For grazing mentor Steve Kenyon, satisfaction comes when the person he has mentored still has grass in the pasture in a dry year.
“If there’s grazing still in the fall when everyone else is out of grass, that’s a huge success,” said Kenyon, one of 16 mentors in the Sustainable Grazing Mentorship Program who help producers improve their forage operations by offering one on one help.
The Busby, Alta., farmer has worked as a grazing mentor since the program began in 2002.
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“If producers have the passion and desire to learn they do fantastic,” he said.
Ty Faechner, executive director of the Agricultural Research and Extension Council of Alberta, said the grazing mentorship program has proved so popular that the council applied for provincial government funding when federal funding expired last year.
Under the program, producers pay $100 and the program pays the balance, for 16 hours of a grazing mentor’s time and travel expenses, or the producer can pay $50 for half the mentorship time.
A six-hour group session is now being offered for $30 per person.
“We always have really good feedback on the mentorship program,” said Faechner. “The strength of the program is producers working with someone who has been down the path before and can offer insights based on their experiences.”
Most producers choose the 16-hour program with a full two days of mentorship.
Kenyon said each producer’s mentorship is different depending on his areas of interest. The producer may concentrate on building a grazing chart, cell design or water systems.
“We go through the basics of grazing and go whatever direction the producer wants,” said Kenyon, who operates a custom grazing business.
The best results occur after the producer has taken a grazing school, seminar or course before the mentor arrives at the farm. By this time the producer has a good idea of what he wants to discuss, but needs help beginning a new program.
