Rotational Grazing - The Benefits of a Controlled Grazing System

Why a controlled grazing system can help you to more efficiently utilize your land!

Problems with continuous grazing
Quality and quantity of a pasture
Controlled Grazing as an alternative
Integrated Management
Types of Controlled Grazing systems
Methods for improved livestock distribution
Sources for additional information

Traditional methods of livestock management may have worked well in their times, but today, with increased population and decreasing available pastureland, farmers are trying new ideas. The impact of larger numbers of animals on smaller parcels of land has caused a new perspective to develop on how to more efficiently manage livestock.

What's wrong with continuous grazing?

Continuous grazing is also known as a "one paddock" system. With this method the herd only utilizes about 20% to 30% of the potential production of pasture, due to the tendency to back-graze. Back-grazing is a process in which the herd enters the pasture, grazing what is convenient and comfortable, and then turning around and "back-grazing" regrowth of tender young shoots of grass.

Results of poor grazing distribution include:

• low harvest efficiency due to a portion of pasture being underutilized
• lowered range quality condition in localized heavily used areas
• development of erosion problems in heavily used areas
• lower animal production, per acre, due to reduced harvest efficiency

Understanding quality and quantity of a pasture

A misconception of grass is that it's a poor quality, low protein, low energy feed. There is a critical difference between leafy, immature grass and grass hay. Grass hay is usually collected from mature, defoliated plants, harvested at the end of their reproductive life. Then this hay is baled into a round or square form that sits for a period of time until it is needed. This baled hay generally tests at levels of 5% to 10% protein. In contrast, fresh and immature pasture grasses and legumes, 4-8 " tall, usually test at 25% to 30% protein.

In continuous grazing systems, as grasses and legumes are not eaten (the ones that are neglected in less convenient areas), they mature and reproduce, completing their life cycle, ceasing to grow any further. Also, as the livestock back-graze new shoots, the grasses and legumes eventually lose root strength and die. The new shoots needed to convert sunlight and water back into root energy reserves never survive long enough to replenish the root energy needed for their initial growth. Eventually the continuously regrazed plants fail to survive the winter and die, only to be replaced by invasive weeds and less palatable species, which the livestock avoid.

An alternative to traditional continuous grazing: Controlled grazing.

With controlled grazing the farmer manages the duration and extent of pasture use. The ideal distribution of livestock occurs when proper utilization extends uniformly over the entire pasture. Cattle are creatures of habit and when left alone their grazing tends to be concentrated in convenient areas. Therefore, grazing animals must be enticed or forced into seldom-grazed areas.

This improved grazing distribution results in higher harvest efficiency because livestock consume a greater portion of the available forage. As a result, livestock nutrient needs can be met by providing season-long availability of nutritious, palatable, non-toxic forage.

Figure 1: Cows grazing at the Jacoby Creek Land Trust.

The many elements of good grazing management include:

• More uniform seasonal forage production
• Potential for higher forage yield and quality
• More uniform soil fertility, since manure is evenly distributed
• Less weed and erosion problems
  

Integrated Management: Multi-species grazing

The idea behind this system, often used to complement controlled grazing, is to allow a secondary animal species (other than the cattle) to utilize other tropic levels of the pasture thereby redistributing nutrients more evenly and potentially controlling parasite reinfection if poultry is used as the secondary species. This is known as integrated parasite management for ruminants. For example, here at the Jacoby Creek Land Trust after the cattle are allowed to graze one pasture and rotated to another, chickens are allowed into the recently grazed pasture. The chickens then forage for food, eating parasite larva if present. Furthermore, the activity of the chickens foraging and defecating results in the redistribution of the once concentrated nutrients from the cattle waste. This management scheme (rotational grazing coupled with multi-species grazing) results in a healthier pasture that is green throughout, not in splotches.

Figure 2: Chickens grazing after cows are rotated to a new pasture.

Types of controlled grazing systems

There are several variations of controlled grazing systems, many of which are described in Table 1. A grazier should use the method most suitable for their circumstance, considering type of livestock, size of herd, and type and area of pastureland available. As can be seen in the following table, each method is a slight variation of the other, specified to characteristics of the particular situation.

Table 1. Methods of Controlled Grazing

Controlled grazing	Producers manage forage availability, quality, and utilization.
Rotational grazing	Livestock graze from 2 to 40 or more sub-pastures or paddocks in sequence.
Intensive rotational grazing (also called management intensive grazing)	A rotational grazing system in which the grazing period is typically less than 4 days.
Rationed grazing	A predetermined amount of forage is allotted to the animal on a daily, weekly, or longer basis.
Strip grazing	A rationed grazing system in which a pasture is grazed in strips to enhance the utilization rate. No further grazing is anticipated. If regrazed, it would be a rotational system.
Time-limit grazing	Livestock graze a limited amount of high quality forage for a short period, usually once or twice daily, as a supplement to lower quality forage.
First/second grazing	Rotational grazing involving two groups of livestock with different nutritional needs. The group with higher requirements grazes a paddock first to select prime feed. The second group grazes after the first group has been moved to a fresh paddock.
Forward creep grazing	A modified first/second grazing system using cow-calf pairs. Calves are first grazers but retain access to the paddock where the second grazer cows are confined.
Source: Adapted from Gerrish, 1990.

