Calf Connection

    Some basics apply: Most of the fields used for profitable grazing must be included in the farm’s regular crop rotation. That is, pasture grasses are raised on fertile fields that can be harvested as hay or haylage when necessary.
    These pastures are normally kept in grass sod for an indefinite period since, apparently, a good grass sod takes three to five years to develop.
    Don’t confuse continuous grazing and managed intensive grazing. In continuous grazing, entire fields are available to all heifers for the whole grazing season. Managed intensive grazing requires that heifers be moved regularly to fresh pasture. New forage regrows in previously grazed paddocks.

Managed intensive grazing for heifers can reduce costs associated with labor, health, feed and nutrient management.

Grazing Equals Lower Costs
    Grazing heifers produces four significant cost savings:
    1. Lower forage-harvesting costs. Well-managed grazing farms harvested about 40% of their grassland mechanically once a season, reports James Grace of Allegany County Cornell Cooperative Extension. Harvesting was usually done in late spring or early summer, and the dairies averaged 1.3 clippings of pasture per season. Pasture maintenance and mechanical harvesting added some costs.
    Compare this to the costs of confinement feeding. Mowing and raking hay forage is estimated to cost $18 an acre. What’s the total cost if you do that three times a season? Hay baling can cost 50 cents per small bale and haylage harvesting runs around $7 per ton.
    2. Lower manure disposal costs. As heifers move from paddock to paddock for fresh grass, their manure goes with them. No front-end loaders, tractors or manure spreaders are needed to spread their manure.
    With grazing, soil nutrient management can improve and soil erosion rates can possibly decrease.
    3. Lower crop costs. Once established, grass sods endure from year to year, eliminating annual tillage. Costs associated with sod maintenance, such as fertilizer and reseeding, are much lower than field expenses of plowing ($15 per acre), fitting ($11 per acre) and planting ($11 per acre). Compared to corn and alfalfa, grass pastures require fewer insecticides and herbicides.
    4. Lower health maintenance costs. The benefits to animal health are more difficult to quantify in dollars. But grazing has been shown to lower the rates of respiratory illness and improve feet and legs.

Not For Everyone
    Before delving into grazing your replacements, assess whether your dairy and your management team are ready for the change.
    Dairies without adequate land near heifer facilities clearly won’t institute this extensive land-use practice. Roads, suburban land development or irregular topography can also prevent the development of a practical grazing plan.
    Dairy managers must be committed to grazing and the entire farm management team must support it for a successful transition from confinement to grazing.
    Many producers now grazing heifers report labor requirements actually increase the first year of moving from confinement to grazing. Later, labor levels fell below those required for confinement feeding.
    A half-hour video called “Back to Grass: Farming with Managed Intensive Grazing” explores the application of grazing practices on commercial dairy farms. A catalog of grazing resources, including books, manuals, conference proceedings, periodicals, newsletters and Internet resources is also available.
    To borrow the video and get the catalog, contact Cornell Cooperative Extension, New York State Soil and Water Conservation District offices and USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service county field offices.