarily beef cows, dairy cows, sheep, graze yearlings, or have a mixed livestock operation?

Are you interested in keeping your herd size constant, but in using less land for grazing? Do you want or need a system that reduces the amount of time you spend managing the pastures and livestock?

Do you have cropland that would be better suited to pasture? Are you interested in reducing off farm purchase of hay to maintain your existing herd?

3          Inventory the resources.

Resource inventory covers everything from water sources to fences to livestock type and numbers, but it starts with soil types.

Soil survey information indicates suitability for pastures, as well as general fertility and adaptability for different forages.

You’ll want to write down the number of acres, the type and condition of forages, soil types, fertility levels and water sources for each pasture. You’ll also want to note fence conditions.

4          Study your choices.

After you’ve taken inventory and know what you want to accomplish with the resources you have available, you’re ready to look at options. The NRCS, Extension and other producers are all good sources of help here.

Using more forages with shorter rotations to allow more rest after grazing is something to consider. Another option is to get more grass–legume combinations in your rotational mix. NRCS and Extension have information on expected yields, forage quality and recommended grazing patterns for forages used in Iowa.

There are various new options for fencing and watering to think about. Fertility and weed/brush control are also areas to consider.

5          Choose a course of action.

It’s a good idea to decide on a course of action, even if you know it will change. Deciding on a plan will help you move closer to making needed changes in your pasture management system.

6          Make your plan.

The NRCS will help you get the plan down on paper in an organized fashion, and can also make recommendations, consult on cost-share and supply resource information.

Your plan should include soil survey information, proposed pasture boundaries, water sources, type of forages in each pasture, and other information that went into your decision-making process.

7          Continually evaluate, adapt when necessary.

Your plan is very likely to change. As you see the need to add forages or livestock, or adapt to new technology, it will be a good idea to look at the plan to see how those changes fit into the big picture.

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