Some Effects of a Rotational Grazing Treatment on Quantity and Quality of Available Forage and Amount of Ground Litter

Abstract

A 16-paddock, cell-designed, rotational grazing (RG) system was initiated in March 1981 to evaluate the effects of RG on various vegetation response variables and cow/calf production. This 20-month study was initiated in January 1983 to contrast herbage dynamics in the RG treatment to those in a yearlong continuously grazed treatment (MC). Rate of stocking in the RG treatment was 3.7 ha/cow/year as compared to a moderate rate of 5.9 ha/cow/year in the MC treatment. There was no difference between treatments in herbage growth dynamics. Total herbaceous standing crop, however, was greater in the MC treatment than the RG because of greater amounts of senesced forage. The resultant effect on forage quality, in terms of crude protein (CP) concentration and organic matter digestibility (OMD) was that they were generally greater in the RG than the MC treatment. Litter standing crop was also less in the RG than MC treatment although seasonal dynamics were similar. Results indicate differences between treatments were caused primarily by differences in stocking rates and not grazing systems.