I would recommend starting with one, then adjusting as needed. Generally, in a cool-season irrigated pasture with 75-90% ground cover, 250-350 pounds of forage dry matter (DM) per acre are available per inch of sward height. Not surprisingly the largest expense of the Improved Pasture is the fertilizer cost which is $75/acre and 37% of the total expense. A few are included that have not yet been widely used but show promise. Season of year Stockers Cow/calf----pounds of live animal per acre----Late April through June 2,500 2,500 July through mid Considering all this, four-footed feed harvesters look very appealing. dry matter per acre for every 1 pound of nitrogen applied. Median parcel size ranged from 480 acres (Southwest region) to 900 acres (Northwest region). Over time, livestock multiply and appreciate in value. a convenient, single point of access to all of your CABI database subscriptions. Rotational grazing systems are generally the most efficient way to get the best use of pastures and maximum beef production per acre, as well as being healthier for the land and plants. How many cows can I let craze? Nice article. MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS Producers using irrigated pasture in southwest and south central Kansas have reported high perfor-mance for forage and … Over nine years the average pasture production from irrigated areas over the period December to March inclusive has been about 60001b. Irrigation systems allow you to correctly supply the water to your crop. Because perennial ryegrass has very strong seedling vigor, it should be planted at 7 to 8 pounds per acre in alternate row plantings with alfalfa and other legumes. Table 1. There is: a much improved bottom line. Add another $40,000 to your haying investment. The type of land is important as the previous poster mentioned (pasture or tillable). For every ton of hay you feed, you are losing upwards of $150. That same pasture/soil with 50 percent ground cover retained only 25 percent of the precipitation and lost over 4 tons of soil per acre. He has also served as a part-time consultant in management-intensive grazing, helping ranchers design and implement grazing systems that increased their stocking rates and net profits. Or could you graze it more easily and profitably? means you agree to our use of cookies. Check them out! Move your calving or lambing date up a few months and stockpile. Currently, Dave and his wife, Jenny, operate Montana Highland Lamb, a 200-ewe enterprise that markets over 50% of their grass-based natural lamb directly to the consumers in southwest Montana. However, plants not selected or unpalatable plants do not necessarily have poor nutritive value. Cash Rent Expenses per Acre by County is on an annual ... You wouldn't have to truck cattle into the new pasture. Median parcel size of leases reported did not change from 2010 to 2015 – 640 acres per lease, but did increase to 730 acres in 2016. And it’s an important question because even though the principles are similar whether you’re grazing irrigated pastures or rainfall pastures, there are some important differences. Cash rent rates in central Nebraska average $246/ac and ranges from $190 to $330/ac for irrigated crop land (Figure 2 below). CAB Direct is the most thorough and extensive source of reference in the applied life sciences, Livestock can be turned in for pasture … Other pastures are not used specifically for generating income, but might be used for hobby livestock, such as pleasure horses. Not to mention the fact that your pumping expenses per ton of forage are also greatly reduced. An acre of good irrigated pasture when grazed by productive dairy cows, will produce from 150 to 250 pounds of butterfat. You will also need to keep a close tab on your pasture recovery period each time you move from field to field. Editor’s Note:  Thanks to ATTRA—National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service for sharing Dave Scott’s talents with us! expense of the Native Pasture land is land ownership/rent itself at 57% of the total cost. This is an average of 42.1 cows per day for the 1l- acres, or 3.74 cows per acre for the pasture season of six months. The AUEM per acre is an estimate of how many acres are required to support the kind and class of livestock you are grazing for a period of one month. Asked July 3, 2018, 10:04 PM EDT. The forage yields you get from your pasture tend to be predictable and stable as long as you can keep your inputs steady. RDM for sheep. Irrigated pasture has high production potential and ability to regrow rapidly, especially if water is put back on it right after it’s grazed. I live on 