Methods to improve livestock distribution

Controlled grazing involves much more than just putting up fences and corralling the livestock. Livestock have a tendency to graze convenient areas (those close to water or more accessible areas, such as level terrain in generally rough topography). Without proper enticement and given freedom of choice, cattle, like those in Figure 3, will abuse these convenience areas. Graziers calculate stocking rates based on the assumption that grazing is being uniformly distributed. When it isn't, convenience areas become overstocked and others under stocked. Areas of high and low range condition develop within the same pasture even if the pasture has been grazed at a proper stocking rate. As a result, range condition and potential livestock growth are lowered even when less convenient areas within the paddock or pasture have nourishing, palatable vegetation.

Figure 3: Herd of cows grazing a moist and level convenient pastureland area (courtesy of Laroche Collection)

In Table 2, one can view a quick summary of these various methods with a detailed description following for each.

Table 2. Summary of techniques available for improving livestock grazing distribution

Approach	Action or Consideration
Enticing animals to specific locations*	Water development placement Salt and mineral placement Supplemental feeding location Rub and oiler placement
Force distribution of grazing animals**	Fence along range sites Pasture size Pasture shape
Grazing management strategies***	Rotational grazing Stocking density Season of grazing
Livestock considerations****	Class of livestock Vegetation and terrain characteristics

*Enticing animals to forage: placement of water is one of the most important, single factors affecting grazing distribution. Water needs vary with species of animal, type of forage available, and weather conditions. The slightest water deprivation will reduce forage intake and thus limit animal performance.

The old idea of cattle needing water after salt consumption has proven itself false. Therefore, salt can be placed away from water sources. After first being shown the location, salt can be placed more than a 1/4 mi away from water. Salt should be moved when forage plants in the area have been exhausted.

Supplemental feeding, used during the winter or throughout a dry summer under drought conditions, can effectively entice livestock to under-grazed areas.

Rub and oiler placement are also important to effective distribution practices. Sometimes, forced use of these items at access points to water facilities may be necessary.

Other methods that can be used to entice animals to pasture include mowing and systematic burning. These techniques remove mature plant materials and provide nutrients for fresh, abundant regrowth.

**Forcing distribution: Topographic variability (variety of land surfaces), forage available, and distribution of shelter or shade all contribute to uneven use of a pasture. In a heterogeneous pasture, livestock over utilize favored sites, leaving less attractive areas untouched. Fence placement should take this into consideration, while intending to maximize the homogeneity of a pasture. Management strategies of timing and length of grazing can only be effective in a pasture dominated by a single range site.

Pasture size is directly correlated to water placement. Pasture area should not result in distances that will reduce water consumption. Reducing pasture size to meet this need can improve distribution.

Long, narrow pastures are grazed much heavier closer to the water source. As distance from water increases in a long narrow pasture, varied use between the front and back of the pasture increases. For smaller pastures, where livestock are never much more than a 1/4 mi. from a water source, shape is much less significant.

***Grazing management strategies: Rotational grazing along with its varied methods, as referred to in Table 1, involves moving livestock through two or more paddocks with each grazed at least once throughout the growing season. Rotational grazing and its associated paddock system directly impacts distance to water, pasture size, pasture shape and uniformity, and stocking density. Implemented with consideration to how these other techniques are influenced, rotational grazing practices can be very effective.

Stocking density can be increased as livestock are no longer spread over one large pasture, but are consolidated at one point. At this time competition for forage increases, and the forage allowance decreases. As a result a greater portion of pasture forage is consumed by livestock and less is lost to such things as trampling, spoilage by animal wastes, and plant maturation.

Grazing seasons should take plant development and livestock grazing behavior into consideration. Many plants that are unpalatable at maturity are readily accepted in their immature states.

****Livestock considerations: According to the US Forest Service, here are some things to consider when deciding the type of livestock to graze:

• Yearling cattle utilize pastures more uniformly over variable terrain than cows with calves or mixed classes
• Yearling heifers will utilize steep rocky terrain more evenly than yearling steers
• Cows and calves utilize forages nearest the water much more heavily than do yearlings
• Old cows with calves tend to utilize sheltered areas most, entering open terrain only when forced to seek forage
• Young cows with calves tend to use open grassland, entering inaccessible terrain only when faced with lack of forage.

Determining the optimum mix of livestock for a pasture of mixed vegetation and topography is difficult. Farmers can meet livestock nutrient needs by providing season long forage through using a combination of permanent and cropland pastures.

Some useful sources for additional information

www.ca.uky.edu	If any new terminology is confusing, this site is for you.  It provides a definition to every word associated with grazing livestock.
http://www.mda.state.mn.us/crp/GRAZING.htm	Agriculture Department of Minnesota website provides great general introductory information and specifics on forage maintenance and care.
www.sheepscreek.com/rural/pasture.html	This site has a wealth of information about rotational grazing.  Great for those who want to learn more.
www.cnr.uidaho.edu	This site provides easy to understand diagrams and charts showing the benefits of rotational grazing practices.
www.attra.org	The National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service website provides information on sustainable practices and what that means.
www.polyfacefarm.com	Check out some of Joel Salatin’s articles and books on multi-species integrated management.

"The predictability of livestock grazing patterns should not be ignored, nor poor grazing distribution accepted, when knowledgeable management decisions can improve range live stock productivity."
-author unknown

Information researched by Andrew Carolus, Humboldt State University
amc46@humboldt.edu