MOB GRAZING pics

[gberry]

im with ya...hope ya didnt take offense. ive been lookin into it myself on the grass farmer mag i get. they really get into it. i guess its hard here cuz rain is in such short supply. havin a small herd that comes to a feed bucket does make movin em easier but i have to figure out how long the rcovery size is versus the amt of paddock size and stocking rate to those paddocks.
the problem ends up bein here is that they will graze it down and then without moisture the recovery time is so long that i run out of grass and hafta open it back up for em to go back to '''scavenging'''i guess...maybe browsing is better...but ya know what i mean...


we all rely on the rain..that wasnt meant derogatory by any means

The whole advantage to this type of system is that the paddocks each get a much longer rest period between grazings. If you set stock a paddock, the grass never gets a rest and the cows will come back and nip off new growth as soon as it appears. If you have 5 or 6 10 acre paddocks that you rotate through every 3 days, each paddock gets 12 to 15 days rest. If you take that same 60 acres and divide it into 1/2 acre paddocks rotated twice a day, the paddocks each get a 59 day rest between grazings. I think this would be advantageous in low rainfall areas. We do not graze at this high stock density, but I do see some potential advantages to it and may try it on a portion of our land.

 

[S&S Farms]

What is the 800' golden rule? This is an interesting topic. How many padddocks do you have built at a time? I am trying to figure out the logistics when the farm work gets busy here.


Jeff

 

[BC]

So much depends on the type of forage that you have. Those grazing bermuda would probably want to look at a 16 to 30 day rotation. I know with the MIG daries in my area, this is the rotation they use. When grass is getting ahead of them, they skip some paddocks and bale hay off them. As things heat up in the summer, the rotation stretches. You have to be flexible.

The only time I have seen the ground tromped and cut up after a rain was in the winter time and that was around hay feeders. The sand we have around here drains well and the cattle do not have the opportunity to trample much if you move them regularly.

 

[TexasBred]

So much depends on the type of forage that you have. Those grazing bermuda would probably want to look at a 16 to 30 day rotation. I know with the MIG daries in my area, this is the rotation they use. When grass is getting ahead of them, they skip some paddocks and bale hay off them. As things heat up in the summer, the rotation stretches. You have to be flexible.

The only time I have seen the ground tromped and cut up after a rain was in the winter time and that was around hay feeders. The sand we have around here drains well and the cattle do not have the opportunity to trample much if you move them regularly.

One dairy I know of that uses intensive grazing used "hay trailers" in the winter months which allows him to also move the location of the hay every day and not tear up the ground so badly.

 

[andybob]

Here is the link to the Holistic management site, there is sufficient flexibility in the system to adapt to any environment, I first used these principles in Africa, updated for the difference in climate when in the USA and will be contacting he registered educator for guidance here in the UK.
http://www.holisticmanagement.org/index.html

 

[gberry]

What is the 800' golden rule? This is an interesting topic. How many padddocks do you have built at a time? I am trying to figure out the logistics when the farm work gets busy here.


Jeff

The 800' rule is the maximum distance to water. Some of the "gurus" of rotational grazing recommend this distance. The reason is the cows will stop grazing and go to water as individuals if it is within 800 feet. If it is further, they tend to go as a herd. This can overwhelm the smaller water troughs used by those practicing management intensive grazing. If you keep the water supply close you can use a very small trough provided it will refill quickly. We use a single 30 gallon plastic tub for up to 50 pairs.

 

[jsramer]

What about shade for the cattle during the dog days of summer? I can not see away to set up 60 paddocks that all would have shade accessible. Or is this just one of my own paridigms that cattle need shade.

 

[dieselbeef]

mine seem to like shade..thats s good point in 85% humidity at 97-98 degrees

 

[wstevenl]

Right now mine don't have shade everyday. It's not as hot as it's going to be in the next couple of months, but I'm sure they'd be doing better with shade always available. I'm going to be building a shademobile. I'm either going to use an old hay wagon gear or make a heavy tricycle gear and mount a big tarp (face off of a billboard sign) above it, I'll also mount a mineral feeder and maybe even a small water trough with a float valve. I want to be able to pull it with 1 or 2 people because I don't have a tractor and don't want to drive the truck in the pasture everyday.