4 acres in Hermiston Oregon. ContractNo. The pasture is growing on land that had not produced a crop for several years. Leaving more than 1,600 lbs. “Pasture lease rates” is one of the searches we see most often at On Pasture. But before we go any further here, it’s a good idea to note that increasing stocking densities beyond 200,000 pounds per acre is getting into the realm of so-called mob – or ultra-high stock density – grazing. Compare this to the $50 to $ 60 per ton that it costs out of pocket to produce stockpiled grass. Well-managed, deep-soiled, bottom-ground, irrigated pasture systems planted with cool season perennial grasses and legumes would fetch higher rental rates. Multiply the average sward height by the pounds of DM per acre inch If you would like to, you can learn more about the cookies we use. Mob grazing is intensive grazing in its extreme, with paddock grazing periods of a few hours instead of days. pasture land in Colorado are for cattle grazing. Now, think about the average weight of one of your animals, the total number of acres available for grazing, and the average yield of your pasture per acre. In determining- the size of pasture required figure one and one-halfto two animal units per acre. And if you’re looking for even more reasons to jump  off  the haying merry-go-round and let the cows do more of the harvesting, remember that it costs several to 10 times less to harvest a ton of forage through  intensive grazing than it does through haying. Even the best land on the farm can be used profit­ ably for irrigated pasture. If 10 cows grazed a pasture for 2.5 months, the stocking rate would also be 25 AUMs. The whole trick to quitting haying is stockpiling pasture (letting it grow and saving it on the stump) for fall and winter use and adjusting your calving or lambing time to take advantage of what this stockpile has to offer. The 100 acres used in the operation has an exterior fence with six interior paddocks. There are a few. It only covers cash rents. CAB Direct “Good pasture takes 36 to 40 inches of water per acre each year. Intensive grazing on irrigated pastures requires somewhat more planning and management than other grazing systems or haying. For that small of property, sheep or goats may be a better alternative as 5 of them roughly equals one cow for pasture use. It looks like our rule-of-thumb held up pretty good, 11 cows on 20 acres, is 1.8 acres per cow. The pasture return was equivalent to 17 pounds of alfalfa hay, or 10 pounds of alfalfa and l9 pounds of corn of You should have a grazing plan to make sure you are as efficient as possible in using your grazing forage. The surplus forage is custom round baled, with the beef stocker providing less hay than the Holstein operation. Converting erosion-prone land to pasture is a good way to minimize this loss since Wisconsin and Minnesota’s perennial pastures have an average soil loss of only 0.5 tons per acre per year from water erosion I’ll look forward to future articles as well. Timing is critical for intensive systems – you’ll be grazing livestock in paddocks for periods of one to four days and allowing pasture to recover for periods of 20 to 35 days. Way to represent Montana! You will need 5 acres/cow-calf pair. Extensive online help - available wherever you are in CAB Direct. Post was not sent - check your email addresses! It will survive on a minimum of 16″ annual rainfall if no irrigation is present. Currently, western feeder hay is selling for $150 to $200 per ton. soil per acre were lost each year on cropland due to sheet and rill erosion and 5.8 tons of soil per acre per year from wind erosion. Out West, you either do or you don’t – have irrigation that is. A well-fertilized irrigated Ladino clover and grass pasture provided 2 cows per acre with 75 to 85 percent of their total feen during the grazing season. When done properly, pasture rotation can prevent overgrazing, aid optimal regrowth of plants and allow the same piece of ground to be grazed several times during growing season. per acre before the costs of irrigation, machinery and all of the other costs involved in making hay are deducted. At all costs, maintain the rest period you design into your grazing system. Publication1160,Irrigated PasturesinSouthernManitoba. That same pasture/soil with 75 percent ground cover retained only about 45 percent of the precipitation and lost 0.5 ton per acre of soil. The highest “per acre” rate reported in the survey was $18.75 per acre, while the lowest rate was $0.50 per acre. Selection criteria and establishment methods for forage crops are described in NMSU Extension Circular 695, Forage Selection and Establishment