Steer and Pasture Productivity Influenced by Intensive Early Stocking plus Late Season Grazing

Abstract

Core Ideas Preconditioning rangelands by heavy early grazing increases stocking rate. Rotation of Intensive Early Stocking + Late‐Season Grazing with Intensive Early Stocking over two years sustains AGB. A 2‐year rotation of Intensive Early Stocking + Late‐Season Grazing and Intensive Early Stocking increases net returns. Steer gains, aboveground biomass (AGB) remaining at the end of the growing season, and economic returns of Kansas were measured on annually‐burned Kansas Flint Hills rangeland under different grazing management schemes. These systems included: Season‐Long Stocking (SLS‐C), Intensive Early Stocking (IES‐C) and a grazing system which included a two‐year rotation of IES‐Rotated (IES‐R), and IES + Late‐Season Grazing at the normal stocking rate (IES+LSG). No supplemental feeding occurred. Each treatment was applied each year; therefore there is a comparison of IES‐C and IES‐R. Previous work has shown that grazing at twice the normal stocking rate until mid‐season resulted in greater regrowth availability which, in the late season, resulted in steers gaining as well as or better than those stocked SLS‐C at the normal rate even though the stocking rate was higher than normal. The remaining AGB at season's end on pastures grazed under the IES+LSG treatment was lower than annual IES in seven of the 10 year, but that on IES‐R pastures did not differ from IES‐C. Average SLS‐C steer gains (lb/steer) were less in eight of the 10 year than gains for steers grazed season‐long under the IES+LSG. In the other two years, SLS‐C steer gains were equal to that of the steers grazed season‐long under the IES+LSG. Steer gains per acre were always greater on pastures grazed under IES or for the two‐year rotation of IES+LSG and IES‐R system compared to SLS‐C. Net returns ($) per acre were approximately 50% greater under IES and 75% greater for the two‐year rotation system compared to SLS‐C pastures.