Abstract
In Botswana, cattle rearing can either be in farms or in communal grazing areas. In communal grazing areas, carrying capacities are never adhered to, hence degradation sometimes occurs. This negatively impact on the livestock industry since cattle are mainly free ranging. This therefore calls for periodic checks of grass species to determine whether grazing areas still have potentials to sustain livestock production. A study was done to take stock of grass species and bush encroachment status around the biggest village of Botswana, known as Molepolole. The survey looked at species composition, distribution and production. The survey was done by using line transects, quadrats and plots in the northern and western direction of the village. In each quadrat, grass species were identified, counted by species, height measured and biomass determined by clipping. In plots, woody plants were counted for all species. The survey revealed that despite heavy grazing and periodic droughts the grazing area still has some grass species of good grazing value and the area is being threatened to being encroached by woody species. Thus there is still a potential for use of the area for grazing but at lower stocking rate. However, it was noted that the area needs some restoration by controlling bush encroachment and reintroduction of good grass species.
Highlights
The cattle industry is of vital importance to Botswana’s economy and the rangeland, sometimes called the “Green Gold of Botswana”, provides the essential resources to support the cattle industry
It was hypothesized that presence of perennial good grazing value grass species and low bush encroachment indicates that the area still has a potential to support beef cattle production
Nomenclature of woody species was according to Coates Palgrave (Coates Palgrave, 2002). 2.3 Statistical Analysis The grass species diversity was determined by calculating the Shannon Diversity Index sometimes called Shannon-Wiener Index (Kent & Coker, 1992)
Summary
The cattle industry is of vital importance to Botswana’s economy and the rangeland, sometimes called the “Green Gold of Botswana”, provides the essential resources to support the cattle industry. Whether the rangelands around Molepolole are still good for beef cattle production is not documented In this regard, inventory of grass species, their forage value, basal cover, biomass estimation and their densities are essential so as to determine the suitability of the area for cattle production. The aim of this study was to assess whether the rangeland around Molepolole village still has the potential to support free ranging beef cattle. This was achieved by determining the grass species composition and bush encroachment status in different areas around the village. It was hypothesized that presence of perennial good grazing value grass species and low bush encroachment indicates that the area still has a potential to support beef cattle production. The results of this study might assist range managers and farmers in planning how best to manage grazing areas to avoid land degradation
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