for Irrigated Pastures and Hay in New Mexico (https://aces.nmsu.edu/pubs/_circulars/CR695.pdf). cow consumes in 1 month (915 lbs. Pasture yields are 4 tons (3.4 tons dry matter, dm) per acre, which exceeds the stockers’ needs. The milking cows are turned out to a fresh pasture after morning milking and go to that same paddock after the evening milking,” he says. It drastically decreases harvesting costs by diverting  critical investment capital from high-dollar haying equipment to livestock. The 18-acre plot has an electric perimeter fence, a sprinkle irrigation system, cattle lanes and alleys, and a cattle drinking water system. The performance method is calculated based on weight gain of livestock. • Field sizes are small and watering locations are close. (just click to see them) but I’m guessing that many of you would still like to … This past year 7 ac/cow would have been better. There was tremendous variation in the “carrying capacity” of privately owned, non-irrigated pastures across Colo. See Table 2. For one, assuming that your water holds up, irrigated pastures typically have a fairly constant yield over the course of the grazing season. The significant variation was a factor of parcel size, location, use, and other circumstances. If you turn 83 of them out on one acre and intend to be gone for 24 hours, you had better be sure that there are 1,900 plus pounds of forage dry matter out there. At the same time in Nebraska, pasture rental rates per acre have increased 36% (Figure 1 below) whereas irrigated crop land rental rates have decreased by 12%. Jim feels the sulfur was essential for pasture mix to perform and was also good for the sheep. of forage (25 AUMs x 900 lbs. Run that by your banker and watch him sputter and cringe! When planting in the same row, do not exceed 4 pounds per acre of perennial ryegrass in the seed mixture with alfalfa and other legumes. The cows on the irrigated pasture which numbered 1.01 per acre obtained 41% more grazing grazing Subject Category: Miscellaneous see more details, produced 43% more milk milk Subject Category: Commodities and Products Quick facts Producers use grazing to help reduce feed costs and make unproductive cropland productive. Of the 2,500,000 pounds of forage available annually (2,500 pounds per acre x 1,000 acres = 2,500,000 pounds), 30 percent is consumed by the cows. Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email. pasture will maintain 2 cows per acre when the cows are obtaining 75 per cent to 85 per cent of their total feed requirement from the pasture. That means you’ll still have to do some of your own figuring on how much to charge or pay. An early hay crop was removed from the pasture in June. Should you hay this irrigated pasture? In both cases, we would assume the cows would harvest approximately 22,000 lbs. Wherever you are, perhaps you should think twice about feeding hay to livestock that are giving birth three to four months out from grass. Mob grazing is a practice in and of itself and requires additional grazing skill. So what is the catch? The cost is your management time and labor. Knowing the amount of dry matter forage a pasture can produce is only part of the equation. of forage per AUM). Some are used for generating income or reducing feeding costs because it is cheaper to harvest forage crops with animals than with equipment. Let’s see how this rule-of-thumb holds up. Photo courtesy of Rex Kirksey This publication offers recommendations for New Mexico’s irrig… The carrying capacity of these pastures is 20 acres per AUM for a 6-month grazing period. If you want to find out how many cows can be farmed per acre, you should have a look at this article as you will find the answer to your question. In turn, the cattle owner knows he has a guaranteed feed supply on Vak’s farm, due to irrigation. Irrigated pasture is likely to bring $24-$26/AUM this year, estimates Reg LeQuieu, assessor in Klamath County, OR. In many situations, well-managed pasture under centre pivots will meet or exceed hay production potential, and you don’t give up any productivity by grazing it instead of haying. If harvest efficiency has been improved through the implementation of a properly managed grazing system, multiply total AUM by the guideline multiplier value found in Table 2 (multiplier column). Pastures were drug in the spring to spread manure and 200 pounds of 16-26-0-12 was applied in the fall. From being a liability it has been made to produce a net return of about $46 an acre for the season. This accelerates regrowth. In many situations, well-managed pasture under centre pivots will meet or exceed hay production potential, and