Potential to improve winter grazing pastures: Sieben land and livestock study

Authors: HIBBARD, CHASE - Sieben Livestock Company; HIBBARD, COOPER - Sieben Livestock Company; LARSON, RYAN - Utah State University; FEUZ, RYAN - Utah State University; Rigby, Craig; Jensen, Kevin; LARSEN, ROYCE - Uc Davis Medical Center

Submitted to: Rangelands
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 1/24/2021
Publication Date: 2/13/2021
Citation: Hibbard, C., Hibbard, C., Larson, R., Feuz, R., Rigby, C.W., Jensen, K.B., Larsen, R. 2021. Potential to improve winter grazing pastures: Sieben land and livestock study. Rangelands. 143(3):100-110. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rala.2020.12.007.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rala.2020.12.007

Interpretive Summary: Many cow-calf operations rely heavily on grazed perennial forage (native range and improved pastures) throughout the growing season and have traditionally over wintered cows in confined feeding areas such as dry lots/pastures with hay or silage offered. It is estimated that feeding over wintering cattle accounts for two-thirds of the costs associated with cow/calf production in western Canada. One such option, is to replace mechanically harvested forage with stockpiled forage to be grazed during the fall and winter. Grazing stockpiled forage during the fall and winter has shown to reduce the amount of mechanically harvested forage needed to over winter a cow. Grass mixtures of intermediate wheatgrass and meadow bromegrass produced 2 and 3 times the stockpiled forage than orchardgrass and native range, respectively. Economic pay-back period on the initial pasture establishment costs were less than a year for intermediate wheatgrass, meadow bromegrass/intermediate wheatgrass and meadow bromegrass/tall fescue mixtures.

Technical Abstract: With ever-increasing operational costs of cow/calf production, profit margins continue to decrease, resulting in producers exploring alternative management practices to reduce costs. It is estimated that feeding over wintering cattle with mechanically harvested forage can account for 42 to 70% of the yearly input costs for livestock operations in the western U.S. and Saskatchewan, Canada. However, poor forage availability and nutritional quality are a major deterrent to fall and winter grazing. This study was conducted on the Sieben Land and Livestock Ranch outside of Cascade, MT. This study evaluated intermediate wheatgrass, meadow bromegrass, tall fescue, orchardgrass, crested wheatgrass in various grass mixtures with sainfoin, alfalfa, and small burnet. The plots were grazed once each winter for 24 hours with about 1,000 mother cows. Data collection included initial plant establishment, species persistence, fall forage yield (Oct-Nov.) harvest, and forage nutritional quality on the fall harvest and then right before the cows grazed in the winter. Grass mixtures of intermediate wheatgrass and meadow bromegrass produced 2 and 3 times the stockpiled forage than orchardgrass and native range, respectively. Economic pay-back period on the initial pasture establishment costs were less than a year for intermediate wheatgrass, meadow bromegrass/intermediate wheatgrass and meadow bromegrass/tall fescue mixtues.