By Jon Bansen

Monmouth, Oregon—At the latest American Forage and Grasslands Council meeting, the buzz was about increasing profitability by extending the grazing season. Although one piece of the puzzle, it’s also true that increased days on pasture can come at a high price if soils and plant health are degraded.

In reality, the true profits lie with optimizing a farm’s total feed production, with an eye on putting as much forage as possible into the animal through managed grazing. There are no instructions for putting this puzzle together, as each of our farms is unique in its soil types, weather patterns, topography, irrigation potential and land base. Continue reading “The profit key: working within your farm”

Goal: grain feeding as punishment

by Nathan Weaver

Canastota, NY—We have long hoped to have a no-grain milking herd, and we have geared the herd and our farm toward that conclusion. We stopped our original no-grain effort shortly after moving to this farm several years ago, as the land was not yet able to produce enough quality feed to allow for success.

But we decided to try again in 2012. We have not fed grain to our spring-seasonally calved dairy herd since mid-May of last year. I will try to write about our experiences. Continue reading “A report from our return trip to no grain”

Riskier weather requires spreading risk

by Dan Vosberg

South Wayne, WI—Scientists are showing some pretty strong evidence that the climate is changing here in Wisconsin. According to their data, we will experience hotter summers, longer growing seasons, warmer winters and more dry spells and droughts. Storms will be more violent, with more downpours and fewer gentle rains. It’s hard to argue against their predictions when the weather we’ve been receiving lately seems to support them.

2012 is over, thank goodness, but it will probably be remembered as the year that forced us to look at doing some things differently. Continue reading “As weather changes, so must we”

Onan’s irrigation system pays its way even if wet years outnumber dry ones

Amherst Junction, Wisconsin — Most of Paul Onan’s milking cows are contentedly grazing lush pasture at high noon with the mercury heading toward the upper-90s. It is a scene many a midwestern dairy grazier would pay a lot to duplicate in this terrible summer of 2012.

And Paul has paid more than a little. More than $12,000 for a well and a 10-horsepower submersible pump. Equipment valued at more than $10,000, although most of that cost was covered by a government grant. About $500 worth of electricity used during a period of four weeks, with much more to come should the dry weather continue. Close to an hour’s worth of daily labor to move equipment, plus the usual hassles involved in fixing the broken parts that come with anything mechanical. Continue reading “One out of three ain’t bad”