The Monthly Feedstuff - Manage fall grazing + Meet the new addition to the PFI livestock team

Equipping farmers to build resilient farms and communities.

As perennial pasture grazing winds down for the year, it’s important to finish with the next year in mind. Fall can either be seen as the finale, or the prelude to a pasture’s song. The University of Minnesota has a checklist to go through for wrapping up your pasture in a way that sets spring up for success.

One way to give your pasture a rest while extending the grazing season is to move to grazing cover crops. This blog from PFI assesses the costs and added value of grazing cover crops. If you’d like to try grazing cover crops but don’t have any of your own, you can use The Midwest Grazing Exchange to find a farmer looking for livestock to graze their land.

PROGRAM UPDATES

PFI welcomes Margaret Chamas' return to staff

Margaret Chamas has (re)joined the PFI staff as the livestock viability manager. She will oversee cost-share and business development projects that empower farmers to raise and market livestock in environmentally and economically sustainable and viable ways.

Research report: Feeding Whey to

Pastured Broiler Chickens

In one of last year's cooperators’ research trials, Carmen and Maja Black, Helaina Thompson and Carlos Williams investigated feeding whey, a source of protein, to their pastured broiler chickens. See the results of their experiment here!

Interested in conducting your own on-farm research trials with PFI? The annual cooperators meeting is coming up in December. Email stefan.gailans@practicalfarmers.org to learn about upcoming opportunities to get involved.

BEYOND THE GATE

Grazing with Wildlife in Mind, Part 1

One benefit of rotational grazing is the potential for increased plant diversity. With plant diversity can come wildlife diversity. But what if increased wildlife diversity was part of the plan from the beginning?

This episode of the Voices from the Field podcast is the first of a multi-part conversation between Dr. Sam Fuhlendorf of Oklahoma State University and NCAT Grazing Specialist Linda Poole about using grazing to bolster, rather than unintentionally harm, desirable wildlife on farms and ranches.