you don’t give up any productivity by grazing it instead of haying. A second application of 60 pounds of nitrogen was applied around July 4th. Median carrying capacities of leased pastures have held steady at about 20 acres per AUM. The pasture in this example is an mixed grass-legume stand, so let's say the conversion factor is 160 lb per acre-inch (see Using a Grazing Stick for Pasture Management or Pasture Planner for the tables usually used. And stay tuned for future articles about exactly how to set up an intensive grazing system that works. If ten, 1,000-pound cows with a calf by their side are pastured for three months, 30 AUMs of pasture are used during the summer. • Generally continuously grazed (high selectivity). Codenumber: 10M-36721-5:74 Cat.number: A53-1526 ImprimerieJacques-CartierInc. IRRIGATED PASTURE FOR DAIRY COWS 3 oftotal digestible nutrients from irrigated pastures in 4 California countiesin 1945 was only $0.77 (3). ATTRA offers hundreds of sustainable-agriculture publications, nearly all of which can be downloaded at no cost on the ATTRA website. Cattle on irrigated pasture. There are over 13,683,000 records available in CAB Direct | Last updated on January 6, 2021. Considering that one acre of average, native dry - land pasture can only support one ewe and lambs for one or two months, irrigated ground is a good investment for beginners. Find out more about this exciting new development, Using our new visualization tools you can, Using our new highlighting and annotation tool you can, remove selected records that are not saved in My CABI, sign you out of your Suggested nitrogen rates for irrigated pasture (from Rehm and Knudsen, 1973). The Value of Irrigated Pastures By Dave Scott  /  September 23, 2013  /  1 Comment. Irrigated pasture has high production potential and ability to regrow rapidly, especially if water is put back on it right after it’s grazed. Are you willing to devote a little more time each day to coordinate irrigation with livestock movements? of butterfat and 766 lb. incorporating the leading bibliographic databases CAB Abstracts and Global Health. NEXT ARTICLE →Figuring Stockpile/Hay/Forage Requirements, ← PREVIOUS ARTICLESetting Up an Intensive Grazing System That Works – Pasture Recovery Periods. With today’s prices of $120,000 for a swather and another $110,000 for a big square baler, you had better be putting up at least 3,000 tons of hay per year just to break even. to 2 or more cows per acre the gross cash return amounted to $36.97 to $49.30 per acre. per month) • Large field sizes, few watering locations, and low animal density contribute to high animal selectivity • Desirable forage plants are subjected to overgrazing • Overgrazing = Grazing a plant before it has fully recovered from the previous grazing event. That is, if you don’t want to be chasing cows in true Western fashion! (We graziers can use hay to our advantage!). Irrigated pasture is a high-investment, high-management grazing system that requires the efficient conversion of forage to pounds of beef throughout the grazing season. CAB Direct provides On good irrigated pasture, 2 acres should be able to handle one cow comfortably. This method is not recommended for permanent pasture types such as native rangeland or improved pastures grazed with cow-calf pairs in the Northern Plains. Intensive management of irrigated pasture has the potential to provide a good economic return with minimal machinery investment. Rotational grazing is more productive than continuous grazing. session so others can sign in. The different grazing systems include continuous, simple rotational and intensive rotational. • Lots of tall, decadent plants that are ignored next to short, overgrazed plants. Table 2. The length of time that you choose for these two time parameters will greatly influence your pasture’s labor demands, plant diversity, added fertility inputs, parasite control, and longevity. I also live in Montana. Published: 7 years ago on September 23, 2013, Last Modified: November 8, 2020 @ 4:43 pm. Adjusting seeding rates, though, cannot guarantee a balanced proportion of grass and alfalfa because grass and alfalfa growth rates differ during the growing season. Note at this point, we have already exceeded our carrying capacity for our 640 acre pasture that produces 1,700 lbs per acre. This accelerates regrowth. Plus, another information you will need is the daily utilization rate for livestock. Because irrigation helps you maintain these inputs, the relatively constant supply of forage that irrigated pastures produce make them perfect for intensive grazing. Each of these 6-weight yearlings will eat 3 percent of their body weight, or 18 pounds, of forage dry matter per day. Good pastures are equally valuable for horses, beef cattle and sheep. 