A3529 Pastures for profit: A guide to rotational grazing Dan Undersander Beth Albert Dennis Cosgrove Dennis Johnson Paul Peterson Introduction 1 Setting up a rotational Contents Why rotational grazing? 1 grazing system 26 Setting goals and What is rotational grazing? 1 assessing resources 26 Who is using rotational grazing? 2 Length of rest periods 26 Why use rotational grazing? 2 Length of grazing periods 27 Understanding plant growth 5 Grazing groups 28 Plant response to grazing 5 Spring start-up 28 Seasonal pasture growth patterns 8 Seasonal fluctuations Weed control 8 in pasture growth rate 28 Soil fertility 10 Determining stocking rate and acreage needed 29 Pasture establishment/ renovation 10 Drought 30 Stockpiling forage 16 Moving livestock 30 Estimating forage yield 16 Paddocks: How many and how big? 30 Animal needs 20 Paddock layout 31 Animal digestion and nutrient Fencing 33 requirements 20 Lanes and laneways 33 Animal water needs 21 Designing a pasture system 34 Animal grazing 23 Deciding when to move Grazing patterns 23 livestock 35 Selective grazing 23 Evaluating and improving your grazing system 36 Amount of available forage 24 Grazing habits of different animals 24 Animal health on pasture 37 Animal impact on pasture 25 Parasites 37 Bloat 37 Nitrate poisoning and poisonous plants 38 Additional reading back cover Introduction Why rotational What is rotational grazing? grazing? astures represent a largely Under rotational grazing, only one untapped resource for farmers. portion of pasture is grazed at a time P More than one quarter of the while the remainder of the pasture Midwest’s agricultural land is in “rests.” To accomplish this, pastures some form of pasture. Yet, 80% of are subdivided into smaller areas these pastures suffer from poor, (referred to as paddocks) and live- uneven fertility coupled with serious stock are moved from one paddock to weed and erosion problems. Most another. Resting grazed paddocks pastures are continuously grazed allows forage plants to renew energy throughout the season. However, con- reserves, rebuild vigor, deepen their tinuous grazing results in the lowest root system, and give long-term possible pasture yields since the maximum production. forage is not allowed to recuperate For rotational grazing to be success- between grazing. The lack of manage- ful, the timing of rotations must be ment makes these pastures a poor adjusted to the growth stage of the forage source and most farmers are forage. Unfortunately, rotational reluctant to rely too heavily on grazing is often reduced to regular pastures to feed their high-producing animal shifts from paddock to livestock. paddock based on rigid time sched- To produce good livestock feed from ules rather than in response to forage pasture, we must manage our growth rate. Rigid schedules reduce pastures differently. This bulletin the benefit of rotational grazing. outlines an alternative: rotational Rotational grazing can be practiced in grazing. By using rotational grazing, a variety of intensities. Systems can you can make a profit from pastures. range from 2 to 30 or more paddocks. This bulletin covers the basics of Management intensive rotational setting up rotational grazing on your grazing involves a higher level of farm. management with greater paddock numbers, shorter grazing periods, and longer rest periods. Generally, more intense management results in greater livestock production per acre. 1 _____________________________________________________________________________________________ P ASTURES FOR PROFIT This bulletin covers the basic princi- term implies slight differences in man- Why use rotational ples underlying all types of rotational agement, they all refer to some sort of grazing? grazing. Management intensive rota- intensive rotational grazing system. Everyone with livestock and grazing tional grazing will be emphasized land can benefit from rotational because it offers a number of advan- Who is using grazing. tages over both continuous grazing rotational grazing? and less intensive rotational systems. Economic benefits Many farmers throughout the These include Midwest practice rotational grazing. Most farmers try rotational grazing ■ more stable production during Wisconsin surveys indicate that in the because of the economic savings. In poor growing conditions (espe- 1990s, the number of rotational Wisconsin, graziers averaged about cially drought), graziers among dairy farmers has $200 more per cow net farm income than confinement dairy farms accord- ■ greater yield potential, increased from essentially 0 to over 21% (figure 1). These range from a ing to farm financial data collected ■ higher quality forage available, large dairy farmer who rotationally from 1995 to 1999 according to ■ decreased weed and erosion grazes 1,600 head on his 2,100 acre University of Wisconsin Center for problems, and all-grass farm to much smaller dairy, Dairy Profitability. During the same ■ more uniform soil fertility levels. beef, sheep, hog, and even chicken period, graziers averaged more than