Any Management Goin’ On Here?
September 20th, 2015 · No Comments · Posted in farming
When I started Spy Dog Farm two and a half years ago it was with the latest grazing theories in mind, so-call “managment intensive” grazing that calls for confining the livestock in small areas behind portable electric fencing and moving them to fresh grass on a daily or even more frequent basis. Intensive management improves the soil and reduces the possibility of grass-born parasites. Every morning I’d get up, mow new lanes for my electric netting and move the animals–the sheep, the goats, the cow–to the next small square of grass.
It seemed to work just fine. The grass got eaten. Parasites were not a problem. But there were so many other things to tend to on the farm. Like keeping all that grass in check where the animals can’t graze, or stacking firewood, or clearing fallen trees. Plus, I had reservations about how the tractor I was using to mow those fencing lanes was compacting the pasture soil. And our pastures really don’t have any shade trees in them. I worried about the heat stress on the animals with the summer sun bearing down.
So this year I took a different approach. A very different approach. I simply put up fences that confine our livestock to our main grazing areas. I don’t mow lanes any more, and I don’t move the animals. To control weeds, I occasionally mow large sections of the pasture. And the animals seem just fine with this. In fact, they seem to have the good sense to move themselves multiple times each day. And I do believe they are covering our entire graze land.
The fact is, I only have so much energy each day and I’ve got to spread it around. There’s a cow that needs milking every morning, chickens that need feed and water and cages moved twice daily. The goats need tending, and every hour I collect eggs from our two flocks of laying hens so the hens don’t eat them. Water troughs need to be filled. Grass along the electric perimeter fence needs to be kept short so it doesn’t short out the electric charge.
Add it all up and there’s plenty to do without moving sheep to fresh paddocks every morning.
As I write this, I look out my office window at our small flock that has come off the hillside in the upper pasture, rested in the shade of a hedge row, and now are quietly but intently grazing the area behind the house. In a few minutes, I’ll be on my feet again, feeding those broiler chickens, lugging cans of fresh water, and moving their cages to fresh grass.
That’s management enough for me.
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