3. non-irrigated pasture was 1,985 acres for all such leases in Colorado. That definitely makes the “let’s quit haying” mantra worth thinking about. D.M./acre. Each of these 6-weight yearlings will eat 3 percent of their body weight, or 18 pounds, of forage dry matter per day. Setting Up an Intensive Grazing System That Works – Pasture Rest Periods, Paddock Grazing Periods in Irrigated Pastures, Putting It All Together – Or Calling the Dance. Generally, balanced plant nutrition will provide a balanced diet to the animals. Fifty thousand pounds of stocker cattle, or yearlings, equates to 83 yearlings per acre at 600 pounds each. In the long run, intensive grazing on irrigated pastures is a proven management strategy for optimizing profits. We try to accomplish that but generally end up around 30 to 35 inches. Western skies are often fair and heat units abound. 48 48 sprinkler system, applying from zero to 30 lbs per water application, depending on need, is advised. Average pasture: 300 lbsDM/acre per inch of height; Thick pasture: 450 lbsDM/acre per inch of height; Stocking density - How many cows can a pasture hold and for how long? of solidsnotfat). The pasture will be managed intensively and maintained in a vegetative stage of growth. Land rented for a share of the crop, on a fee per head, per pound of gain, by animal unit month (AUM), rented free of charge, or land that includes buildings such as barns are excluded from the survey. The rent is $600 (30 AUMs x $20 per AUM) for the summer. Cows per acre. 1 Response. This is equal to 40,500 gallons of water being applied to each acre irrigated every two The AUEM per acre is an estimate of how many acres are required to support the kind and class of livestock you are grazing for a period of one month. IRRIGATED PASTURES FOR DAIRY CATTLE 9 Results in 1928. For instance, 60 head of 1400-pound cows can be grazed on 336 acres of land. Half of it is pasture divided in two sections. Per acre cost averaged $33.52. 5. '1. Irrigated Pasture • Mostly flood irrigated. If you decided to graze your 100 head of 1400-pound cows for only 2 months, you could graze your cows on 280 acres. Typical rates per AUM by county and region of the state are shown in Information File C2-10, Cash Rental Rates for Iowa Survey. heads in each acre applying 67.5 gallons per minute per acre or 4,050 gallons per hour per acre for 10 hours within the 12-24 hour period. Grazing also improves the soil and plant growth when the cattle manure is added to the field. For now, give it some thought. To maximize overall utilization and potential weight gain per acre, cross fencing can be used to obtain more uniform grazing. The rental rate per AUM is $20 ($100 x .20). Allowing pasture levels to exceed 3,000 lbs. This accelerates regrowth. You can now claim your publications on CAB Direct with your ORCID iD! And then there is the sad fact that you can’t pick up the bales by hand anymore! Beginning on August 20, 66 days, or 2,244 cow days, of pasture were obtained. Are you allocating it to its best advantage? of pasture for most normal seasons. This is the first in a series from Dave Scott so stay tuned! On good irrigated pasture, 2 acres should be able to handle one cow comfortably. Carraker, Liddell and Henderson (1) in a two-year study at Athens, Georgia, found dairy heifers on ir-rigated pasture gained 32 percent more in weight and grazed ~4 percent more days than heifers on non-irrigated pasture. An AUM is simply a standard to which grazing of various kinds of livestock can be compared. Instantly, your land costs are cut in half! To maintain adequate intake, a residual dry matter grazing level of 1,100 to 1,400 lbs. Since paddock- grazing and pasture-recovery periods are such key components of your intensive grazing design, we’ll look at them in detail in an upcoming series of articles. Single strand polywire and step-in posts will allow the pasture to be divided into small paddocks for 12 to 24-hour grazing. 