operations. Most livestock have the $1.50 higher net farm income per There are many names for intensive hundredweight equivalent of milk rotational grazing: Voisin grazing, potential to receive a substantial amount of their feed from pasture. sold than achieved by confinement Hohenheim grazing, intensive grazing dairies. Beef, sheep, and dairy heifer management, management intensive growing operations have also seen grazing, short duration grazing, reduced costs and increased profit Savory systems, strip grazing, con- from rotational grazing systems. trolled grazing, and high-intensity, low-frequency grazing. Although each Both start-up and maintenance costs are less for grazing compared to con- finement systems. The only capital cost specific to rotational grazing is fencing. Costs for new fencing range Figure 1. Estimated percent and number of Wisconsin dairy farms using from $1.18 per acre for mobile electric management intensive rotational grazing (MIRG), 1993–1999 fencing with fiberglass posts to $18.37 per acre for high-tensile electric 25% 5,000 fencing. Setting up the whole system percent using MIRG 4708 (using new fencing, fencers, and estimated number of MIRG farms 21.8% water systems) costs from $30 to $70 20% 4,000 per acre. The higher price range 3818 includes the cost of constructing some 3601 livestock lanes. 15% 3,000 14.6% 13.9% 2191 10% 2,000 7.3% 5% 1,000 percent of all dairy 1999 operations, Estimated number of MIRG farms, 1999 of MIRG farms, Estimated number 0% 0 1993 1995 1997 1999 Source: Program on Agricultural Technology Studies (www.wisc.edu/pats/dmirgperc.htm) 2 Introduction ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ If you haven’t already invested in Data from the USDA Natural Wildlife advantages confinement feeding systems, this Resources Conservation Service Populations of native grassland birds, represents a tremendous savings; if (NRCS) shows that in 1997, an such as upland sandpipers, you have, maintenance costs are average of 3.3 tons of soil per acre bobolinks, and meadowlarks, have reduced since your confinement were lost each year due to sheet and declined significantly within the past system needs to be operated only rill erosion on Wisconsin cropland. In 50 years. These birds once thrived in during the cold months. Once in Minnesota an average of 2.1 tons of the extensive native prairies that operation, grazing will reduce equip- soil per acre were lost each year on covered the state. As the land was ment, fertilizer, pesticide, and labor cropland due to sheet and rill erosion converted to row crops and fre- costs. and 5.8 tons of soil per acre per year quently mowed hay fields, the birds’ Because grazing operations can be from wind erosion. habitat has dwindled and their popu- less capital intensive they can also be Converting erosion-prone land to lations are now at risk. Many aspects more financially flexible. pasture is a good way to minimize of rotational grazing systems can help this loss since Wisconsin and reverse this decline: the rested Time savings Minnesota’s perennial pastures have paddocks provide undisturbed Many farmers are reluctant to try an average soil loss of only 0.5 tons nesting habitat; leaving at least 4 rotational grazing because of the time per acre per year from water erosion inches of growth in cool-season grass they assume it will take to move live- and less than 0.1 tons per acre pastures during the spring provides stock. However, the time to move annually from wind erosion. needed cover for the nests; and cattle is minimal if paddock and Reducing erosion rates will preserve creating large blocks (50 or more fencing design is efficient and cattle the most fertile soil with higher water acres) that are not grazed or har- are moved after a milking, often aver- holding capacity for future crop pro- vested between mid-May and early aging only 15 minutes per day. In duction. July give many young birds time to contrast, feeding hay and silage in a mature. Also, warm-season grass Pasturing helps water quality in confinement system may take 20 paddocks, which aren’t grazed until several ways. High levels of nitrates minutes to 1 hour. Grazing may also late June, provide especially good and pesticides in our ground and decrease your need to make hay nesting habitat. Game birds, such as surface waters can cause human, live- which takes an average of 7 hours per pheasants, wild turkey, and quail also stock, and wildlife health problems. acre each season. It also reduces the benefit from pastures, as do bluebirds Pasturing reduces the amount of need to haul manure because most whose favorite nesting sites are fence nitrates and pesticides leaching into manure is dropped by the cattle on posts. For more details about setting our groundwater in two ways: less is the pasture. up a bird-friendly grazing system, see applied and the deeper forage root What if you have to move a huge Wisconsin Extension publication systems take up nutrients from herd? A large-scale stocker farmer Grassland Birds: Fostering Habitats greater depths.