Rotational grazing is always a dynamic process…in implementing it, we are always balancing grass condition with livestock needs. Factors like temperature, grass species, rainfall, soil fertility, and probably the phase of the moon all throw uncertainty into the mix.

This time of year, grass in Oregon heads out, releases pollen (ask allergenic Val…), and begins to set seed; this process reduces the nutritional content of the grass, and gives our cows lower weight gains.

I’ll be mowing it tomorrow to get it back to a vegetative condition, but thought I’d experiment with the cattle by putting in some extra hay to see if they prefer that to the pasture. As you can see, it would appear that wearing it is preferred to eating it…he rooted around in it for about 10 minutes before taking a bite. I’ll take that as an indicator that the pasture still has plenty of nutritional content for them.