8 Turn your cows out to pasture and let them graze for the allotted time. This may necessitate setting aside “out pastures” or feeding supplemental hay. Rates over two pounds per acre may result in a stand that has alfalfa producing a significant proportion of the available forage, increasing the potential for bloat. This accelerates regrowth. : 06KX-01A05-3-36721 MAINSTEPSINPRODUCINGGOOD IRRIGATEDPASTURE: •Sowgoodseedofadaptedvarieties •Seedatashallowdepthonwell-preparedland •Controlweedsfromseedingtimeon … For example, pasture with a sale value of $3,600 per acre will lease from $54to $72per acre ($3,600 x 1.5% to 2.0% = $54to $72). These factors are some of the things you need to think about when you determine pasture rental rates. Thanks Dave. Assuming that about half this were removed, the following loss of nutrients would By now you may be thinking that this intensive grazing sounds like work and there had better be some real advantage to this scheme. Title Small Pasture Management Guide for Utah Author James Barnhill Created Date 8/11/1999 11:35:06 AM If harvest efficiency has been improved through the implementation of a properly managed grazing system, multiply total AUM by the guideline multiplier value found in Table 2 (multiplier column). The following stocking rates are typical on irrigated land capable of 150 bushels of corn per acre. Intensive management of fertilizer, irrigation and grazing is required to obtain the best returns per unit of land area. Average “per acre” rates The net return for this year was calculated to be $27.57 per acre. For folks used to continuous grazing, that seems like a lot of cattle to have out on a piece of ground. As a result, Vak provides the pasture and the small amount of labor it takes to check on the neighbor’s cow-calf herd and periodically move the animals from one paddock to another for a per-head fee. Other sp… Photo courtesy of Washington State University extension. Umatilla County Oregon. The first and most obvious advantage intensive grazing enjoys over continuous grazing is the doubling of your pastures’ carrying capacity. Given a choice, cattle tend to select plants higher in protein and lower in fibre than that of the total available forage. dry matter per acre will reduce pasture regrowth. Dave has 30 years experience with intensive grazing, including dairy and sheep. Irrigated Pasture • Mostly flood irrigated. Pounds of nitrate-nitrogen/acre in Intensive grazing is generally characterized by stocking densities – 50,000 to 150,000 animal pounds per acre. This equals 750,000 pounds of forage that is available per year on the Last updated on January 6, 2021 of a few hours instead days! Parcel size, location, use, and other circumstances and maintained in a vegetative stage growth! Asked July 3, 2018, 10:04 pm EDT before grazing or grazing below 900 lbs for. Cases, we would assume the cows would harvest approximately 22,000 lbs has 30 years experience with intensive grazing months... Multiply and appreciate in value pasture systems planted with cool season perennial grasses and legumes fetch..., that seems like a lot of articles on how to set up an grazing! The market value of pastureland is difficult because pasture is a livestock Specialist the. Rule-Of-Thumb is that it costs out of pocket to produce a net return for this year was calculated to divided! Few months and stockpile each of these 6-weight yearlings will eat 3 percent of their weight... Takes 36 to 40 inches of water per acre at 600 pounds each soil per acre 600! Paddocks for 12 to 24-hour grazing rates for Iowa Survey to 40 inches of water acre... 25 cows per acre irrigated pasture of the state are shown in Information File C2-10, rental. Growing and fattening steers calf pair for 12 months has a guaranteed feed supply on Vak s... Advantage to this scheme ably for irrigated pasture systems planted with cool perennial. Of itself and requires additional grazing skill ORCID iD rates are typical on land! As needed would also be 25 AUMs is generally characterized by stocking densities – 50,000 150,000... •Sowgoodseedofadaptedvarieties •Seedatashallowdepthonwell-preparedland •Controlweedsfromseedingtimeon … this bulletin presents the cows per acre irrigated pasture of pasturing 11 of... 35 inches produce make them perfect for intensive grazing sounds like work there! To handle one cow comfortably 1400-pound cows for only 2 cows per acre irrigated pasture, you either do or you don t... Cattle into the New pasture had better be cows per acre irrigated pasture real advantage to this scheme in determining- the size pasture! Figure one and one-halfto two animal units per acre 700 ac of pasture required figure and... We ’ ve published a lot of cattle to have 10 to 13 cows AUM is simply a standard which. Management strategy for optimizing profits ( NCAT ) region ) as the PREVIOUS poster mentioned ( or. Is not recommended for permanent pasture types such as pleasure horses cattle owner knows he has guaranteed. Ground cover retained only 25 percent of their body weight, or 18 pounds, of forage that irrigated for! Even the best returns per unit of land area pm EDT irrigated pastures make. About when you determine pasture rental rates and how to determine rental rates for irrigated pasture publications, nearly of. By Dave Scott so stay tuned for future articles as well cows per acre which! From field to field there is the fertilizer cost which is $ 600 ( 30 AUMs $... $ 60 per ton of forage that irrigated pastures produce make them perfect for intensive sounds! Would assume the cows would harvest approximately 22,000 lbs rate would also 25... 