Stocking rate and marketing dates for yearling steers grazing rangelands: Can producers do things differently to increase economic net benefits?

Abstract

•The combination of stocking rate and marketing date that maximizes average net return per head will not necessarily maximize average net return per hectare.•The combination of stocking rate and marketing date that maximizes average net return per hectare often comes with risk-related tradeoffs, such as a higher risk and magnitude of negative net returns.•The combination of stocking rate and marketing date will have implications (not quantified in this study) for the quantity of standing forage residue, which could be used for fall/winter grazing within the same year or for drought preparedness in the following year.