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Cattle Boards
Grasses, Pastures & Hay
Winter Grazing During Dormancy
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<blockquote data-quote="Cowman42" data-source="post: 1826019" data-attributes="member: 43380"><p>There was a study done in Wisgonsen a few years ago showing that pastures grazed over winter after dormancy didn't grow any slower than stockpiled pastures that were skipped. Spring growth was the same for both. I think I remember that dormancy was the key though. If the fall growing cool season grass was grazed or cut when the plant was building root reserves it WAS stunted during spring flush. I changed some of my grazing in the fall and it seemed to be true for me. I actually feed hay in a brushy floodplain during six weeks in the fall and the cattle eat some hay and browse poplar/cottonwood shoots during that time. So far has worked out well. They stay fat and then when dormancy hits they are eating stockpile while the snow starts. Winter is pretty easy here and so they nibble on short grass all winter through the snow and fill up on varying quality hay. My best pasture gets grazed down to the nub over winter and come back stronger than ever every spring. I also unroll hay over the whole field over winter, frost seed what ever legume is cheap that year, and then spread manure with a tire drag once it thaws before it gets too wet. If the jeep tires sink more than an inch or starts throwing mud then I waited too long and I stop. Doing this I have turned a wore out field of nothing but broomsedge and goldenrod into decent pasture that can carry more than 1 AUM with usually less than 7 4x5 per AUM per year. Cattle get nothing but hay and pasture all year.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Cowman42, post: 1826019, member: 43380"] There was a study done in Wisgonsen a few years ago showing that pastures grazed over winter after dormancy didn't grow any slower than stockpiled pastures that were skipped. Spring growth was the same for both. I think I remember that dormancy was the key though. If the fall growing cool season grass was grazed or cut when the plant was building root reserves it WAS stunted during spring flush. I changed some of my grazing in the fall and it seemed to be true for me. I actually feed hay in a brushy floodplain during six weeks in the fall and the cattle eat some hay and browse poplar/cottonwood shoots during that time. So far has worked out well. They stay fat and then when dormancy hits they are eating stockpile while the snow starts. Winter is pretty easy here and so they nibble on short grass all winter through the snow and fill up on varying quality hay. My best pasture gets grazed down to the nub over winter and come back stronger than ever every spring. I also unroll hay over the whole field over winter, frost seed what ever legume is cheap that year, and then spread manure with a tire drag once it thaws before it gets too wet. If the jeep tires sink more than an inch or starts throwing mud then I waited too long and I stop. Doing this I have turned a wore out field of nothing but broomsedge and goldenrod into decent pasture that can carry more than 1 AUM with usually less than 7 4x5 per AUM per year. Cattle get nothing but hay and pasture all year. [/QUOTE]
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Winter Grazing During Dormancy
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