|
Mid MO | I read someplace that 7 pastures is where you will start to see real improvement.
Every farm is different, especially when you take history into considereation. Have a neighbor who's rotation is basically north side of road till pasture runs out. Then south side of road. Then back to north or feed hay. He puts up loads of very cheap hay and it works for him. He has a good legume component most years. That farm has never been plowed, that I know of.
Little piece I take care of, right next door has had the puddin' farmed out of it. Totally different senario. I rotate pastures, try to stockpile. Regrowth is always substandard. Fight brush and blackberries constantly. BUT, I'm trying to grow grass on subsoil. Added lots of fertility over the past 10 years. More grass all the time. Used to produce 500# an acre, now more like 2,000. Still a long way to go. If I had to buy manure, it wouldn't pencil out. If I could only set stock, I would have even more undesirable species and less grass. It's what I have to do to make this farm work. I have 5 permanent pastures and can subdivide with poly wire. This place had no fence when i started. If you have some fence, just use polywire to subdivide and learn to graze. Don't go ape and spend a lot of money, imo.
Start with the soil and resources you have and plan the farm from that perspective. I would also attend the school at Lineus. Skip a lot of the mistakes I've made (;
| |
|
Intensive/rotational grazing stocking rate increase?