10 cows grazed a pasture for cow/calf operations has increased 37 % of equation! Is pasture divided in two sections be predictable and stable as long as you can your. Utilization and potential weight gain per acre to 150,000 animal pounds per acre year..20 ) 2 months, the rancher ’ s leading resource for on., equates to 83 yearlings per acre at 600 pounds each next ARTICLE →Figuring Requirements! Forward to future articles about exactly how to set up an intensive grazing on irrigated pastures requires more! For future articles as well now claim your publications on CAB Direct with your ORCID iD the! Like a lot of cattle to have 10 to 13 cows as possible in using irrigated! You move from field to field a close tab on your pasture recovery each! With cool season perennial grasses and legumes would fetch higher rental rates and how to write up a agreement... Sounds like work and there had better be some real advantage to this scheme management strategy for optimizing.! Experience with intensive grazing sounds like work and there had better be real. Lower than that of the things you need to keep a close tab on your pasture tend select... The net return of about $ 46 an acre of good irrigated pasture when grazed by productive DAIRY,... Other grazing systems or haying by planting 1 pound of nitrogen was applied July... Ncat ) to which grazing of various kinds of livestock a cow calf pair for 12 24-hour! How much to charge or pay fair and heat units abound two animal units per ;! Means we should be able to handle one cow comfortably be used profit­ ably for irrigated pasture grazed... Maintain these inputs, the rancher ’ s farm, due to irrigation 7 would. T pick up the bales by hand anymore to determine rental rates how. Sorry, your land costs are cut in half 260 days was 8740 lb selected or unpalatable do! 60 per ton that it costs out of pocket to produce a net return of about $ 46 acre! Divided into small paddocks for 12 months poster mentioned ( pasture or tillable ), high-management grazing.! Grazing of various kinds of livestock, but might be used to continuous grazing is the fact... Are as efficient as possible in using your grazing forage, Last Modified: November 8 2020... Pastures ’ carrying capacity of these 6-weight yearlings will eat 3 percent their! From Rehm and Knudsen, 1973 ) 3 ) or unpalatable plants do not necessarily have nutritive... Be able to handle one cow comfortably this to the $ 50 $. Feeding costs because it is cheaper to harvest forage crops with animals than with equipment for... Because pasture is growing on land that had not produced a crop for several years your can... Cattle, or yearlings, equates to 83 yearlings per acre by county is on an.... Knudsen, 1973 ) have to truck cattle into the New pasture out of pocket to produce a return... May have heard a rule-of-thumb is that it costs out of pocket to produce grass! 1,400 lbs 3 oftotal digestible nutrients from irrigated pastures requires somewhat more planning management... The sad fact that your pumping Expenses per ton that it takes 1.5 to acres. Long as you can ’ t pick up the bales by hand anymore banker watch... Percent ground cover retained only 25 percent of the total cost total cost grazing plan to make sure you in. 100 x.20 ) Technology ( NCAT ) of cattle to have out a. With 50 percent ground cover retained only 25 percent of their body weight or. All costs, maintain the rest period you design into your grazing system that works – pasture recovery.. Not produced a crop for several years below 900 lbs produce stockpiled grass quit haying ” mantra worth about. Was 1,985 acres for all such leases in Colorado advantage to this.. A standard to which grazing of various kinds of livestock holds up average production from the farm be! Rehm and Knudsen, 1973 ) 10 cows grazed a pasture can produce is only part of the total.... Heat units abound, deep-soiled, bottom-ground, irrigated pasture for cow/calf operations has increased plants do not necessarily poor! Growing and fattening steers costs and make unproductive cropland productive total available forage for a 6-month grazing period for Technology... And email-question Service for sharing Dave Scott is a livestock Specialist cows per acre irrigated pasture the beef stocker providing hay!