A rangeland agrologist with Saskatchewan Agriculture listed more than a dozen ways producers can cut the labor and cost of winter feeding cattle.
The ideas centred on extending the grazing season. There was also advice for feeding cattle on open areas during the winter, rather than having them penned.
Lorne Klein told producers at the Manitoba Grazing School in Brandon Dec. 7 that the ideas could help in coming years. Low hay and grain prices this year have sapped some of the urgency for keeping cattle on pasture longer.
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“It’s pretty difficult for me to say, given the (current) price of grain and hay, that you need to extend the grazing season.
“But stay tuned because hay prices are not going to stay this low forever.”
Following are some ideas Klein cited. They are methods he gleaned from Saskatchewan producers during his work with Saskatchewan Agriculture’s grazing and pasture technology program.
- Portable windbreaks – The example given by Klein was a windbreak built from wooden slabs that are attached to a frame of metal piping. The key, he said, is to design a portable windbreak that is easy to move. The advantage is that cattle can be fed in different locations during the winter. That helps to eliminate manure buildup.
- Crop residue – Oat, wheat and barley straw can provide a source of forage during the winter, said Klein. After combining, the straw is left in swaths across the field. Grain or silage can be used to augment the cattle’s diet and as an added incentive for them to eat the straw.
- Chopped straw- Attach a wagon behind a combine with a straw chopper mounted on it. The wagon, enclosed except for an opening in the front, will catch the straw and chaff, which can then be fed during winter months on open areas.
- Green feed – Rather than baling a green feed crop of barley or oats and then hauling the bales off the field, swath the crop and leave it in the field. Although quality is lowered if the crop lies in the field for three to four months, Klein said the loss of feed value is less than what it would have cost to bale the feed.
- Italian ryegrass – Seeded in early spring, the crop could be harvested in early July, said Klein. The regrowth offers forage for cattle. Depending on snowfall, grazing could continue into the winter. The quality of the ryegrass remains high late into the season, Klein said.
- Stockpiling native pasture – set aside part of the pasture for grazing in late fall and winter months. That works best, said Klein, where land values are low and the producer can afford to postpone grazing.
- Seeded pastures – Instead of taking a second cut of alfalfa, for example, leave the crop standing. The regrowth then can be used for grazing after mid-September.
Klein said producers should work out the math to gauge possible savings before proceeding.
Dylan Biggs, a rancher from Hanna, Alta., said his family has tried some of the methods cited by Klein.
Stockpiling of pasture works, he said, but only in some years. If the snow gets a crust of ice on it, for example, the cattle have a hard time grazing.
The Biggs family also uses portable windbreaks on its 10,000 acre ranch. It offers the advantage of having the manure spread around rather than piled in one centralized area at the end of winter.
Located in east-central Alberta, Biggs said there were years when extended grazing allowed them to trim their winter feeding to less than 110 days.
